My Sockapal2za Socks Arrived!

My socks arrived today from my sock pal. They are beautiful! Wonderful autumn colors with cables gracefully winding their way up the sides. The fit is perfect. Don't you just love that new-sock feel? These will be a definite favorite this fall and winter. I can't wait to show them off! Thank you, Suzanne! You did fabulously! I love the handdyed wool, by Kathy Oliver at Holly Spring Homespun. I may have to make a sweater with this stuff, what with the colors so gorgeous and the feel so soft. Plus, Suzanne made the cutest card and included cool stitch markers with my socks. Thank you so! I had fun with this endeavor. Thanks to Alison for organizing us all, too!

C'est Fini!

Dear Socka-pal-2-za Pal,

Here are your finished socks. I do hope you like them and that they fit you well. Because I ended up knitting the heels and feet twice (on my first attempt I knitted a reinforced heel, and upon finishing both socks (yes, I finished both before trying them on. Doh!) I realized the heel really wasn't going to fit. Anyone.), these socks have been many places. They were begun at Meg Swansen's knitting camp in Wisconsin, they survivied a 27-mile backpacking loop through the beautiful Wallowa Mountains in eastern Oregon, they saw the Mariners play baseball in Seattle, and they were finished in gorgeous Vancouver, BC after a bike ride around Stanley Park. These are well-travelled socks. May they serve you well as you show them your part of the world.

Details: I used the pattern "Ellen's Stockings" in Nancy Bush's Folk Knitting in Estonia, with one skein of Satakieli wool on size 0's. The heels were worked with slip-stitchs to provide cushion; I also diverted from the pattern's round toe to do a traditional "flat" toe. The true color is really more of a buttery-yellow but this photo shows off the stitches better.

This project was great fun! I hope they arrive at their destination soon. And many thanks to Alison for hosting us all.

Cheers,
Jen

Sockapal-2-za Update

Well, I was afraid of this. I've gone back to work and haven't posted since returning. I will do better! No photo today (next time, of finished Socka-pal-2-za socks! They are drying as I write) but I wanted to post to respond to my own secret sock pal, who wrote last evening. Whoever you are, I can't wait to see my socks (and I can't wait to find out who you are!). They sound beautiful! Thank you!