Day before yesterday a friend sent an email asking if I’d be willing to make a couple of pairs of socks for a young child – she’s almost four but she’s small with very tiny feet.

I dug out some leftover yarn from my stash and had a go. Forty stitches, 3″ of leg, turn the heel, decrease through the gusset, then the foot – I had no idea how long to make the foot! My sock charts suggested 13 cm for a size 3-5 shoe – so 13 cm it was.

Took the socks to show my neighbour (who happens to be knitting kids’ socks right now) – oh they’re too short for a 4 year-old, she said. So I contacted my friend and asked for the actual length of the child’s foot – 10 cm! So this first pair of socks will be TOO big (I’ll send them along to grow into…).

I’ve started a second pair – 40 stitches cast on, but I’ll decrease to 36 after 8 rows (if her feet are that small, her ankles will also be tiny). Then I’ll do a foot that’s 10 1/2 cm. The problem is if the sock is too big it will bunch inside her shoe/sneaker and be uncomfortable. The joy of wearing hand-knit socks is how wonderful they feel if they’re the right size.

Pictures of the second pair in a day or two….

Just finished:

The Regia Yarn company has introduced a new yarn this season: “PairPerfect” – the ball of yarn comes with yellow lead threads which you cut off when you begin to knit the sock. When you’re finished the first sock you pull the yarn out until you reach the second yellow lead, remove it and start knitting using the patterned yarn again – and there you have two matched socks.

I’ve never had any difficulty matching two socks using patterned yarn – although providing the leads does make it very simple – my only reservation is the patterns in the yarn are relatively boring. To liven up this striped pattern I inserted solid heels and toes using a yarn close in colour to the cuff (which is part of the patterned sock yarn).

This pair turned out fine, but I don’t think I’ll use it again.

Another pair of socks finished last night.

There’s enough leftover to do a pair of legs so I’ve put that yarn in the scrap box to use sometime. With a bergundy yarn (and I have nearly a full ball) they’ll turn out fine.

Never leave the needles empty – started another pair as soon as these were done.

I’ve run out of titles for new pairs of socks. Finished this pair yesterday.

These have gone into the growing pile of finished socks – likely Christmas presents!

The pair I started last evening using leftovers may, however, end up in my sock drawer.

My current goal is to use up the variegated leftovers in my yarn basket (the leftover solids are always useful to have around, lots of those small balls will get used up in the next grouping of socks). I am planning not to buy more sock yarn until that basket of variegated leftovers is empty!