More Bamboo Seduction Socks, etc.

Finally, an update! Life has been intruding into my crafting (and blogging) time – how rude!

The Bamboo Seduction Socks are finished. I finished them on Sept. 22/08, quite a while ago. I have washed them, but haven’t worn them yet. They do feel comfy when on the feet. I am hoping that the bamboo/nylon blend yarn wears better than some of the commercially available bamboo socks. I don’t plan to knit any more socks with it until I find out. It’s too much work to end up with premature wear.

I like the way the pattern shows up when they are on my feet. It’s subtle but still there.

I liked knitting this pattern, and would make it again. It was easy to follow, and the instructions were very clear to keep the pattern aligned properly down the foot when working the heel and instep.

And now I am half-way through a pair of baby socks. They are so cute. The pattern is from Better Than Booties Baby Socks, by Ann Budd. This one is the Cable Rib Socks. The pattern is available for free from Interweave Press.

I am using Austermann Step sock yarn, a wool/nylon blend that has aloe vera and jojoba oil in it. It’s lovely and soft. It is being worked on 2 mm double pointed needles.

The pattern is pretty easy to follow. It uses a different method of stitch wrapping for the short-row heel and toe. The heel and toe are worked the same, and then a zigzag bind-off is used to graft the toe to the top of the sock. It is a bit finicky working with such small needles on such a tiny sock, but it’s fun, too.

The socks are for a gift for our lovely neighbours, who are having their first baby sometime this month. Fortunately they don’t take long to knit up. I might just make a matching cap, if I can find a pattern I like.

I’d like to wish everyone a wonderful Thanksgiving!

Bamboo Seduction Socks

I am working on a new pair of socks, using this nice bamboo yarn from S.R. Kertzer called On Your Toes. It’s a blend of 75% bamboo and 25% nylon, in a 4 stranded yarn. Each strand is a different colour, which gives the yarn this nice multi-coloured hue. It’s soft and squishy, and pretty easy to work with. The colour I have is called Mardi Gras Multi. It has strands of pink, blue, yellow and grey, and has a nice sheen.

The pattern I’m using is Seduction Socks, by Ann Budd. It was originally published in Interweave Knits Magazine, Spring 2007, and is currently available for free from their web site.

It’s been a quick knit so far. I cast on for the first sock last Sunday night (Sept. 7/08), turned the heel on Tuesday night, and finished it on Friday night. It would have been finished the night before, but I discovered a mistake in the toe and had to rip back and re-knit it. The pattern stitch doesn’t really show well with this yarn, especially when the sock is just laying on the table.

It shows up more when it’s stretched a bit, while being worn. The columns of twist stitches and open-work are quite pretty. The pattern was very easy to learn, too. Tonight I cast on the second sock, and am well on the way to finishing the leg section.