Pair one progress

So, just over half way into the first month I finished my first sock of pair one! Woohoo! I do so love the mini circulars, I can't wait to get a second pair because I am very much suffering from the dreaded Second Sock Syndrome!
As I mentioned in my last post, I cast on the Rose City Roller pattern with my mini circulars and a bag of sock yarn scraps. I did the heel flap from the pattern, rather than my usual afterthought heel, and I did extra rows on the heel flap to make them fit my giant feet better, so 20 instead of 16 slip stitches for my size. And instead of the normal toe from the pattern, I decided to try out the Anatomical Toe on recommendation of my friend, who is the queen of sock knitting options! On the quest to find the perfect fit for her own socks she has tried lots of different techniques, and is one of my go-to people for advice on altering to fit!
Anyway, I did an Anatomical Toe on the first sock and I LOVE it. The smaller needle size (2.5mm instead of my usual 2.75mm) has given the socks a tighter fabric, and the deeper heel flap and anatomical toe has just sealed the deal in my eyes. They fit so well!

I'm almost turning the heel on the second sock now, so hopefully I'll finish it by the end of the month (Or not long after!) I need to decide what pattern to cast on next!

I've also realised that I never posted a photo of my finished 'Prequel' socks. The pair of socks I mentioned in this post, that had (embarrassingly) been on my needles since 2014! The shame! I tried a new heel and hated them, throwing them in my knitting bag in a strop and grumping at them periodically over the next almost 2 years. So I resurrected them around New Year and finished them off before I started my 12 in 12 challenge. And here they are!

I must admit, I'm not overly in love with them. They need some altering I think. The feet are too long, meaning the heels are too deep. I think I need to rip back the heel by about an inch! Probably two inches so I can play around with the decreases. And for some reason the toes twist a little too. But that one is more aesthetic than anything else, when they're on my feet I can't tell. The yarn is their saving grace! It is just divine!

But for now, the baby is having a nap and Dinogirl is at school, so I'm off to turn Peppa Pig off the tv and get on with some knitting with a few chocolate digestives  a cup of tea! ;)

So tiny! Testing out Addi 20cm circulars

I have umm'ed and ahh'ed over buying a pair of these teeny tiny needles for ages. I can magic loop with a regular circular and I can use DPNs (Double Pointed Needles), so did I really need to try out another way of knitting socks?
Well, of course! I have joined a number of sock knitting groups on Facebook, the main one connected to Winwick Mum (Aka, Christine, check out her book Super Socks: Knit a pair of socks with Winwick Mum). Lots of the members there are knitting on these tiny sock circulars and love them. So I decided to take the plunge. Amazon were sold out of 2.5mm and so were all the other places I found! I put a post up in the group and a WAHM (Work At Home Mum) said she had some in stock. Score! I usually knit socks on 2.75mm, but my last pair were feeling a little baggy so I decided to size down and see how I got on.
They arrived the day after Kate at Hand Dyed by Kate posted them. So customer service was fantastic! I am now lusting after her yarns, yum. Anyway, I opened the parcel after a day at church volunteering and the school run. THEY WERE SO CUTE AND TINY! (Apologies for the rubbish dark photo taken on my phone....)

I spent the afternoon deciding what pattern to use and eventually tried to cast on that night after the hatchlings were in bed. Nope. It was not happening. I just couldn't get the hang of them and put them down in a huff. It was too dark and I was stupidly trying to cast on with dark coloured yarn. (I've since read in the Winwick Mum Super Socks book, that she likes to cast on to DPNs and transfer to the mini-circ.)

I've been ill over the weekend and all of this week, so whilst I've had my feet up it's been the perfect excuse to knit socks. So the next day, I made myself a cup of tea, printed out the Rose City Rollers pattern, sat down in my PJs and tried again. And managed! Woohoo! (Yes, that's a dino stitch marker....)

At first, they were awkward to use. They are so tiny, my hands weren't used to holding them. I felt like I was knitting with my fingertips! Probably because I was trying to knit with my finger tips! But after a few rounds they felt less awkward, and by the time I was doing the heel flap of the sock, I was in love. They felt so easy and quick.
Picking up the gusset stitches were awkward, and I ended up using a couple of DPNs to pick up, just for space. But I squished the stitches back onto the mini-circular after picking them up and it wasn't too bad actually! Definitely easier than doing it magic loop or with DPNs.

So, my verdict? I love them! I've actually just asked Kate to let me know when she has more stock so I can buy a second circular and matching DPNs, as I like to knit two socks at once other wise I end up with second sock syndrome. If you fancy them, then give them a go! But give them a couple of days of use. You really have to let your hands get used to a different way of holding the needles. It felt so clunky and awkward at the start, but after a few days my hands adjusted to the different way of holding them and now I find them much faster than magic loop and I don't get the ridge or ladders that I get with DPNs (No matter how careful I am with my tension I always get one or the other!). And they're much more portable too. No lengths of wire or multiple pointy sticks. Although I do suggest a couple of DPNs or a spare needle of some kind to pick up stitches should you do a heel flap.

I'm now at the toe section of the first sock and about to start my toe decreases. (I've got a wooden DPN in there with a few stitches on so I don't loose any stitches off the tiny circ while stretching the sock over my foot) I've been reading about the anatomical toes and I think that's what I'll be doing this time rather than the standard finish in the pattern. I'll do another post about my socks though, as they're my first pair of my twelve! ;)



(Just a little disclaimer, I haven't been paid by Addi, Winwick Mum or Hand Dyed by Kate for this post, all thoughts and opinions are my own, yadda yadda...)