The Socks That Whooped Me!

Way back last September I joined a little swap called Feet To Prayers. It was the midst of a really crazy time in my life when Laura had just died and my Hubby scared us with Atrial Fibrillation secondary to his newly diagnosed Graves' Disease. I thought it would be a good idea to focus on someone else and give of my time in prayer and encouragement. Knitting a sock was part of the requirement. We knit one sock for our partner and sent it on for them to knit the second sock, that way we had knit something "together". How hard could a sock be? I knit lace. I knit Fair Isle. I knit Aran. I have worked on custom fitting for myself. One little sock could not be that big of a deal! Famous last words!

The sock you see cavorting here at the Pacific Ocean before being mailed on to lovely, but sadly blog-less Charlotte, is not the sock I began with. Nor the second sock I knit. Nor even the third. This sock is actually the 4th. First I began with some lovely Schaeffer Anne. It was a little splurge but so beautiful...burgandy, forest green, deep purple, sunshiny fern green...it just looked like autumn and the changing of season to me. I knit it up in the infamous Jaywalker pattern. It was so beautiful. It striped, alternating burgandy/purple with the greens. It looked divine. But the pattern is so tight and many people I know have given up on trying to get a good fit. Much to my husband's shock I frogged the whole sock...it had been almost done!

The next sock was a modified Jaywalker after I had found a version made for larger feet. I had the sock 3/4 of the way done and saw that while it would have fit the foot, it would not have gone well over the heel. Heartbroken and frustrated, I frogged again. I was exhausted and overwhelmed by a sock, of all things! But, I wasn't going to let a sock get the better of me. So I tried another pattern and it just didn't do the lovely Anne sock yarn justice. So ripped again.

So, what does any self-respecting knitter doing when the going gets tough? I went to my local yarn store to seek fresh inspiration. And I asked Charlotte's forgiveness. Her secret pal package was sent of, sock-less! Yes, I am ashamed to admit it! I became "one of those" exchange pals! :o( So, I found some lovely Lorna's Laces Shepherd Sport yarn in the Vera colourway. I liked it because it didn't look just like every other sock yarn out there, it was somewhat autumnal in coloring and it just seemed fitting that the colourway was named after Lorna's mother since Charlotte and I had conversed regarding the influences of our mothers and grandmothers. So, I waited until after Christmas to begin Sock Attempt #4. I thought I should follow the KISS formula, given my previous failures. And that sock was like a brick wall to me. But finally I finished it...toe up with a round heel and a 2x2 rib! I kept it simple and let the colourway form the pattern. The last week of August I mailed it to Charlotte...8 months LATE! And, I waited on pins and needles to know whether it would fit.

Ta Da! It fits! That's Charlotte's foot in the sock! Now...Please say extra knitting prayers that she will be able to come up with a matching sock for her other foot! Hopefully she will have an easier go at it than I did. It was the craziest knitting journey I have ever embarked upon, but the perseverence was worth it because Charlotte has been a blessing in my life! May God Bless you Charlotte and keep you warm! :o)