Keeping My Feet Warm

On long Winter evenings, it is all too easy just to give up on productivity, and spend my time sitting in front of the fire watching movies with my housemates. Fortunately, I'm the sort of person who can't sit still for too long without doing something (procrastinating counts). And so, every Winter without fail, I take up the knitting addiction that I discarded in the Spring and start working on something impossibly boring like a scarf for a friend, or a beanie that will usually end up on my brother's head instead of mine.

This year, however, I finally found the motivation to try something that sounds impossibly boring, but is actually new and exciting:

My first ever pair of socks!

 

As my first attempt, they are certainly nothing special. I bought some cheap white acrylic yarn so I wouldn't be too sad if they turned out horrifying and, if you look closely enough, they don't entirely match... I do like this about them though; the slightly better quality of the second sock shows how quickly I improved once I understood what I was doing!

I used the Vanilla Latte pattern which is available for free from Ravelry. It's very well explained and easy to follow, and starting simple made it a lot easier to see fit issues and note little areas that could be improved.

In the past, I never attempted knitting socks specifically because I thought I'd get bored and never finish the pair. But now I understand why so many bloggers refer to knitted socks as "comfort food for the feet". In fact, I enjoyed this pair so much that I have already moved on to greater things...

Behold, my next and far superior pair! This time from a beautiful red silk/cashmere blend that I found in a Lincraft discount bin for $3 a ball. They already fit much better, with less pulling on the stitches and a longer cuff for wearing with boots :)

So, my lovely imaginary readers, how do you feel about knitting socks, or receiving knitted socks? Perhaps some cosy inspiration would help you decide...

source: Pinterest

source: Pinterest

source: tidytipsy.wordpress.com