I’m working on a slow-knitting top at the moment with a yarn that is a touch on the harsh side (but will soften up after washing) so, to alternate with a softer project, I cast on a pair of plain socks with a ball of Austermann Step self-patterning sock yarn. The yarn is easy on the hands and contains Aloe Vera and Jojoba Oil, and while my colour choice was a little odd, it was a dream to knit with.

I’ve dabbled in toe-up construction over the past 6 months so I decided to knit the tallest socks I’ve knit so far. These socks were knit toe-up to use around 80g of the yarn ball (leaving 20-odd grams for scrap yarn projects) so I knit one sock at a time and weighed as I went so I knew when to stop.

What I hadn’t considered was the need for increases as the sock got taller. While I like snug fitting socks, my calves are hardly as thin as my ankles! When I tried the socks on and they were well up my calves (7″ from the corner of the fish lips kiss heel) I noticed this oversight and added 2 stitches on each side and then again an inch later, but realistically I should have started increasing much earlier.

The socks feel comfortable to wear but the higher up the calf you look, the more stretched the stitches are. Oh boy! But I will probably wear them folded at my ankles and there’s no reason for anyone to be staring so closely at my calves to notice, so no harm done but lesson learned!

The general construction notes can be found on my Ravelry project page for Crime scene socks (the colouring makes me think of a crime scene with blue police tape!?).

And you know what? I now want to knit even taller socks!