So, for my dad for Christmas, I’m knitting him a pair of socks. (That is not his foot above – it’s the boyfriend’s) I chose the pattern “Gentleman’s Winter Sock” from Nancy Bush’s Knitting Vintage Socks.
I changed the pattern to fit the yarn I’m using, (Dale Baby Ull) and so the heel is not the one in the book. It’s just a standard heel that I normally do (but with a stockinette stitch heel flap). Oh, but I used a thread of nylon sewing thread as I knitted the heel and the toe to re-inforce the 100% superwash wool.
The problem?
My dad’s feet are somewhere between a size 10 and 10 1/2 (he calls it something like size 10 1/4).
The foot that these socks are pictured on – those are size 12 feet (or something like that) which, according to this chart, is around 3/4 of an inch difference. AND -they felt a bit big when I put them on my boyfriend. You can see the looseness in the top photo. And, since these socks are superwash, I can’t say “oh, they’ll felt to fit,” like I did with my redwood forest socks.
The way I see it, I have these options (please vote by leaving a comment):
- Ignore the problem, pretend everything is fine, knit the second the same and present the pair on Christmas day like nothing is wrong.
- Take the sock home with me in 2 weeks, blindfold my dad and have him try on the sock and THEN consider the need to frog, before the second sock is started. (Keep in mind that this will definetly spoil some of the textural elements of the surprise.)
- Trace my dad’s feet and use that to judge if the sock should be re-knit. (He already knows he’s getting socks – that’s how come I know his shoe size.)
- Frog the sock (it CANNOT be converted to a present for the boyfriend), and knit him something else (suggestions?).
Background: The first thing I ever knit was a scarf for my dad. It was a giant, thick-yarned blanket of a scarf and I’m eager to show him how my mad skillz have improved. He’s asked for both socks and an Aran sweater. Since my dad is a rather large man (in stature), the Aran sweater is going to wait a few years. But I figure I should knit him something he wants.
Oh, the dilemna.
*disclaimer – YES, I swatched. That was how I was able to convert the pattern to my yarn and needle size. I just think that I was a bit off in my results. That’s all.
All Buttoned Up 
I tried to leave a comment on your awesome scarf, but got an error message. But anyway, love the colors and the pattern, nice job! The sock looks great, I really like the reinforcement, that looks cool. I vote for number 1. You can put them in the dryer, and that should take care of it. But check them every few minutes (or do a test swatch). But if you don’t want to do that, can’t you just frog back a little and reknit only the toe? No sense in frogging the entire sock!
I say option 3, but like Hege says, if you did it top-down you can just frog a little bit if the fit is too big. But if it is a little too big for your boyfriend then your Dad probably won’t wear them if you give them to him as they are because they’ll rub him to pot if he wears them with shoes. And remember that you want to show off your skills as a knitter!
Good luck!
They can’t be converted to a gift for the boyfriend??? Hmm…
I’d go with “A” (but bring your needles)
I would go with number 3, because I personaly hate to frog. Hopefully, you did them top-down like Bryony said, then it would be an easy fix. Good Luck.
I also think giving the sock to the boyfriend (but of course not knitting its partner until you are done with your father’s socks!) is an excellent option. I mean, then you’ll be halfway to…cursedom. oh yeh. But I’ve found there’s not so much of a curse.
Good luck! -N*
I feel your pain only I knit a pair of socks for my dad who has a size 14 foot. You have to read my blog and see what happened to mine!
OH, the nylon is a good idea, I am going to have to note that for future projects.
Marly
I’d like to find out more? I’d like to find out more details.