My crochet socks endeavours, (which are really slipper socks), are so successful I am now ploughing ahead and making a pair for each day of the week!
The slipper sock pattern, which I posted a link to previously, is perfect for the job, and the only adjustment I make is to the length of the leg, which in the pattern is an increase of 11 stitches, and I do 31 to get them that little bit longer in the leg.
Even time wise they are great, as one sock can be made in a couple of hours while watching TV!
The socks are ultra warm, really comfortable, and use up those spare balls of wool you always land up with, so are ultra cheap to make too! (Though I do have to admit to buying four balls of wool from the hospital charity shop yesterday while visiting my Father in Law, but only because they were a price I couldn’t resist!) And last but not least, they wash well with no shrinkage! What more can a girl ask of a sock pattern?
Showing posts with label crochet patterns. Show all posts
Showing posts with label crochet patterns. Show all posts
Thursday, 6 November 2008
Saturday, 25 October 2008
Bits and bobs
Today I’m in a funny mood, can’t settle down to very much of one thing, so I figure if that’s the way I feel, that’s the way my blog should read too!
So first off, a message for Riohanna, the slipper sock pattern I used is here; http://knitting-crochet.com/crochet/slisoc.html
It took a little hunting, but my tenacious personality wouldn’t let me stop until I’d tracked it down. Actually it took me all of about three minutes, after I’d thought about it for a while. I also came across this pattern today, which I think will be next on my list, as I’m sure I can size it up enough for my small cold feet. http://megan.cc/Soccasins/
Not sure why the links didn't come out properly, perhaps you can give me some tips on how to get them to work?
Earlier today I heard some more news about the trouble the banks are in, and it sort of got me thinking. Now I know my attitude towards banks is pretty simple as I’ve never had enough money to have a mortgage, and I’ve never had a business, but basically I think their job is to look after our money and invest it wisely for us, or loan us money and make sure we return it with enough payment for the service to pay them for their time and the investors for their money. The bank is basically a go-between, or a Shylock, as my mind keeps calling them, because isn’t that what Shylock did?
Anyway, so when did being a money lender get to be such a respected profession? I’m not a Christian, but I respect many of their laws/ sayings as they make sense even today, and one of them is “Neither a lender nor borrower be.” Yet Christian countries have let the banks flourish and gain such power that they touch every single adults life, even the jobless have to have a bank account to get their benefits, no one institution, with possibly the exception of Government, should have that sort of power.
When and who gave the banks permission to lend our money so irresponsibly? When did the banks suddenly take control and have the power to tell you if and when you can have your money back? It’s our money, not theirs! Is it any wonder more and more people are reluctant to trust banks? I know I don’t, but then I haven’t for quite some time, the whole set-up seems iffy to me.
Okay, rant over for the day.
So first off, a message for Riohanna, the slipper sock pattern I used is here; http://knitting-crochet.com/crochet/slisoc.html
It took a little hunting, but my tenacious personality wouldn’t let me stop until I’d tracked it down. Actually it took me all of about three minutes, after I’d thought about it for a while. I also came across this pattern today, which I think will be next on my list, as I’m sure I can size it up enough for my small cold feet. http://megan.cc/Soccasins/
Not sure why the links didn't come out properly, perhaps you can give me some tips on how to get them to work?
Earlier today I heard some more news about the trouble the banks are in, and it sort of got me thinking. Now I know my attitude towards banks is pretty simple as I’ve never had enough money to have a mortgage, and I’ve never had a business, but basically I think their job is to look after our money and invest it wisely for us, or loan us money and make sure we return it with enough payment for the service to pay them for their time and the investors for their money. The bank is basically a go-between, or a Shylock, as my mind keeps calling them, because isn’t that what Shylock did?
Anyway, so when did being a money lender get to be such a respected profession? I’m not a Christian, but I respect many of their laws/ sayings as they make sense even today, and one of them is “Neither a lender nor borrower be.” Yet Christian countries have let the banks flourish and gain such power that they touch every single adults life, even the jobless have to have a bank account to get their benefits, no one institution, with possibly the exception of Government, should have that sort of power.
When and who gave the banks permission to lend our money so irresponsibly? When did the banks suddenly take control and have the power to tell you if and when you can have your money back? It’s our money, not theirs! Is it any wonder more and more people are reluctant to trust banks? I know I don’t, but then I haven’t for quite some time, the whole set-up seems iffy to me.
Okay, rant over for the day.
Thursday, 23 October 2008
New socks
Three weeks ago I had a little accident down the allotment and cut my leg, nothing too serious just a deep graze, but it left my leg sore for a while, and it helped me realise that it isn’t just my joints that are getting older, my whole body is!
With my leg sore I noticed that both legs actually swell through the day, not something I had paid any attention to until then, especially round the ankles. Now if I was working I don’t think the level of swelling would be as much because I would be wearing tights, but I spend most days down the allotment so I’m in the toughest pair of trousers I own, and socks, and those socks have strong elastic round the tops to hold them up, and make the swelling worse.
As Christmas is coming I thought I’d do some research and tell hubby what socks to buy me and where, that don’t have elastic ribbing. Was I in for a shock! £10 for one pair of socks of dubious quality! Hmm, that needed a re-think.
So I looked through my collection of sock patterns, (those who know me, know I am an avid pattern collector, so I had to search through quite a few!), and decided to make myself some instead. I chose to crochet them as the cuff would be stiffer and stand up on its own. The choice of yarn was easy, my friend Linda had given me some lovely scarlet wool and enough to make several pairs of socks if I so chose.
After starting and discarding several patterns because they weren’t working up the way I wanted, I finally settled on a free slipper sock pattern I found on line some time ago and had already made in to the best pair of slippers I have ever owned! They are warm, thick and have a cuff that can easily be made longer or shorter to my hearts desire, which is thick enough never to slip down and bunch around my ankles.
The pattern calls for worsted weight yarn, (which is double knitting to us here in the UK) but I had originally made the slippers in chunky as I feared they wouldn’t keep my forever cold feet warm enough with double knitting, so I knew they would work up a little smaller in the double knitting.
The feel of the socks in the shoe is totally different from a normal bought sock; there is actually some degree of friction due to the stitches being bigger, but this brought an unexpected bonus, it increased the circulation in my feet so even though the last few days have been a bit cold around here, my feet, and hence the rest of my body, have been toasty warm, and I haven’t had to turn the central heating on!
The pattern is super easy to make, so I have whipped up a couple more pairs, and to be honest I don’t think I am ever going to go back to shop bought socks again!
Another added bonus to these socks that only appeared after wearing them for several days is the increased circulation has reduced the hard skin around my heels and toes markedly, to the point where I suspect I won’t have any hard skin in another two or three weeks!
So last night, as I settled down to sleep, I did my usual thing of thinking what I had done that saved me money during the day, and my mind instantly went to my new socks. I have saved the cost of buying socks, at £10 a pair, (and I now have three pairs so that’s a saving of £30!). I used a free, online pattern, so saved about £2.00 there. I used yarn that I had been given, so saved £4.00 there. And since wearing them I haven’t had to turn the central heating on, so who knows how much I have saved there! So in all I have saved £36 plus for only four hours work, that’s better wages than I could earn out in the labour market, after tax, so I’m a very happy bunny!
Lucy, the flour used to make pasta is plain if you want to go cheapskate. There are some fancy ones you can buy to make it special, but you’d have to look at the packets to see which ones are specific, because I really am a cheapskate, and don’t have a clue!
Angela, Linda, Lucy and Posh and Trendy, thank you for your kind words about the fox. My head knows there are many foxes out there, and they are a problem in urban areas, I also know I did as much as I could for her under the circumstances, (the RSPCA doesn’t like coming out for foxes as they consider them vermin). But my heart tells me I had formed a bond with a wild animal, which is a rare thing to happen and that I should treasure it, and I will for the rest of my life. My consolation is the foxes injuries were such that she must have died instantly with little or no pain, and at least I gave her the time to experience some of her life. I am grateful she didn’t have time to give birth to a litter of pups, which would have really torn me apart emotionally.
With my leg sore I noticed that both legs actually swell through the day, not something I had paid any attention to until then, especially round the ankles. Now if I was working I don’t think the level of swelling would be as much because I would be wearing tights, but I spend most days down the allotment so I’m in the toughest pair of trousers I own, and socks, and those socks have strong elastic round the tops to hold them up, and make the swelling worse.
As Christmas is coming I thought I’d do some research and tell hubby what socks to buy me and where, that don’t have elastic ribbing. Was I in for a shock! £10 for one pair of socks of dubious quality! Hmm, that needed a re-think.
So I looked through my collection of sock patterns, (those who know me, know I am an avid pattern collector, so I had to search through quite a few!), and decided to make myself some instead. I chose to crochet them as the cuff would be stiffer and stand up on its own. The choice of yarn was easy, my friend Linda had given me some lovely scarlet wool and enough to make several pairs of socks if I so chose.
After starting and discarding several patterns because they weren’t working up the way I wanted, I finally settled on a free slipper sock pattern I found on line some time ago and had already made in to the best pair of slippers I have ever owned! They are warm, thick and have a cuff that can easily be made longer or shorter to my hearts desire, which is thick enough never to slip down and bunch around my ankles.
The pattern calls for worsted weight yarn, (which is double knitting to us here in the UK) but I had originally made the slippers in chunky as I feared they wouldn’t keep my forever cold feet warm enough with double knitting, so I knew they would work up a little smaller in the double knitting.
The feel of the socks in the shoe is totally different from a normal bought sock; there is actually some degree of friction due to the stitches being bigger, but this brought an unexpected bonus, it increased the circulation in my feet so even though the last few days have been a bit cold around here, my feet, and hence the rest of my body, have been toasty warm, and I haven’t had to turn the central heating on!
The pattern is super easy to make, so I have whipped up a couple more pairs, and to be honest I don’t think I am ever going to go back to shop bought socks again!
Another added bonus to these socks that only appeared after wearing them for several days is the increased circulation has reduced the hard skin around my heels and toes markedly, to the point where I suspect I won’t have any hard skin in another two or three weeks!
So last night, as I settled down to sleep, I did my usual thing of thinking what I had done that saved me money during the day, and my mind instantly went to my new socks. I have saved the cost of buying socks, at £10 a pair, (and I now have three pairs so that’s a saving of £30!). I used a free, online pattern, so saved about £2.00 there. I used yarn that I had been given, so saved £4.00 there. And since wearing them I haven’t had to turn the central heating on, so who knows how much I have saved there! So in all I have saved £36 plus for only four hours work, that’s better wages than I could earn out in the labour market, after tax, so I’m a very happy bunny!
Lucy, the flour used to make pasta is plain if you want to go cheapskate. There are some fancy ones you can buy to make it special, but you’d have to look at the packets to see which ones are specific, because I really am a cheapskate, and don’t have a clue!
Angela, Linda, Lucy and Posh and Trendy, thank you for your kind words about the fox. My head knows there are many foxes out there, and they are a problem in urban areas, I also know I did as much as I could for her under the circumstances, (the RSPCA doesn’t like coming out for foxes as they consider them vermin). But my heart tells me I had formed a bond with a wild animal, which is a rare thing to happen and that I should treasure it, and I will for the rest of my life. My consolation is the foxes injuries were such that she must have died instantly with little or no pain, and at least I gave her the time to experience some of her life. I am grateful she didn’t have time to give birth to a litter of pups, which would have really torn me apart emotionally.
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