Though many sock knitting patterns use common components like a heel flap and gusset and a round toe, there are many different ways to go about making a sock that fits the intended foot. German sock knitters Ewa Jostes and Stephanie van der Linden share a multitude of techniques for the different parts of a sock, as well as 15 patterns to get knitters started, in their book The Sock Knitter's Workshop: Everything Knitters Need to Knit Socks Beautifully.
The book includes a nice range of techniques and ideas, some of which you might not have seen before and many you might want to try in your own sock designs.
Sock Parts
The Sock Knitter's Workshop begins with an overview of the necessary tools and the basics involved in knitting socks. It then covers each of the major sock parts in depth, including various ways to go about:
- casting on
- working the heel
- shaping the toe
- knitting the sock itself (flat knitting and working with circular needles)
In addition, 15 patterns combine various methods described earlier in the book with interesting stitch patterns so knitters can see how the elements come together into a successful sock.
Some of the techniques described may not be familiar to knitters who haven't knit much beyond the basic heel flap and gusset or short-row heel configurations. Those knitters who haven't seen these variations before may be a little confused about how to perform them, even with the written directions.
One of the heels, for instance, shows the heel turn happening with the heel stitches on three needles, which isn't the way most of us are used to working. And though numbers of stitches for different parts of the heels are given in charts, there's no example sock to show how these heels work with real numbers.
The toe section does a somewhat better job of explaining what's happening, or maybe these directions just seem clearer because making a toe isn't as mentally jarring as knitting a heel.
One thing the book does that is nice is that in the heel section it suggests what type of foot might best be suited to that particular heel. Have a wide heel and a medium instep? Try the round heel. A narrow heel and low instep? Maybe the short-row heel would be better.
The Patterns
The Sock Knitter's Workshop includes 18 patterns -- 6 rated basic, 6 intermediate and 6 advanced -- that use different combinations of the techniques explored in the book. There's a sock for infants, a pair for kids (girls, really) and several patterns that would work for men and women.
The patterns are not written in the way you might expect sock patterns to be written; in fact, they're probably the shortest patterns for socks I've ever seen. That's because the patterns just say things like "work the short-row heel with reinforced double stitches on Needles 4 and 1," relying on the knitter to go back to that section of the book and figure out what they actually need to do.
Some of the patterns just say "work the toe shaping" and don't explain what sort of toe was used on the pictured sock. You have to read the "techniques used" section to find out what sort of techniques you're actually using, because they're not all listed in the pattern.
Still, theses socks give knitters an opportunity to try some of the techniques they might not have seen before without having to design a sock of their own. And some of these socks are interesting, such as the wavy eyelet Garter Waves, worked in self-striping yarn; the fun Mosaic Pattern men's socks, which use a solid and a multicolored yarn to make them look even more complex; and the challenging but striking Basketweave Socks, using entrelac and a striped yarn to fun effect.
Bottom Line
The Sock Knitter's Workshop might not be an essential for your sock knitting library, but it is a handy book to have if you design your own socks and want a few different options to try.
The charts in the back on heel sizes and length of toes in various yarn weights would be handy for any knitter working up her own pattern (or changing elements in a published pattern) who didn't want to guess at how many stitches to use for the heel or when to start toe shaping so the socks will actually fit.
Publication date: April 2010
