Favorite Thing Friday: Retro Rib Socks

I’ve been bit by the sock knitting bug, again! This time I pulled out my trusty needles and made some simple, yet really fun to knit socks. The inspiration for “simple” came from realizing my sock drawer is full of brightly colored socks and very few neutral colors. I needed some socks that go with anything and everything without being boring.

I found the perfect pattern in one of my favorite knitting books, Favorite Socks: 25 Timeless Designs From Interweave. The Retro Rib Sock is just a simple rib pattern, but it mixes stitches up enough to give the rib a little kick.

Considering I choose a very plain yarn, Patons Kroy Socks in Flax, it was important for the stitch pattern to create a nice texture. The Retro Rib definitely gives this otherwise boring yarn a boost with wonderful ridges and valleys.

Even plain brown socks can be pretty!

To achieve such an interesting texture, the pattern calls for knit and knit-through-back loop stitches that alternate between rows. Luckily, the pattern has a nice rhythm and that makes it easy to memorize when to knit a stitch normally and when to knit through the back loop.

While this is a rather easy pattern, it does call for a kitchener stitch on the toe which can be a little daunting for a beginner. I find it to be a rather easy method to use (thanks to Ann Budd’s Getting Started Knitting Socks), but it’s easy enough to knit the toe using another method, (such as the star toe).

Overall, I love these socks! They are toasty warm and they match everything in my closet.

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What’s your favorite thing this week?

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c.b.w. 2015