Sunday, March 26, 2006

Indecision with regards to my Sockapaloooza socks, which (alert the media!) I began to knit.

It has to do with the short-row heels. I am determined to do short row heels, because it's just what I do. Now. After lots of tears and bewilderment over wrapped short rows, I settled into a routine of yarn-over short rows, with which I am very comfortable. This produces a heel with a very smooth bend--it looks, really, like the rows of stitches just bend. On the inside however, it creates rather large loops of string. They are not loose loops, but they are long.

I was left with the impression that wrapped short rows were somehow better than YO short rows, so when Wendy miraculously began to knit socks again--just in time!--I asked her how to pick up and knit the wrapped short rows, and miraculously--just in time!--she responded with the first explanation I've ever heard that works. So, wrapped short rows I have done:

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And boy, am I worried. Look at those long stitches on the outside of the heel. Can this be right? If so, is it really better than YO short rows? If not, should I tear out the heel and do it in my old YO way? Here is how it breaks down:

For KEEPING the heel as it is:
1. This is how wrapped short rows look, apparently. Lots of people do wrapped short rows. So it must be okay.
2. Wendy (miraculously!) included a closeup picture of exactly the same piece of sock anatomy today, and it has the long stitches also: Wendy's long stitches. Wendy is a knitgoddess, so what she does must be okay.
3. It would be a major pain in the patootie to take this heel out and redo it. Notice the slanting stitch of the cuff? Yeah. That involves YOs and K2togs; those don't get back on the needle easy, lemme tell you.

For RIPPING out the heel and redoing it:
1. It would be done the way I'm used to having it done.
2. There wouldn't be these long stitches on the outside.

So, any comments?

2 comments:

Melissa said...

I don't know what to suggest, but it's looking good. I love the color!

Soggy Desert Rat said...

I like the look of the long stitches - adds to the socks' character. ;v)