New Socks! Wide Calf Socks to Boot!

It seems inappropriate to be bare-legged.  Because of health issues I need to wear mostly natural fiber socks/stockings or my feet develop fungal infections.  For real.

So I have been wearing white cotton ankle socks and other low socks.  Not being fond of frequent leg-epilation efforts (the grasping of the handle is often quite uncomfortable) I have been searching for knee socks that are mostly cotton but 1. stay up, 2. are large enough for my "wide" calves, and 3. are not too ugly.

Well, I found some!  

Sadly, there are no conservative plain black, navy, or brown plain socks.  They have only "novelty" socks.  I ordered one pair...black with a red blaze on them. I thought perhaps the blaze would be above the level of my skirt so they would be okay.  Maybe yes, maybe no. I cannot see the blaze from where I am, so I am burying my head in the sand like a flamingo.  No, not a flamingo.  What is that bird...oh, ostrich.  The ostrich buries his head in the sand so no-one will see the red blaze on his black stockings.

Since the first pair of knee socks fit well I ordered some more.  The black with white stripes has some naughty language on them so I really DO need to only wear them with my longest skirt.  As far as the others, well, it is a good thing I am mostly sitting at a desk!  The Starry Night socks I think I will wear with the beautiful navy skirt my sister gave me.

Knitting: USM Bond Knitting Machine Knee Socks

Several years ago a dear friend gave me some wonderful wool sock yarn. I decided to try to make knee socks. I decided to make them on the Bond Ultimate Sweater Machine.  There were several steps to make them.

First I measured my legs below the knee at the top of the calf,  then every inch or so down to the ankle, making a chart of measurements. 

Next I wound the yarn skeins into center-pull balls.

You are going to add on a cuff, heel, and foot with double-pointed needles.

Now to the Bond.  Cast on with waste yarn for 8-10 rows then one row of ravel cord.  At that point add the sock yarn and start the row counter back at zero.  Knit however many rows to give you the measurements on the chart, one after the other, decreasing on each side of the sock every inch or so to shape the sock properly.

When you get to the ankle, knit 8 more rows of waste yarn, then remove from the Bond machine.  Using the Kitchener Stitch, turn the flat knitting into a tube-like sock.  When that is done, pick up the stitches at the cuff end of the tube and knit the cuff in K1P1 or K2P2 ribbing for 1 1/2 inches and bind off in a stretchy bind-off.

Now pick up the stitches on the other end of the tube and knit your preferred heel, foot, and toe then bind off.

This worked very well for me, but the cuff was a little loose so I added some elastic to keep the socks up. I HATE socks that bag at the ankles....