Sock it to me.

Once I had finished those mittens (photos to follow) from a few posts ago, I was at a loose end as to where to go next. The whole ordeal was so traumatic, that, if I’m honest, I wasn’t really keen to start anything new. My mum tentatively suggested socks, and before I could say no she presented me with some sock wool and some DPNs. I’d love to tell you the type of wool, but my mother is a chronic hoarder and has probably lugged this about with her since the late eighties, and thus it would be no use to you even if I could decipher the label. I was keen to learn how to learn on DPNs, it was on my list of new skills I want to conquer, and so I was eventually persuaded. It looked hugely complicated, and I had no idea what to do with all the needles I had just been handed. Mum didn't take too well to my constant delight and very apparent hilarity of using them as chopsticks to pick up everything in my vicinity and bother the dogs.

With a lot of help, I cast on the required number of stitches and set to work. It seemed to be going well, as long as I kept my focus on the two needles I was using at the time, I was able to get to it. However, once I had move past the rib and onto the main 'tubey' bit of the sock, it dawned on me that I appeared to be knitting it inside out! I still don’t understand how that happened, but I was thoroughly concerned. After mittengate, I just wanted to be able to do something, anything, right! My mum, not being a great sock knitter, simply pushed it through the needles ready for me to carry on when I picked it up again. I knew this wouldn’t have solved the problem, so with the help of Sharon at work, and a whole bunch of YouTube videos, I was able to sort out in my head where I went wrong.

My project in all it's glory! (The extra needle is simply
holding it in place).

 Thankfully, when I got round to picking it up again I could see where I had been knitting into the back rather than the front, and felt altogether more confident about carrying on. I have to admit, and I know a few dedicated socksters that will hate me for this, that it’s a bit boring. There, I said it. I am, however, being led to believe that this isn’t always a bad thing. After a long day, I don’t want to use up loads more energy on concentrating on ridiculously complicated patterns - a sock is the perfect thing to get on with when watching a semi-engrossing movie. However, when I’m really in the mood for knitting, sitting and doing 60 rows of the same thing isn’t exactly enthralling. I think I am too addicted to finishing things. I like things that knit up quickly, but look as if they didn’t. I suppose that’s the eternal demand of impatient knitters like me. 

Trauma struck when one of my plastic DPNs smashed into a thousand pieces and littered various domains of my room. Apparently they don’t stand up to being sat on, which is understandable really. I can't hold this against sock knitting, but I thought that I should be honest with you about my foolishness! It was a slight delay to my project, but thankfully they come in sets of 5 and I only needed 4. Oh needle manufacturers, how well you know me.

The triumph of conquering double-pointed needles is undeniably great. It felt like a huge milestone, and now I’m getting fairly confident, it feels like I’ve opened a huge door in the knitting world. It is complicated at first – for goodness sake, it’s like knitting on the Blair Witch Project symbol. (Yes, I just referenced a film that is over 10 years old, so shoot me!) It’s one of those things that has left me wondering why on Earth anyone would think that knitting on 2 needles wasn’t enough for them. I can see it’s useful, sure, BUT WHY WOULD YOU INVENT IT?

Blair Witch Symbol [Source: http://www.answers.com/topic/blair-witch-vol-1-rustin-parr]

Knitting on DPNS. [Source: http://mochimochiland.com/2011/09/how-to-knitting-with-double-pointed-needles/]

And another thing! How the heck are you supposed to carry this thing around? It's a monstrosity - with needles sticking out everywhere. I don't move my knitting around a lot, but trying to get this thing to knit club was a nightmare!

For now, the socks have taken a back seat, as there is a baby expected in the family any minute, and I am working on some very exciting things that I shall reveal to you only in the fullness of time.


Stay tuned!