Let the Monster Socks Begin!

I've been getting a lot of questions about the sock pattern I use, so I decided it's high time I share the not-so-secret details.

About a year ago I bought "Crochet Today! Quick & Easy Gifts 2009," which includes Amy O'Neill Houck's Step-by-Step Socks (Ravelry link). I wore out the magazine carrying it around in my commute bag last winter while working on my first couple pairs of socks. I finally got wise and made a working copy of the pattern and now carry that with me in my bag. The pattern is memorized now, plus I've made a number of modifications (see notes below), but I still have the pattern in my bag for quick reference, just in case.

The pattern is now available online free after being featured on "Knit & Crochet Today." You must log in to Knit & Crochet Today in order to access the free patterns, but that's free, too. The Step-by-Step Socks pattern is located in Episode 205, listed as Crochet Heart & Sole Socks.

I have never knit a pair of socks; turning a heel scares me, but I do intend to learn the process one day. I did, however, grow up knitting slippers from a pattern I made up in my head. I garter stitched a long rectangle, ran the tail through all the loops on the needle at the end and pulled tight, then used the tail to close the toe section and another piece of yarn to sew up the heel. Everyone I knew received a pair of handknit slippers from me for Christmas back then.

I also freeformed a bunch of baby slippers in crochet back then. I couldn't afford patterns, so I made up design as I went, often using my baby sister's feet as a size guide.

Last year I experienced a bear-making craze, and I designed the feet much the same as those baby slippers I worked up as a teenager. While shopping for bear yarn and thread, I kept seeing beautiful shades of sock yarn, and I kept imagining how beautiful socks would be if crocheted instead of knitted. Sock yarn typically is striped to accommodate rows of knitting, so crochet dramatically alters the striping pattern.

I explored a few different free crochet sock patterns available online but didn't find anything that appealed to me until I picked up that "Quick and Easy Gifts" magazine last fall. I made my third pair for the Ravelympics and by that time was hooked. Literally. I'm now working on pair number nine! (I've made a preliminary list of 15 people (so far) who need Christmas presents from me this year, and so I must finish 30 socks before my annual time bandit Photoshopping service project begins in November.)

Sometime last spring, I learned about Monster Socks. Sock knitters use sock yarn leftovers in socks with wild stripe patterns -- none of the yarn matches, and sometimes the colors don't even go together. The more random and wild, the better.

I was hooked all over again. I'd been using my leftovers to make bears, lizards, bunnies, hearts and even snowflakes, but Monster Socks looked so downright striking, I began saving the odds and ends to make my first pair.

That first pair finally came to life last week, and I'm even more addicted to sock yarn and sock crochet now than ever before. I may make all the rest of my gift socks this way because they are so unique and so... well, to me, eye-popping gorgeous! I can't imagine ever getting tired of making "Franken Socks" because no two pairs are alike. From my hook, not even two socks are alike!

This first pair reminds me of an afghan I made of leftovers back in high school. I grew up in a small town that didn't have a lot of fancy yarn choices. The first time I ever saw variegated yarn, I was in love. To me, the blending of the changing colors was magical. I bought one skein of every colorway I could get my hands on. The colors didn't all look so good together, so I worked solid black rows in between. My grandmother kept that afghan on the foot of her bed until the day she died. Every time I visited, she would tell me how beautiful that afghan was and how much she loved just looking at it.

I've read in several places about fiber artists being crushed when a handmade gift they've made turns up in a thrift shop (or used as a dog toy) a few weeks later. I've read many soothing, comforting comments to such situations, and I've read a few snarky remarks that make my hair stand on end.

The bottom line seems to be: Know your recipient. Don't give something you've made to someone who does not appreciate handmade. And if you do, remember it is a gift, and what the recipient does with it is up to the recipient. Ouch. But helpful advice.

Knowing some of the socks I've crafted this year may wind up in a thrift shop or homeless or domestic violence shelter ruffles my feathers a bit, but the love and adoration that goes into every single pair doesn't diminish just because the socks travel a bit further than I intend. Hopefully whoever wears these socks after this coming December will taste the heartfelt emotion woven deeply into the fabric. And maybe they'll even feel my passion for color in the bright hues I've used!

My Step-by-Step Socks Modifications

I use a size B hook instead of C, as most of the sock yarn I use is a little finer than Heart and Sole sock yarn. I start by chaining 12 instead of 10 and adjust the number of V-stitches and linked double crochet accordingly. I also work the increases on the toe section into the third stitch instead of the second stitch on about the third and sixth rows to keep the toe section perfectly formed and not crooked (because single crochet in the round migrates clockwise). I make my socks a little longer than the anklets shown in the pattern, and I increase the number of V-stitches as needed to accommodate calf size. I really don't like crocheted ribbing at all, so I knit my cuffs on size 3 double pointed needles by picking up a multiple of four stitches on the final row of crochet on the ankle/calf section, typically six knit stitches for every five crochet stitches. I work a classic knit 2/purl 2 rib for an inch and a half before binding off. My latest obsession is to work the toe, heel and cuff in a different (solid color) yarn than the body of the sock. This helps preserve the fancy sock yarn that sometimes comes in smaller skeins/hanks and also assures I have more leftovers at the end!

Oh, and knot-tying and tail-weaving began to be very tedious on the first Monster Sock after about four rows of color changes. I performed a bit of accidental research on Ravelry and found this useful tip that works for crochet as well as knit. I'm using it now for every join I do in every yarn project. When I'm alternating a main color every other row, I don't even bother to cut that yarn. I just carry it across the next row with one wrap on the inside of the sock, same technique used for intarsia knitting.

My Personal Sock Tips

My favorite sock yarns are Kureyon, ONline and Cascade Heritage. Noro and Wisdom yarns are not machine washable, but Crystal Palace, Cascade, Red Heart, Opal, Deborah Norville, Fly Designs and Kroy can be machine washed. This should factor into gift-giving planning as much as color and size. Also, some people have trouble wearing wool, even when it has nylon or other fibers mixed in to make it less scratchy. Poems by Wisdom is just about the prettiest yarn I've ever seen, but it splits like crazy as it is crocheted or knitted. It seems to hold together just fine when the project is done. The yarn splitting during construction is annoying enough to keep me at a distance.

As a cyclist wannabe, I LOVE wool because it holds in heat during cold weather, and thin wool created especially for summer breathes well and wicks moisture. Bamboo and alpaca are the softest of all the fibers I've tried, and cotton typically stays wet once you sweat in it or endure a rain storm.

Acrylic yarn should never be used when making socks, scarves, hats or any other wearable gift for active-duty military. Acrylic burns and in the process adheres to skin. Wool, cotton, alpaca, bamboo and other natural fibers smolder themselves out.

When leftovers are too short to complete a sock row, make tiny animals! I promise, the finished product will make you smile!

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Afterthoughts

Have you ever been hit in the face by a bee at 34 mph?

My cheek caused the demise of three bees, two during Ride the Rockies, and one during the MS-150. Not the kind of thing you plan for or expect, but it happens.


Once, back in the days of dinosaurs, before cell phones, email and digital cameras, I was en route to a newspaper assignment in a neighboring city when I decided my rear view mirror needed adjustment. I stuck my hand out the open window (because I didn't have air conditioning back then) to adjust the mirror (because nothing was electric way back then) just as a bird in flight decided to check out the density of my powder blue 1976 Ford Maverick (which had been a fleet car for several years before morphing into my first motorized wheels).

Ouch.

Luckily, bees don't hurt quite as much at 34 mph as birds at 55 mph (yes, this was WAY before today's speed limits!).

This year's Ride the Rockies left a little more wear and tear on my behind than my Ford Maverick ever did. Trying to ride to work four days after the biggest ride of my life for Colorado's annual Ride to Work Day was excruciating! Fortunately, everything healed up just enough for me to finish the MS-150 the following weekend. And then squeeze in two more days of commuting so I could log my first ever 1,000-mile month badge. They give those to Girl Scouts, right? And mine should be coming in the mail soon. Right?

Initially, I was so excited by the accomplishment of clearing four digits in one month, a whole third of my 2010 goal in just 30 days (!!!), I thought maybe I could do it again in July. And August! Wowie!!! My entire 2010 goal in three months! Wouldn't that be cool!?!

After all, 1,000 miles is just 30 miles per day. My commute is twice that. So I could ride every other day.

Complications arose. First, weather. Not that I mind riding in rain and wind. I have the proper attire. Sitting atop a rolling lightning rod when black clouds hover isn't my idea of healthy physical activity. Same dilemma stung me July 4 when I wanted to shoot fireworks. Dang it! Tripods, too, double as lightning rods!

Second, The Lizard is competing in two races this month. I can't ride those two Saturdays. That's not a complaint, though. I love to get pictures of him at his best when I'm not feeling exhausted, strained, tired, weak, humbled, worn out, bushed, beat and possibly saddle sore to boot.

Third, my yard and garden were neglected since about March, and if I want to have edible food from my own backyard this autumn, I need to put some time in there. Difficult to do when I pedal away with headlamp at 4:45 a.m. and then don’t get home until 7:30 or 8 p.m.

Fourth, Christmas is just five months away. I have a ton of presents to finish making. I can’t do that on the bike.

Does it sound like I’m making excuses? I truly was supercharged when I finished that 1,000th mile last month. The Lizard called to ask if I wanted to be picked up at Mile 15, which would be the exact amount I needed. I was pedaling into a 20-25 mph headwind. I could do the whole 30 miles, all the way home, and I’d have 1,015 miles during the month of June. I would be home at about 8 p.m. I would be exhausted. And I wouldn’t have time to do anything but water the garden, eat and collapse into bed.

“YES! Please! Pick me up Qdoba, which should be exactly 15 miles, and I’ll buy you dinner!”

My odometer read 44.8 when I pulled into Qdoba. (I’d done 30 miles that morning.) I pedaled back a tenth of a mile, then turned back into the headwind and returned to Qdoba, where a marvelous naked queso burrito awaited!

I seriously wanted another 1,000 miles. Repeating the fete this month and again next month would have been like turning into Super Woman for someone like me. But reasons Number 1 through 4 above are real, and I can get a whole lot more wildflower photos hiking than biking. So the saddle gets a bit of a reprieve now.

I have no intention to quit riding. I do not want to lose what I have built up. Maybe I can do 1,000 miles in a month again another time, when I don’t have other elements of life getting pushed aside.

There’s also the issue of the crippled bike. When I first realized my derailleur had bit the dust, I thought I would have to buy a new bike. I thought I had no choice whatsoever in the matter. That hurt like crazy.

The bike runs okay with a mountain bike derailleur, and I could tolerate another 1,000 miles on it if I had to. But I don’t have to. And that, perhaps, is the best part of NOT riding another 1,000 miles in 31 days or less. I HAD to finish Ride the Rockies. In my mind, I’d paid for those miles. Not just with money, but with training. Months of training. To give up or quit would mean I’d wasted all the hours I invested through a springtime of not always favorable weather. I earned those miles. And now, I have pedaled those miles. They are mine. No one can ever take them away from me!

So what about the bike? Does my future hold a new shiny steed?

Nope. I’ve decided to take The Lizard up on his offer to completely rebuild the bike and turn it into a 10-speed this winter when we get back on the trainers. Next spring, it will be like a whole new bike, but without the price tag! And when something goes wrong with the derailleur, the cassette, the chain, the hubs... whatever, I'll be able to get parts. Well, unless bike manufacturers quit making 10-speeds and force us all to upgrade once again...

Best of all, my reborn and rebuilt bike will be fully equipped with seven years of some of the most wonderful memories of my life. Just try to buy that in any bike shop!

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Monster Not-Socks

I have been yearning to craft monster socks ever since I first discovered what other fiber artists do with their leftover sock yarn. They pool leftovers into one pair of socks and create Monster Socks, also known as Franken Socks.

I had been using my sock leftovers to create little creatures. I don't necessarily want to stop doing that. But I do want a pair of Monster Socks. Really, really bad!

After last week's Seven Days in the Saddle, I finally got a chance to finish off a pair of socks I'd been working on during my workday train commutes. I knew I would finish them in one train ride, so I grabbed the black fingering yarn I'd picked to use as a base for my very own Monster Socks and stuck it in my commute bag.

About 20 minutes into my first motorized commute in two weeks, I finished the heel on the second sock, and my Monster Sock project was about to blast off!

I eagerly started a new sock with the black yarn. I intended to make the toe, heel and cuff of black, and I'd have stripes of leftover sock yarn in the body of the sock.

After finishing the first row of my precious, long-awaited initial Monster Sock, I realized the fingering yarn I'd picked for the project was too thick. I still had 15 more minutes of commute, and no project on which to work!

I stared at the black yarn for a few minutes, trying to give it a chance to tell me what it wants to be when it grows up. It whispered, "Purse." I didn't want to make a purse, but I do agree with what many knitters and crocheters are beginning to say: whimsical and clever yarn should not be limited to feet projects, where they might not even be seen. Luscious sock yarn should be used for whatever project the fiber artist can dream up.

I asked the skein of black fingering yarn if it would like to be a scarf with artistic, lacey stripes of all different colors, and it insisted, "No. I want to be a purse. A purse with eye-catching stripes of many hues and stitch varieties. And other embellishments, too, if you like."

So, not what I'd planned, but fresh out of my head, I began making a Monster Purse, making up the pattern as I went. (All in one piece, I might add!) Monster Socks will have to wait until after Ride the Rockies. Although I do plan to take along a skein (or two) of sock yarn during my weeklong bicycle tour so I can work on yet another pair (or two) of socks (also known as 2010 Christmas presents) in the evenings in my tent. If I feel like it. If I can keep my eyes open.

Sock yarn doesn't weigh much, and it won't take up too much space in my overnight bag (not to be confused with my pack, which will be on my back and loaded with rain gear, first aid kit and camera). Crocheting socks is a very relaxing pastime for me. I might need a little relaxation after pedaling up to 90 miles each day!

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