Yes, these just might be the “right” weight socks for my Addi Express knitting machine. Not too thick, and not too thin, with stitches just about right for the yarns.
The Addi still struggles a bit with those increases and decreases, and I take great care with them! But somehow it manages very well — how can a plastic machine be this sturdy?!? — and does the job beautifully.
Clothing has taken a back seat around here for quite a while now, but there’s stash to be used up, and, someday, maybe, clothes will be needed again. I have been eyeing *Wool&’s Rowena merino dress for quite a while, but couldn’t convince myself to buy it: the neckline’s all wrong for me; everyone complains about the pockets; and there’s the whole agony and waste of online sizing.
But I want at least one merino dress along those lines — and it’s time to start thinking about making clothes again. Why not begin with something that will act like pajamas around the house, but go outside — if that’s ever possible — perfectly well? That was my thinking, so I grabbed some ponte, bought long ago from Fabric Mart, Closet Case’s Ebony Dress pattern No. 10, and went to work.
Here’s a quick over-view of some of the socks I’ve made so far on my Addi Express, to a point, and otherwise not mentioned.
The reference numbers refer to casting-on, not to actual full socks completed! I’ve cast-on a lot of experiments, toes, and heels, and what-not, which never materialized into full socks.
This pair is the result of casting onto the Addi Express for the 93rd and 94th times.
These look purple in my monitor, but they are
actually shades of burgundy and dusty rose.
And they are the first pair I’ve made which have no mistakes! (Uh, maybe I should say that they have no mistakes that I noticed?) No dropped stitches, no pulls, and even tension in the heels and toes. (Though that latter is complicated, see below.)
Finally, a matching pair of Addi-knit socks! Here are the results of my 78th and 80th casting-ons. (Number 77 was a bust. Sigh.)
There’s still a lot to learn — among other things, I think the tension isn’t exactly the same for both socks — but this is a milestone!
For my next experiment, I used Lion Brand Wool Ease (a wool/acrylic blend) in forest green heather, with a blue Marage 4 ply fingering yarn (which came as sample yarn with a weaving loom.
The Wool Ease is approximately the gauge of the Fisherman’s Wool I’ve used before, but the fingering yarn is much lighter than the Caron Simply Soft I’d paired previously. Continue reading
Learning any new skill requires practice . . . a lot of practice. I did all of my initial learning on the Addi Express using single strand Gauge 4 yarns. But Addi says that socks are properly made with a double strand of knitting yarn, so I gave it a try, even before I was really proficient at using the Addi.
This was the result. It’s actually a fantastic sock! But I’ll explain what happened here. Continue reading
This is part 2 of a set of cue sheets to use when making socks on the Addi Express.
General tips for using the Addi Express Loom are here:
Tips for Using the Addi Express Circular Loom
Continue on to STEP 4A —
Addi Express Machine Knit Socks
(You may want to refer to Sylvie Rasch’s video and to the tips posts listed below before beginning.
These cue sheets won’t teach you how to make a sock on an Addi, but will make knitting socks a lot easier
once you understand the basic process.)
These instructions consist of five steps:
1. Cuff: Cast-on, cranking counter-clockwise, completing rounds for cuff.
2. Heel: Parts one and two.
3. Foot: Completing rounds, counter-clockwise, for foot
4. Toe: Parts one and two.
5. Finish: Grafting toe seam and winding in ends.
The only thing I knew I wanted to make on my Addi Express was bed socks. It’s been quite a journey. The seventy-first and seventy-second casting-ons I did resulted in these:
Not exactly socks, but sock booties. They fit perfectly! And they’re a more-or-less adequate beginning attempt. (As I experimented, my samples got shorter and shorter.) These are knit from Lion Brand Fisherman’s Wool — proving that wool can, indeed, work on the Addi Express! Continue reading
