Rainbow socks -- December 2005

Socks! I needed something small and fiddly and satisfying after the never-ending Under the Hoodie, and socks were totally it. The quite amazing psychedelic rainbow pattern is down to some lovely self-striping yarn which was a gift from my friend H several months ago. And it made the perfect yarn for first-time socks -- helped me count rows, and made the plain stocking stitch of the leg be quite exciting as I saw the pattern coming through. I am completely hooked on socks now. Knitting these was helped by having several slothful days at home during Christmas, where I could knit away contentedly with little else to worry about apart from what kind of junk food to snack on next.

My favourite thing about socks? That they are recognisably themselves as you're knitting them -- there's no making up, nothing needed to finish them off apart from a bit of kitchener grafting and weaving in the ends. Knitting something in three dimensions is enormously satisfying.

Details: Socks, knit for the dimensions of my feet and mostly based on Kathryn T's universal sock pattern, with a few bits of fiddling around and alterations, knitted with Meilement Cotton Fantasy (45% cotton, 42% wool, 13% polyamid) on four 2.5mm douple-pointed bamboo needles.

Incidentally, my mother gave me a FANTASTIC Christmas present, being fifteen different bamboo circular needles of every size I could ever need (all 80cm long, and ranging from 2mm to 12mm). She is an angel.

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