Vine Sock 9 Finished

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No, I didn't just whip these up since my last post about Sock #8. I'm just way behind in taking photos, sorting through them, and blogging about them. For Sock #9, I decided to make another pair just like Sock #7 using the Traveling Vine motif (see Sock #7 post for pattern details). These are for my MIL who told me she wears a size 6 to 6.5 shoe. So I tried to make these a little larger. The only thing I did differently from Sock #7 is kniting for 7.25" before starting the short row heel.

I intended these socks as a Christmas gift for my MIL this year. I was very worried about not being able to finish them since I had that "thing" going on during the summer months which kept me from knitting. That "thing" is still with me, but I find I can do a little more knitting now and as you can see, I did manage to finish the socks. Now all I need is a pair of sock blockers to make these look pretty and presentable. I've ordered the Small and Medium size from KnitPicks this week. I haven't yet decided which size I'll use for blocking these socks. I'm thinking of using the Small size blocker since it would be safer to block smaller rather than too large, right?

Pair 8, Sock 1 start

This is the beginning of the 1st sock in the pair, you can see the Traveling Vine stitch pattern from BW1 in the back. The pattern will show itself better when the sock is stretched (viz. worn on someone's foot).


1ST SOCK COMPLETED

Pair 9, Sock 1 completed

Here's the first sock completed. It is a bit loose on my foot because I made it larger to fit my MIL.

Pair 9, Sock 1 close up

Here's a close up of the leg. I used the Traveling Vine motif in a washcloth about 3 years ago (pattern here) and loved how it looks, but hated hated hated(!) the P2Tog-TBL that was worked on the wrong side. I'm love knitting this pattern more now since a sock is worked in the round on the right side and I no longer have to work a P2Tog-TBL. I think I might even use this lace motif in some fingerless mitts too! :-)

NOT QUITE IDENTICAL

Pair 9 flat side-by-side

Here's the pair shown side-by-side. If you look carefully, you'll notice that one sock is slightly larger than the other. I know exactly what is to blame. There was a gap between working the 1st sock and the 2nd sock. Obviously my tension had changed by the time I worked on the 2nd sock. Well, there's a good argument for knitting socks two-at-a-time!

I did try Magic Look once before and it was a total disaster. I think that if I were to work a pair of socks two-at-a-time, I would need 2 sets of DPNs (or 4 circular needles) and just switch back and forth between 1st sock and 2nd sock: 1st sock toe, 2nd sock toe, 1st sock foot, 2nd sock foot, 1st sock heel, 2nd sock heel, 1st sock leg, 2nd sock leg.

Pair 9 leg close up

Here's a close up of the legs. Isn't the Traveling Vine stitch pattern pretty?

Yes, the foot is a bit long on me. That's to be expected since I made them larger for my MIL. I can definitely feel that one sock is looser and the other tighter due to my tension issues in knitting the 2nd sock. I do hope that blocking them with the sock blockers (hope they arrive soon!) will even things out.

PersProjNotes in addition to those in Sock 7 Post.
-- 7.25" before SRH
-- total lace repeats = 12

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