Art Deco-Inspired Knitting Pattern for Men's Socks Based on Marx Brothers' Movie 'Animal Crackers'


Art Deco patterns frequently catch my eye - sets of long parallel lines intersecting each other in elegant angles callout to be recreated in knitting. These socks were inspired by a set of French doors in the Marx Brothers movie Animal Crackers (Paramount Pictures, 1930). The design is drawn with slipped stitches on a stockinette background, working the diagonal lines over two rows and the vertical lines over three. It can be difficult to keep track of what's going on and what happens next, but like a good Marx Brothers movie, if you relax and go with it, eventually the chaos, repetition and syncopation resolve into something beautiful, fun, and sophisticated.

GAUGE AND SIZES

MATERIALS

8.5 stitches/12 rounds per inch in stockinette stitch Pattern is written for three sizes: men's small (medium, large). Sock circumference: 7.5 (8.5, 9.5) inches slightly stretched, to fit mid-foot circumference: 8.5 (9.5, 10.5) inches Approximately 350 (450, 550) yards fingering weight yarn US 1 (2.25mm) needles, or size to obtain gauge Cable needle

SAMPLE DETAILS

Shown in Wollmeise "Pure" 1oo% Merino Superwash ; size medium

ChaRt KEy

K-Knit. SI—Slip sts as if to purl, holding yarn in back.

CUFF

K1-elongated——Knit 1 stitch, wrapping yarn twice. Drop extra wrap from needle on next row. (This stitch is usually slipped in the next 2 rows.)

RIBBING

CO 68 (76, 84) stitches. Join for working in the round, being careful not to twist stitches. Mark beginning of round and work K1,P1 ribbing for 1.5 inches.

Slipped left twist (SLT)—Knit second stitch onleft needle through the back loop; do not drop off needle. Slip first stitch on needle purlwise and drop both sts off left needle.

LEG

Set-up round: Work 17 (19, 21) stitches in established ribbing, K1- elongated, rib for 33 (37, 41) stitches, K1-elongated, rib to end of round.

Slipped right twist (SRT)—-Slip 2 sts to right needle; insert left needle through back of second stitch on right needle. Using your left thumb to hold the first stitch steady, slide the right needle out of the 2 sts and quickly reinsert into the front of the first stitch. Knit stitch on left needle through back loop. Cross 2 below slipped—-Slip 2 sts to cable needle; hold in front, dropping the extra wrap on second, elongated stitch. Knit stitch on left needle through the back loop. Slip sts from cable needle back to left needle. Work Slipped Right Twist as described above. Special—See row instructions. Rounds 1-40: K7 (9, 11), work chart A, K13 (17, 21), repeat chart A, knit to end of round. Note: if a longer leg is desired, instead of working round 4o, repeat rounds 26-39. Work round 40 before continuing. Next round: Work chart B for the appropriate size, twice around. In row 13 (17, 21) of chart B, the diagonal lines meet, so you need to work the first and last stitches of the chart together in a Slipped Left Twist. You may want to adjust your stitches so that the first and last stitches of the chart are next to each other on the same needle. Round 13 (17, 21): Work first 2 stitches as SRT, then work rest of chart as shown to last stitch. SLT last stitch and first stitch in chart repeat. Slip next stitch, then work chart as shown to last stitch. SLTlast stitch of this round and first stitch of the next round. Round 14 (18, 22): Knit 2nd stitch in round, then work to end of chart row as shown. On the repeat, work first 2 stitches as SRT, then rest of the round as charted. Continue working cuffto end of chart B.

HEEL

FLAP

Set up for heel: M1, k17 (19, 21). Turn. Heel flap is worked on 34 (38, 42) stitches just worked; remaining stitches are held for instep. Row 1 (WS): [Slip 1, p1] 17 (19, 21) times. Turn. Row 2 (RS): Slip 1, k33 (37, 41). Turn. Repeat rows 1 and 2 16 (18, 20) more times.

TURN HEEL

Row 1 (WS): Slip 1, p19 (21, 23), p2tog, P1, turn. Row 2 (RS): Slip 1, k7, ssk, k1, turn. Row 3 (WS): Slip 1, purl to 1 stitch before gap, p2tog, p1, turn. Row 4 (RS): Slip 1, knit to 1 stitch before gap, ssk, k1, turn. Repeat rows 3 and 4 until all heel stitches have been worked, ending with a RS row. 20 (22, 24) stitches remain. The last two rows will end p2tog and ssk without the additional P1 or K1. With RS facing, pick up and knit 18 (20, 22) stitches along the edge of the heel flap. Place instep marker. Work chart C across instep. Place marker. Pick up and knit 18 (20, 22) stitches along other side of heel flap. Knit 10 (11, 12) stitches to beginning of the round. You should have a total of 91 (1o1, 111) stitches.

GUSSET DECREASES

Round 1: Knit to 2 stitches before instep marker, k2tog, work chart C across instep, ssk, knit to end of round. Rounds 2 & 3: Knit to instep; work inset in chart C as set; knit to end of round. Repeat rounds 1-3 another 10 (11, 12) times, until you have 69 (77, 85) stitches total.

FOOT

First round of foot: Knit to 2 stitches before instep marker, k2tog. Work chart C across instep; knit to end of round. There are 35 (39, 43) instep stitches, 33 (37, 41) sole stitches. Work as established until sock is 2 (2.25, 2.5) inches less than desired foot length.

TOE

Unless your foot is about 12 inches long, you will reach the toe section before completing chart C. Instead of knitting the toe in plain stockinette, continue following the chart as established while you decrease at the sides. Round 1 (decrease): Knit to 3 stitches before end of sole; k2tog, k2, ssk. Knit to 3 stitches before end of instep, working lines of slipped stitches in pattern if desired. k2tog, k2, ssk, knit to end of round. Rounds 2 & 3: Knit. Repeat rounds 1-3 another 4 (5, 5) times. 48 (52, 60) stitches remain. Work one decrease round and one plain round. Repeat 3 (3, 4) times. 32 (36, 40) stitches remain. Work 2 decrease rounds. 24 (28, 32) stitches remain. Knit to end of sole. Move one stitch from instep to sole, and graft instep and sole stitches together.

HOTES FOR CHART A

The first round with chart A is tricky, so here are step-by-step instructions. 1 K16 (18, 20). 2. Slip two stitches to cable needle; hold in front, dropping the extra wrap on second, elongated stitch. 3. Knit stitch on left needle through the back loop. Slip stitches from cable needle to right needle. 5. Insert left needle through back of second stitch on right needle. 6. Using your left thumb to hold the first stitch steady, slide the right needle out of the two stitches and quickly reinsert into the front of the first stitch. 7. Knit stitch on left needle through back loop. 8. K16 (18, 20). Repeat these steps to complete round.

CHART A

CHART B - SMALL

CHART B - MEDIUM

CHART B - LARGE

CHART C - MEDIUM

CHART C - LARGE

APPENDIX

CREDITS

The art director of the movie Animal Crackers was Ernst Fegte. He would have overseen the studio designers and workers who built the set which included the doors that inspired this pattern. The slipped stitch technique for diagonal lines came from Sulafaye's "Swirl Socks." http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/ swirl-socks-2 Charts were created in Knit Visualizer (www.knitfoundry.com).

APOLOGIESTO MYTOE-UP BRETHREN

It pains me that this is not a toe-up sock design. I worked on this pattern off-andon for three years, but it stubbornly resisted coming together until I finally tried it cuff-down. Perhaps you'll have more luck. Ill be watching the projects on Ravelry to see what you come up with.

COMPLETE WINDOW CHART

The complete window design (at right) is, in my opinion, too much for a men's sock-—it's busy and gets fussy to knit. But there's nothing stopping you from using it on your own favorite sock template, or incorporating the design onto mittens or other knitted pieces, so l include the whole charted window here. (Rows 41-74 can be repeated to add length, or eliminated to shorten the design.)

ABOUTTHEDESIGNER

Don Yarman lives in Columbus, OH, where he mostly knits socks while watching too much TV. His partner wishes he spent more time giving foot massages and less time knitting. Contact Don through email at yarmando@gmail.com, or message yarmando on Ravelry or Twitter.