Open Sock Surgery

It’s official: I’m not knitting any socks at the moment.

Be aware that this post contains images that knitters may find disturbing.

The final sock on my list of socks in progress was one for a friend that I custom-designed/tweaked to her specifications. It is in the most gorgeous purple yarn from Violet Green and I completed the first sock back in May. All was going well, when I spotted a cable that didn’t quite look right.

The only way I could get it to show well enough was to turn the flash off, hence the weird colours. Definitely a mis-crossed cable of some sort.

The choices? Rip it back (too annoying), leave it in as a feature (not when it is a present for someone else), or drop just the cable stitches down and knit them back up (quite stressful).

I got the blocking mat and pins and set to work. The mistake was only about 7 rows back, so it could have been a lot worse.

I can’t remember where I saw this technique for fixing knitting, but it works a treat, although it would be better on a flat piece. As you unravel the stitches on each row, you pin the loose yarn in order so you know you are using the right length as you knit back up.

After many deep breaths and not a little swearing, it all came back together.

Ah, the beauty of symmetry!

It’s all done now & I’ve started the Ysolda Teague gloves. Pictures anon.

In other news, I submitted an assignment yesterday consisting of a reflection on how knitting has influenced my spirituality. I love my job!