Llangennith

Llangennith_socks2
Knitted socks shot on wooden floor
Llangennith_socks3

**Updated 2022**

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I wrote this knitting pattern around Christmas time, but it was decided that it would go in our special bumper edition of The Knitter Issue 100. The socks are knitted in Coopknits Socks Yeah!  which comes in 10 awesome colours and I love them all equally.

Using Judy’s Magic Cast On, the pattern is knitted toe-up, with a 4-row lace repeat worked across the instep. After you have turned the heel you get to mix things up a bit and knit some cables up the leg. This makes it a fun sock that doesn’t get monotonous – and it obliterates second sock syndrome as the foot section knits up quite quickly.

Errata from the version in The Knitter
In Chart A, the cable in row 1 should show the same as the cable in row 3, and they should both be worked as thus: slip next st to cn and hold at front of work, K1, then K1 from cn. (This has been corrected on the most recent PDF)

SIZES
To Fit Foot Circumference
S (M: L)
19.5 (22: 26)cm
7.5 (8.75: 10.25)in

Actual Foot Circumference
S (M: L)
151/2 (17: 20)cm
6 (6.75: 7.75)in

YARN
Coop Knits Socks Yeah! (75% superwash merino, 25% nylon; 50g/212m/231yds)
2 x 50g skeins of Ammolite

NEEDLES
A set of 2.25mm (UK 13/US 1) double pointed needles (DPNs) or circular needles, 80cm long if using Magic Loop method

NOTIONS
2 stitch markers

TENSION
36 sts and 53 rounds to 10x10cm (4x4in) over st st using 2.25mm (UK 13/US 1) needles.
Instep Chart measures 4cm from centre of wrap3 to centre of next wrap3

New Pattern ~ Portreath

**EDIT** Originally published in The Knitter 71, now available as a digital download

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Portreath-reversible-sock-pattern-1
Reversible socks – the left sock is the ‘wrong side’, the right sock is the ‘right side’

I’m so excited about this pattern. Reversible socks! This came about sort of accidently, I created the stitch pattern, tweaked it in Illustrator and then was swatching to see what it would look like. Happy with the results, I cast on and began sock one. When I reached the heel, I realised I preferred the sock inside out, and decided the sole would need to be knitted in such a way the sock could be worn either way around.

Portreath-reversible-sock-pattern-2

Moss stitch was out – I personally love it, but I know a lot of people loath it, and the prospect of knitting the sole using 4ply yarn alternating knits and purls might put some people off. So I swatched some garter stitch. Man, this yarn looks good in garter stitch! I love the subtle colour changes that are apparent throughout the pattern, but there is something about this simple stitch. Plus, a garter sole gives you a little foot massage and adds a certain squish that you wouldn’t get with stocking stitch.

reversible socks knitting pattern The Knitter 71

The yarn I used is Violet Green Solemate, 100% merino, 400m/100g. It’s lush, try it!

reversible socks knitting pattern The Knitter 71

Also in this issue is this gorgeous shawl by Anniken Allis, modelled by yours truly! I had to pop this in as it’s not every day I get made up like a superstar, but also the shawl is beautiful and is getting a lot of love on Ravelry already. Knitted in a fab orange shade of Cashmered’s 3ply Cashmere, I found it really hard to give this back!

Leona-Anniken-Allis-Lace-Shawl-Pattern

Photos by Jesse Wild

Cardigan Design Part Deux

Warning – Swatch geek alert!

After a week of properly sitting down and planning, I have to say my cardigan design hasn’t got as far as I’d hoped.

Originally in my head I wanted to make a traditional aran style cardigan, with a hood and chunky cables.  A similar fit to the one below, I made a while ago, but longer with different cables all the way around.

I started working on the new pattern about 2 years ago and settled on this as the main cable design.  Can you imagine that as a hoodie? I can and will!

So this week I got to work on looking at other cable stitch patterns and deciding what I did and didn’t like. This one is simple but you need a couple of basic cables in there, or else it starts to look too fussy.

I also made a honeycomb stitch swatch which I think is totally awesome, but it ran away and hid somewhere after blocking and hasn’t been seen since. If you’re wondering what I’m on about, it looks like this.

However… Late on Wednesday night, after swatching, frogging, blocking, snapping etc, and generally having cables tangling around my head for the best part of 6 days, I thought, “hang on.. those 10 balls I have of Rowan Wool Cotton are 50g, not 100g.  How the hell am I going to make a cable hoodie out of that?”

Darn.

So back to square one.  I got on to Ravelry to see what other people had made with Rowan Wool Cotton and discovered something great.. This yarn likes to be knit as lace!

For all the cables I had knitted so far with this yarn I had been using 3.25mm needles.  But they just weren’t working for the lace.  The picture above is one of my favourite stitches, yet you can clearly see the difference between the smaller needles (at the bottom) and the 4mm needles I used for the part above the garter stitch.

I really love this stitch but I’m not sure if it’s a bit close in aesthetic to the cardigan below, Lichen by Lisa Richardson which I made for myself about 2 years ago.

Obviously one is cabled and one just has the effect of cables, but it is the lattice look that I am referring to. And although this pattern will be up for sale once it is complete, the designs that I write are based on things that I want to wear myself. I’m not at the stage yet where I can create something, put hours into it and then sell it or give it away.

So then I tried this stitch out.

There’s something about it I’m not sure about, and I think it’s the fact it’s so uniform. I can just see it draping in lacy rib down the front, and I find that a bit.. boring? Plus there are too many holes to make it warm.

This was the last stitch I tried out it made me happy to knit. The pattern wasn’t too repetitive and I liked how neat it looked after blocking. Initially, I felt, yay! I’ve found the one!

But now I’m not so sure! I’m drawn back to the lattice stitch every time I look at the swatch.   So thought I’d ask for help.  Imagine a round neck, classic style cardigan in either of these stitches.

Which would you go for?