Retro Friday.

I finished the Retro Rib Socks from the IK book Favorite Socks. These are a birthday present for my pop and they turned out perfectly! Of course, I made a few changes to the pattern to suit my sock knitting needs:

-I knit them from the toe-up
-I used a short-row heel
-I added stiches as I knit up the foot (from toe to heel)
-Yarn: Knit Picks Swish Superwash (my pop likes a thick sock)

In the end, a snug and comfy sock!

Explanation of the additional stiches -- I realized that when knitting some socks toe-up, the heel can be a bit tight when trying to put the sock on. Particularly if knitting for a slender foot, my socks could use a little extra room in the heel. So, to solve the problem, after knitting about halfway up the foot, I added two stitches on the sole-side of the sock by doing this: K1, M1, knit to two stiches before end of sole, M1, K1 (since I'm using the magic loop method, the sole stitches are all on one needle). Then knit about 3/4 to 1 inch and repeat the increase round. I did this 4 times total (because for my socks it was just the number of stitches I needed to add one rib repeat to the pattern). The photo below shows the socks from the side and if you look closely, you can see the increases.


Finally, my mix of needles! Some brand new, some plastic, some metal, some bamboo, and some OLD! There's a fun flea market near my parents' house and last time I was home, I was able to score some old needles (the tall, skinny green ones, and some of the shorter white ones in the background - to point out a few).

Happy Retro Friday.