:Kalliope Lane

This picture doesn’t show it well, but the socks I’m making my mother for Christmas are looking camo-colored. (click for larger pic)

What had seemed a very feminine, delicate colorway in the skein is seeming very brown/grey/green camoflauged in the sock. Ah well. They’re still pretty, just not in the expected way.

I’m also trying out a thing I ran across online: using Eye of Partridge stitch across the arch of the sole for a snug fit in that area.

I think I like it, from what I can tell from trying on half-socks.

You can see my little waste yarn lifeline in the socks above. I’m about to start the heel, and wanted to be on the safe side. On my first short row heel (PGR’s yarn-over method decribed by Purlwise and Alison) I had to rip it out because of holes, and I don’t ever want to do that without a lifeline again. I eventually used the Sherman short row heel (handy row-by-row instructions here; see also: knit and purl encroachments), which I did once before and it turned out great. I’ll be using it again on these.

I’ve got to get back to writing a paper, unfortunately. But I’ll be posting pics of a bunch of new sock yarn in the next day or so, though. I think I have a few pairs of Christmas socks to knit…