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I was asked to design this sock for the Solid Socks group February 2012 Mystery KAL. Since 2012 is a Leap Year, I decided to use this as the theme for my design and went in search of some ideas. Wikepedia led me to an article in the Sonambulist online magazine about a campaign to make Leap Day, February 29, a holiday. The article opens by saying “Leap day is the single day we all think about our place in the universe, and how we know that place; it honors the earth we live on and our knowledge of the science of nature. This is why we propose to baptize the 29th of February 2012 ‘Galileo Day': a day of wonder about the beauty of the universe around us". This top-down sock design is my tribute to the universe as I see it: twinkling lights, star showers - all beautiful. SIZE Ladies' Small Medium & Large
MATERIALS
400 - 45om (370-415 yds) fingering weight/sock yarn. The original socks were knit with the Handwerks So-Soft Sock, sponsor of the Solid Socks February 2012 Mystery Sock, in the colourway Japanese Maple. 16 to 30 No 8 seed beads (optional) ·Cable needle (optional if you prefer cabling without a cable needle) ·0.75mm or 1.oomm crochet hook for beading ?Tapestry needle for grafting toe Stitch marker for keeping track of the beginning of the round (optional)
RECOMMENDED NEEDLES:
One or two circular 2.25mm needles, per your preference. Note 1: no matter what your choice in needle, always use the size that gives you the gauge listed below -- every knitter's gauge is unique, and can be different with different techniques. Note 2: I have written this pattern for knitting with one or two circular needles, however it can easily be adjusted to using five double-pointed needles (DPN's) - just divide the stitches of Needle 1evenly over DPNs 1 & 2, and the stitches of Needle 2 over DPNs 3 & 4. GAUGE : 8.5 to 9 sts = 2.5cm/1 inch in stockinette st
ABBREVIATIONS & CHART SYMBOLS
st = stitch K = Knit P = Purl st st = Stockinette Stitch = K all right-side rows, P all wrong-side rows Rev st st = Reverse Stockinette Stitch = P all right-side rows, K all wrong-side rows ssk = Slip, Slip Knit = Slip one stitch knitwise onto the right hand needle, slip a second stitch purlwise onto the right hand needle, then insert the left hand needle through the front of both stitches and knit them together. ssp = Slip, Slip Purl = Slip one stitch purlwise onto the right hand needle, slip a second stitch purlwise onto the right hand needle, then insert the left hand needle through the back of both stitches and purl them together. KTog = Knitwo together = insert the right hand needle into the next 2 sts on the lft hand needle and knit them together. P2Togtbl = Purl two together through the back loop = insert the right hand needle into back of the loops of the next 2 sts on the left hand needle and purl them together. β C2F = Cable 2 Forward - Place the next st onto a cable needle and hold to the front of the ork. Ki from the left hand needle then Ki from the cable needle.
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C2B = Cable 2 Back - Place the next st onto a cable needle and hold to the back of the work. K1 from the left hand needle then Ki from the cable needle. thasti M= Maeke one =Inerting the tip ofthelft hand nedl fom ack to front,lifthe bar etwen the stitch just knit and the next one. Insert the right hand needle into the front of the lifted bar and knit, creating a new stitch. _No Stitch= No stitch - a decrease somewhere on the row being knit is not compensated by an increase, resulting in a net decrease in the number of stitches. When knitting from a chart, you need to ignore this stitch. Turn = Turn the knitted fabric around so that the other side is facing you and start working st st in the other direction. You do this at the end of every row when working a flat piece, but when turning a heel using short rows, this turn occurs before you reach the end of a row. SlWYF=Holding the yan to the font ofthework, slip one stitch purlwise onto th right hand needle SlWYI= Holding the yarn to the back ofthe work, slip one stitch purlwise onto the right hand needle MYO = Yarn Over = Bring yarn to front of work and then knit the next stitch by bringing the yan over the right hand needle before wrapping it around the stitch. _Place Bead = Place a bead at this stitch using the crochet hook method (see this youtube video for a demonstration). If you prefer, the bead can be replaced by either purling or making a small bobble at this stitch instead. To make a bobble, knit into the front, back, front, back and front of the stitch (5 sts). Turn work and purl all 5 sts. Turn work again and K2tog, K2tog, kl, pass 2 k2tog stitches over (1 st).) N1, N2 = Needle 1, Needle 2
NOTES BEFORE YOU START
If you are interested in learning how to cable without a cable needle, this youtube video is a great demonstration of the technique. You will find the charts for each clue at the end of the clue.
CLUE1: PHASES OF THE MOON- THE CUFF
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are my favourites) and divide the stitches evenly across both needles => 32 (36, 40) sts per needle. Join all stitches in the round and knit all rows of the size-appropriate chart once across Ni and once across N2 (charts repeat once across each needle). Note: Pay close attention to the symbols on Row 16 of the chart - upon completion, your stitch count will have changed to 66 (74, 78) sts total - 33 (37, 39) sts on each needle.
End of Clue 1.
CLUE 1 CUFF CHARTS
Small:
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CLUE 1 CUFF CHARTS cont'd
Medium:
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Large:
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CLUE 2: TWINKLE, TWINKLE LITTLE STAR - THE LEG
Work the size-appropriate LEG Chart once across the sts on Ni and then again across the sts on N2 until the leg measures approximately 15cm/6" from the cast-on edge. Note: You can customize the length of your sock by knitting fewer or more repeats of the Leg Chart - just make sure that: a) you do the same number of repeats on sock # 2 (you'd be surprised by how many times I've forgotten to write down this information!) and b) that you end after a row 8 of the chart for sizes Small and Medium and after a row 40 for size Large
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End of Clue 2
CLUE 2 LEG CHARTS
Small:
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Medium:
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