Chalet Socks

I finished these up as February was ending, so my three-pair-per-month goal has been met.

Chalet Socks from Folk Socks, a book I'd recommend avid sock knitters get if they don't have it already.

A few notes on these socks:  First of all, they look fantastic.  They're a little more work than the average sock, but I think they're worth it, especially because it doesn't take very long before you can read most of the pattern as you knit so you don't have to keep your eyes on the page as much as you think you might.

Now, let's talk about the yarn.  The Lorna's Laces Shepherd Sock is a joy to knit with and shows the twisted stitches well, but I would hesitate to recommend it for this project.  The reason is that it's a thinner, slicker yarn than that recommended, and this has its drawbacks. 

Because it's thinner, the socks are snugger than you might expect.  They still fit me fine, but I don't think they'd hold up to wear too well because the yarn is stretched a little more than usual.  Also, I sound up knitting two complete repeats of the foot pattern instead of one and a half , which is what the pattern called for to fit my medium-sized foot.  Not a big deal, but if you're getting a little tired of dealing with the twisted stitches, then it's that much more you'll have to knit before you're done.

The slickness becomes an issue when twisting stitches, which, as you can see, happens plenty.  You're left with stitches hanging off the needle while you're repositioning other stitches, and the slippery stitches often slide down a row or two so that you'll have to take time to pick them back up -- at least until you figure out to hang onto them by pressing them against the needle with a free finger.  With a slightly coarser, stickier yarn, I would imagine that the hanging stitches aren't quite as quick to drop.  

Other than those minor yarn issues, I would highly recommend this pattern, as I would just about any Nancy Bush sock pattern.  It's very well written, and you wind up with a very impressive, beautiful sock. 

Comments

[Rebecca]

The Chalet Socks have been on my list to knit for a while. Thanks for sharing the tidbit about using Lorna Laces Yarn because that is the yarn I had pegged for it! These are very pretty!