Magnolia Socks

Despite the glut of Christmas crafting going on right now, I felt the need to cast on a little selfish knitting to work on at Knit City. I decided, after much deliberation, to knit up some handspun socks. I used BFL from Fat Cat Knits - one of my favourite dyers. Her Magnolia colourway is so stunningly perfect for fall (and spring, and summer) knitting, so I finally drummed up the nerve and cast on my first non-superwash socks.

I LOVE THESE SOCKS YOU GUYS.

spot the cat feet!

The pattern is an improvised cuff down jobby that I came up with in the waiting line for the ferry to Vancouver. Simple stockinette with a bit of 1 x 1 rib for fit, tapering off in the gusset. I love the way these socks feel so I may write up something similar for y'all, but not until I can perfect their appearance. I'm pretty proud of the spinning on these - I spun two matching balls of striping yarn, and they were pretty darn close! I'll spin for a more rapid stripe sequence next time though.

So - non superwash verdict? Excellent! I love the way the socks hold their shape - I wore them three days in a row (hush, I was having a bad week) and they didn't bag and slump like superwash socks do. The pure BFL really is fantastic for socks - they're pretty and shiny with a smidge of a halo. I've had some very minor felting on the soles right at the balls of my feet, but I made the socks a tiny bit big to accomodate for the inevitable so it's all good. They washed up nicely - having non-superwash socks motivates me to do a proper wool wash soak (with just a tiny smidge of agitation to get the dirt out) for my socks and bras instead of slowly ruining them by tossing them in the washer (and occasionally the dryer!).

If you spin and you haven't made socks with your yarn yet, I HIGHLY recommend it. Join me!