Tag Archives: snowshoe socks

More Snowshoe Socks

Posted on by
Reply

Two new pair of snowshoe socks, both for me!

Snowshoe socks, designed by Emily Foden, knit by Deborah Cooke

The red pair are knit with one strand of Kidsilk Haze in Blood, one strand of Zen Yarn Garden sock in Cherry Tart and 1 strand of a red sock yarn missing its labels. I think it might have been from Diamond yarns. You can see that I made one heel a little deeper by mistake, but they’re so squishy and warm that I don’t care.

Purple snowshoe socks knit by Deborah Cooke

The purple pair have a single strand of Kidsilk Haze in Nightly (navy) with a strand of Lorna’s Laces Shepherd Sock in Mixed Berries, plus another fingering weight sock yarn which has lost its label in the stash.

This is the Snowshoe Sock pattern by Emily Foden that I’ve knit before: I showed you a pair knit for the mister and a pair for me in the smaller size. I went with the medium this time and it’s a little loose but that’s better than them being snug.

I like them both, and have cast on one more pair as a gift.

Taking Refuge in the Familiar

Posted on by
Reply

There is so much going on in the world these days, and not much of it seems very encouraging. I’ve been returning to the tried-and-true, instead of taking a chance on something new, and maybe you’ve been doing the same. I’m re-reading many favorite books from my keeper shelf, and sharing them on my main blog starting this week. With my knitting, I’ve returned to socks, my perfect mindless-yet-satisfying knit.

Last week was hot here, really hot and unseasonably so. With perfect timing, our air conditioner needed a repair, and the repair people need a part, and with coronavirus changing all the schedules, they don’t know when they’ll get it. We lived here for years without air conditioning so the mister has his systems for cooling the house, but it still got pretty hot. And what was I knitting? Another pair of thick winter Snowshoe socks. Of course.

The irony is that I finished them up just as the temperature dropped and I actually ended up putting them on once the second toe was grafted. We’re having such wild weather.

This pair of Snowshoe Socks are knit with odds and ends of sock yarn, held double, along with a strand of Kidsilk Haze Stripe. They’re a little bit more chaotic than the pair I knit for the mister, but it’s the bits and ends. Here they are:Snowshoe Socks by Emily Fogen knit by Deborah Cooke

I decided not to try to make them match this time. The right one looks narrower, even though it has the same number of stitches, because both the Crazy Zauberball and the Viola Sock are thinner sock yarns and I was knitting them together.

And here’s the pair I made for the mister, which DO match:Snowshoe Socks by Emily Fogen knit by Deborah Cooke

I really like these with the KSH. It makes the socks extra squishy and soft, and very warm. I knit the first size this time – they fit but are a bit more snug than I like socks to be. I’ll knit another pair in the second size for myself soon.

This pattern is a very satisfying knit. It feels almost that the socks are free, since they’re from those leftovers – although knitting them also means fewer leftovers for squares for my sock yarn afghan.

Snowshoe Socks

Posted on by
2

After mending socks, reclaiming a lot of my Kidsilk Haze last week and updating my stash on Ravelry, I had a look at my bits and ends of sock yarn. Knitting a pair of socks never takes all of the yarn in the skein, even when I knit a pair for the mister. There’s always some left over. I have two afghans in progress with these bits – the older one is with sock yarn hexagons:

Sock Yarn Hexagons knit by Deborah Cooke

You can find the pattern for knitting these hexagons right here on my blog.

The second is with mitred squares, like this:

Mitred squares knit of leftover sock yarn by Deborah Cooke

Sometimes I have a lot leftover – for example, knitting socks for the mister often takes part of a third 50g ball, leaving most of it when they’re done. I have some sock yarns that I loved in the skein but find less thrilling knit up. And there’s the issue of the mister walking through his heavier socks, which he wears in the house in the winter instead of slippers.

The Snowshoe socks look like a good answer. Here’s a link to the pattern on Ravelry. These socks are knit with two strands of sock yarn held together. Even better, part of the fun of the pattern is mixing more than two yarns together. If you haven’t looked at this book, btw, you really should – Knits About Winter is truly lovely, with many great patterns. (That’s a Ravelry link, where you can see all the patterns in the book.)

I added one more twist to this combination – I once knit a pair of bedsocks out of Kidsilk Haze with two strands of that yarn held together. They are the lightest, softest and warmest socks ever. I decided to add a strand of KSH to the two strands of sock yarn in these socks for the mister.

Here’s my first yarn combination:

yarn for Deborah Cooke's first pair of Snowshoe Socks

Left to right, 78g of Viola Sock in Blot, 45g of Regia 4-ply sock yarn, 31g of Regia 4-ply sock yarn in a different colourway, 16g of Crazy Zauberball, 55g of Lichen and Lace Sock in Huckleberry, and 50g of Sugarbush Drizzle (which is like KSH).

In the end, I used all of the Viola Sock, 43 g of the purple Regia, 43 g of the Lichen & Lace and 40 g of the Drizzle. Here are his finished socks:

Snowshoe Socks by Emily Fogen knit by Deborah Cooke Snowshoe Socks by Emily Fogen knit by Deborah CookeThey’re wonderfully thick, soft and squishy. Now I need to make myself a pair!