Railroad Rib Socks

Pair One



Yarn: ...I know the ball band is around here somewhere. It was something German.
Pattern: Fiber Trends Railroad Rib Socks
Needles: Crystal Palace Bamboo dpns, US 1

I knit this pattern twice, for my first and second pairs of socks, and so far I've avoided Second Sock and Fourth Sock syndrome. If anything I'm on the Knit Only This Pattern Forever Thereby Avoiding Risks Syndrome.

I actually like the fabric of the reverse side better than the right side, so if I ever do knit these again, I would reverse the stitches.

Right side:



Wrong side:



The two-row repeat is very easy to memorize, which didn't stop me from tinking several million times. If I had a nickel for every stitch I tinked, I could buy a new pattern. Not that I would.

I started off knitting way too tightly and had to frog:



but the next attempts went much better. The most utterly charming thing about these socks is how the color changed (completely serendipitously) right when I started turning the heel.

Pair Two
Yarn: Cascade Fixation, light purple
Needles: Brittany hardwood dpns, 3

The lady at the yarn store recommended bamboo over wood size 1s for the first pair, citing the greater flexibility of bamboo. I love the wooden Brittany needles, but reluctantly took her advice. She's right, though - the bamboo proved very flexible and at several points really needed to be.

Cascade Fixation is weird and great. Yarn Store Lady said not to stretch it out on purpose while knitting, so I erred very far on the side of not stretching it out at all. By the time I got to the foot of the first sock, I'd gotten the tension down, but the sock leg turned out pretty floppy. Mom insists that it feels fine, but I think that such different-feeling socks would drive me shouty crackers within 10 minutes. I've got a backup ball in case another sock is needed. We'll see if Fifth Sock Syndrome kicks in.