Sock Innovations Project

In May 2011 my friend Shirley gave me the Cookie A book - Sock Innovation as a birthday present.  After perusing the designs I decided I would like to knit the entire book, so set out on an odessy to do just that.
Just over 2 years, 15 skeins and many hexipuffs later I finished the final pair in the book - Villai.
This pair was knitted for Shirley as I promised her the last pair in the book, she chose a yarn, but didn't know the pattern she was going to get.  I had decided on Vilai at about Pair 5-6 as I knew it would be a design she would appreciate.

The patterns were knitted in a random order to keep things interesting and because there were some I wanted to knit before others.

I found the book had a good mix of cables, lace and knit/purl patterns.
I particularly enjoyed knitting Angee as it was straightforward and easy to get set, Eunice mainly for the lovely yarn I used, but the cables worked so well on this pair. Kai Mei were interesting as a post op project as the cuff element was a straight rib, so low concentration needed and the sweeping foot pattern was straight forward and easy to follow as a pattern and you could see it moving across the socks.
My least favourite patterns were Devon and Rick, mainly because they involved a lot of open lace work and I felt my socks looked scruffy, some of this was due to needle size and at some point I would like to have another go at them on a smaller needle.  The heavy cable designs of Kristi and Bex were challenging but once I got used them the socks grew quickly.  Milo involved a lot of construction work and having to follow 3 charts in a special order, but the finished effect was stunning, especially the OXO design down the back of the cuff/leg.

More by accident than design I seemed to have knitted most of the designs in Laughing Yaffle Yarn, probably because I have so much in my stash as it is my favoured brand of hand dyed sock yarn.  Sunshine were knitted for my mother in some yarn I had dyed myself and Wanida and Cauchy were knitted in commercially available sock yarn like Regia/Opal.  Finally Bex were knitted in Wollmeise that I had purchased from a fellow online knitter.  This was a semi solid yarn which is what the very dense cable pattern required.

This project grew in April 2012 to the concept of 100 pairs of socks which is why I'm writing this blog!

The initial Sock Innovation project took a while, what with deviations for Christmas Presents, scarves and other minor distractions along the way.

It is the first time I ever felt inspired to knit an entire book and have enjoyed knitting every pair- some more than others! It has also got me hooked on Cookie A's patterns and I have been collecting them on Ravelry and they form a major part of my queue:-) I have sent a copy of the photo to her as I'm not sure how many people have done the entire book.

The next mini project, after some random pairs because I like the patterns will be the Cookie A Jazz Collection. 

It would be so cool to collect every pattern she has designed and knit them, but some are unavailable now so that may not be possible, but I will do what I can!

Pair 24 - Vilai

 

Here is the final pair of the Sock Innovations project - Vilai.

 

They required slightly more attention than first anticipated, but once the pattern was set was relatively straightforward to knit.

The pattern did involve the occasional use of 2 cable needles and an intricate lacy pattern for the sides of the socks.

 

This pair were knitted for my friend Shirley who bought me the book as a birthday present in 2011,

 

The yarn used was a Laughing Yaffle one - Wallflower which Shirley had picked out of my stash for the final pair in the book.

 

Started 22 June 2013

Finished 13 August 2013.

Pair 23 - Bex

This is pair 14/15 of the Sock Innovations sub-project.

It was a challenging pair to knit as it was another heavily cabled pattern a bit like Kristi ( Pair 19) Once I got going and finally memorised the various different cables going in all directions they grew quite quickly.
They were fun to knit, although seemed to take an age to start progressing.
The yarn I purchased from another knitting Fetch user - Velociraptor who was destashing. The yarn is a colourway called Palomino and by Wollmeise.
the yarn had a high twist and kept re-twisting and tangling slightly.

The socks had originally been started in O Tannebaum but the yarn was too busy for the pattern and ended up as Pair 20- Vanilla instead.

I only have one more pair to knit to complete Sock Innovations.

Started 19 April 2013
Finished 20 June 2013

Yarn used Wollmeise - Palomino

Pair 22 Dragonfly

This pair is one of my favourites.
The pattern can be found here
I started this pair as another alternative to the complex Bex ones which are still in progress at the time of writing this entry.

I also arranged to do them as a mini KAL with a Ravelry/Knitting Friend Leesa.

I was drawn to the pattern because of the name and the design.  When my son, Stirling passed away in 2005 we had the story of the Waterbugs and Dragonflies at his funeral and afterwards several friends kept spotting dragonflies in unusual places.  As a result the dragonfly became a sort of symbol for Stirling, so it would have been rude not to knit this pair of socks, especially as we approach his anniversary this week (6 June)

I set a target of that date to complete them and managed it with a week to spare.

The yarn is Flamboyance Pharos in the Circus Circus colourway, I don't often buy pastels, but thought it looked pretty and the pattern and yarn were a perfect match.

The pattern was pretty straightforward.  There is a discrepancy with the heel turn figures, I ended up with 18 sts after working all sts in the heel turn.

I particularly like how the yarn pooled to create 2 completely different socks and would definitely knit is pattern again.

Started 1 May 2013
Finished 29 May 2013

Pair 21 - Vanilla

This pair was done alongside Pair 20 - Devon and also as I started Bex. 
It is a very simple pattern, just knit ebery round after the ribbed cuff. It made a pleasant change from some of the intense cables adn lace patterns of recent pairs.

The yarn was originally going to become pair 14/15 of Sock Innovations - Bex but the yarn was too busy for the cable pattern, so was ripped out and became this pair.

The yarn is a Christmas themed colourway and called O Tannebaum.
It is another of my beloved Laughing Yaffles yarns. 

Started 4 April  2013
Finish 27 April 2013

Pair 20 - Devon

This pair is 13/15 from the Sock Innovations project.

This pair did end up sidelined for the previous pairs which were commissions and were generally a simpler sock to knit than some of the heavily cabled ones.
Not my favourite pair and they have come out pretty ugly looking.
The pattern is rather lacy and I think the main issue is the needle size is too big.

The yarn used is another Laughing yaffle one, colour way is Cranberry crush.

I will be knitting these again at some point, when I've done some other ones and next time will use a 2.5mm needle to see if it looks any better.

I washed the socks and the pattern tightened up and looks so much better as shown in the 2nd photograph

A bonus is, this pair marks 1/5th of the way to my target of 100 pairs of socks:-)
Started 23 December 2012
Finsihed 14 April 2014

Pair 19 - Kristi

Pair 12/15 from the Sock Innovations project.

This fabulous pair were a second commission for Chicken Licken from Fetcheveryone.com website.
I really enjoyed knitting this pair, they were a major challenge beign a heavily cabled pair of socks, but the yarn selected for them - LY Silk blend called Neptune was so lovely to work with and such a soft yarn, I was almost reluctant to part with them.

I did tweak the pattern and didn't do the full leg repeats as they would have been far too long.

The recipient was thrilled with them and they fitted perfectly.
I will definitely be knitting this pair again at some point for myself.

Started 28 Jan uary 2013
Finished 31 March 2013

Pair 17, 18 - Small Person's Socks

I'm counting these as 2 pairs- the rainbow ones at the top of the picture are for M4P's 18mth old daughter who loves them:-)
The teeny pairs are for her 8 week old twin boys and I'm counting as a pair.

They were all knitted wsith leftover sock yarn I have in my stash and I thought it would be cool to knit the children some socks as well.

I didn't have enough of the LY Peony that Pair 16 was knitted in to make the children's pairs.

They are a scaleed down patter, the baby ones are in a K2 P2 rib pattern, the bigger ones have a 10 round rib cuff then are just knitted.

The baby ones are very stretchy and I have been told stay on tiny feet better than bootees.

The toddler ones have been knitted int he past in Red and White yarn to make Christmas decorations.

Pair 16 - Monkey

This pair was from the Knit.Sock. Love book by Cookie A- I do love her patterns!
The socks were a commission from a friend on this website - http://www.fetcheveryone.com
When I started these socks she was expecting her 2nd child which was actually twins! She wanted a pair of handknitted socks but didn't know how to knit them herself or had the time as she also has an 18mth old daughter!
However, a few days after we arranged the yarn and chose the pattern via the website her twin boys decided to make an appearance into the world a month early!

The yarn is Laughing Yaffle's Peony colourway and was a delight to knit with.

The pattern Monkey is very easy to knit and enjoyable seeing it grow. I will definitely be knitting this pattern for myself at some point.

As with the power of the internet, we have never actually met, but hopefully our paths will cross at a running event in the future.

Started 27 January 2013
Finished 23 February 2013

Pair 15 - Sam

Pair 11/15 of the Sock Innovations Project.

This pair was knitted for my good friend Kate who hasn't had a very good 2012 and deserves something lovely.
She chose the yarn from my stash bag and the pattern out of the book.
The yarn had other ideas and was incredibly reluctant to become this pair of socks, with multiple restarts needed and having to reduce the number of repeats for the leg element and come down a needle size for the heel and foot.

Once I got going it was an easy pattern to follow and works rather well with this yarn.

I think I prefer more cabled style of pattern than some of the heavily laced ones which tend to look a bit scruffy in my knitting.


Started 8 December 2012
Completed 21 January 2013

Yarn used Laughing Yaffle Passionflower colourway.