Oh the tangled web we weave? Nah! This is Knitting!

Well, the toes are done, the yarn is wound...I guess it's time to get this thing going.

YIKES!

One of the most common questions I get asked is "How do you keep this from getting tangled?"
The photo above certainly doesn't help to support my next statement, but...it's actually easier than you would think.

In all fairness, I should probably start with this photo:

As you can see all the strands are behaving themselves quite nicely here.

Each strand goes down to the needle and it's respective toe. Since the toes stay in the same order, it's not all that difficult to determine which strand is next. It's patiently waiting its turn on right next to the start of the row of that particular toe.

Perhaps a video would help...I'll try to remember to do that.

One of the drawbacks to doing the toes in a separate color....I'm going to have LOT more ends to weave in.  Maybe I'll have a good ol' Tom Sawyer moment and invite a group of knitters together to help with that. Hmmmm.

Okay okay...that's a LONG way off and I have other things to think about before then.


I knit the first row on the socks in preparation for talking to the Vashon Knitter's guild, and sharing the project with them. Word to the wise....when you start a project like this...DON'T start the first row at 10pm!

How I managed to do this without ripping out, I'll never tell. I will however, talk a little bit about one of my favorite parts of this project.  With the magic loop, each sock is divided in to a front half (instep) and a back half (sole). When working this project, I knit across all of the insteps first.  not that bad, all the yarns are sitting happily in their pockets, minding their own business. Now it's time to knit across the soles, um..., Houston...., now all the yarns are in reverse order.  The solution looks much worse than it actually is.  The first time I tried it (when doing the week's worth of socks) I had to be reminded to breathe.  Okay, here we go.

FLIP!

Looks intimidating doesn't it?  Trust me, after a few hundred times, it gets to be old hat.
Once again, each strand is waiting at the beginning of the row of each toe, so it's not as hard as you would think.

"So...how do you know which way to flip it back?"

I'm SO glad you asked that question!  Thing is...when you have 26 strands of yarn crossing each other, it's really obvious which way it needs to flip to prevent a major mishap. (Also, I strongly recommend that you keep this out of the reach of your feline family members.

Once the row is done, flip it back and you are ready to start the next row.  It's THAT easy!

As I mentioned, I did get the opportunity to share the project with the fabulous members of the Vashon Knitting group.  Here's a couple photos for you:

If you are in the area, I'm going to be teaching a class at Makers' Mercantile this coming Saturday.

The class is all about knitting from one side, although it's more commonly referred to as knitting backwards. This is a really handy technique for sock knitters!  When it comes time to turn the heel, you start working in rows instead of rounds. If you have multiple socks on your needle, knitting from one side can save you many a heartache.  

I'll also be at the shop for knit night on Thursday from 6pm - 8pm with the sock project, please feel free to bring your project and hang out with us!

Here's the topic for discussion, or feel free to leave a comment or question of your own.

Why are there 26 skeins of yarn?  If you've seen the project in person, or you are a family member (MOM), you already know the answer...so let's give someone else a chance!