I am so excited that these super-long knee socks are finally finished! Remember back when I was talking about doing twenty inches of 1×1 ribbing at the top of each sock? It’s done! I knitted knee socks by hand. Over-the-knee socks actually! I’m very pleased with these.
Yup, I’m standing on my desk here.
What to say about these? They were a labour of love. Knit on size 1 needles (that’s 2.25mm in diameter) using fingering-weight yarn, these took just under two months to knit. That is a long time for socks!
Why on earth would anyone knit knee socks? Big calves, that’s why. I’ve bought knee socks and they arrive shaped like tubes, straight up and down from ankle to knee. My legs are not at all tube-like, so it’s wonderful to be able to customize the calf width to fit over my curvy calves.
Pattern is Delicious Knee Socks with the over-the-knee modification, minus the cable up the back of the leg. I knit the foot size 8 and the calf size F. Yarn is Tough Love Sock by SweetGeorgia. Ravelry notes here.
How do I feel about these? I love them! They fit snugly from ankle to calf, the foot fits well and fits into shoes, and the colour is amazing. It’s called Tumbled Stone and it’s a warm mushroom grey-taupe, a neutral that’s very pretty and not at all bland. I can wear them over tights now, and in a couple of months, lose the tights and wear the socks alone.
I’m somewhat afraid to wear them in case I ruin them, or catch them on something, or have the colour from inside my shoes rub off on the socks. But what is the point of making something gorgeous never to wear it? So, I’m totally going to wear these and if they get ruined, I’ll mend them. I saved a little bit of yarn just in case I need to repair them, even though I’ve never repaired socks before. (I figure I’ll figure it out when the time comes!)
Here’s the question: would I knit these again? Absolutely! I think they look kind of sexy here, as far as socks go. The increases up the back leg make a subtle seam, like seamed stockings. Except warm. In my books, anything that’s warm and somewhat sexy is a win!
They look Deliciously pink! Congratulations on a beautiful pair or socks.
If and when you do need to repair them, normal darning (which mimics woven fabric) is fun, but special knitted darning (creating a scaffolding of thread and sewing in a knitted patch over the hole) is even more fun! And of course, it matches the surrounding knitted fabric perfectly. And makes you feel immensely clever to have understood the very structure of fabric. And the patch moves and stretches just like knit fabric. And…
anyway, here’s hoping that repair day doesn’t come for a long, long time!
Awesome! They are indeed a bit sexy – and I totally believe you on the warm as well. I admire your patience with that ribbing…
(And of a slightly different note, those are some of the most amazing shoes I’ve seen in quite a while)
I love these! I’ve been wanting to make some similar socks – will definitely check this pattern out!
those are awesome, lady! something about your reviews that i love??? that you always go into detail about all the parts of a project….a full review, if you will. what you love/what you don’t love – about your yarn and about the pattern. please keep doing that!
Congrats! The socks look awesome! I just bought the pattern for these socks yesterday because of you. I have large calves too and when you mentioned the customized fit…I was sold. I’m a much slower knitter though and will be thrilled if I get a pair done to go to Quebec for next years Carnaval. Lol
Oh, amd Sanne is right – great shoes too.
Hey Tasia! I’ve been following your blog for a while, and I love it!! I’m a young seamstress who just learned how to knit and am looking for new knitting projects. I have never made socks before, but all of my knee socks are getting holes in them and since it’ll be winter in Montreal for about… oh, 3 more months, haha, I’m thinking I might try these!! My question to you is – does the shoe size fit true? I have super tiny feet (51/2 – 6) and I see they start at a size 7… could I make it work?
Thanks!!
Just knit the foot part a little shorter and you can customise them to your feet exactly! I knit socks all the time (well over 100 pairs by now!) and have even knit myself a pair of tights. You think 10″ of ribbing is tedious? Hah!
Oh my god, you knit TIGHTS!? Now that is impressive. I can’t imagine all that increasing to go around the thigh! Well, I can imagine it, I just can’t picture myself having the dedication to knit that high up my legs. Well done! (Off to poke through your blog to find them…)
I find they’re a little snug, I wear a 7.5 in shoes but made the 8 for the sock pattern.. however, I knit quite tightly, and it’s easy to customize if you knit from the toe-up!
Actually, the length is very easy to customize. You basically knit until 2-3″ less than your foot measurement, so it’s easy to measure your feet and knit the sock length to match.
Okay great ! Thanks!! :)
Thanks for addressing all of us curvy calf girls! Don’t even get me started on buying boots…
These are super cute, and I would have the same apprehension about wearing them as well. I made a pair of striped leg warmers once, and they really only come out for Halloween as part of an 80′s costume.
Will these be part of a Valentine’s Day outfit? The color’s perfect!
What, you didn’t know that calves grow? (Just kidding – I have problems buying boots, too – if it’s not being able to zip it up, it’s that part on the top of your foot as it curves up to your ankle.)
Wow, so impressive! I wouldn’t have the patience for this (all that rib!) but they look great and well worth all the work to have something that fits just how you want.
Wow! They look awesome! Good job!
And by the way – I just looove your shoes!! Where did you get them?
My shoes are Nine West but I bought them at the thrift store, brand-new! Maybe worn once or twice, but in nearly new shape. I have good luck with the style and fit of Nine West shoes when they’re new, so I was thrilled to find these second-hand!
The socks are fabulous! I salute your dedication with that much ribbing! lol
Once you venture into the world of hand-knit socks, it’s hard to imagine not having them, isn’t it! :)
Oh, exactly! I have five pairs in rotation and it’s not enough, I have to do laundry too often and they take forever to dry!
They look great! Congrats on finally finishing that ribbing!
Fantastic! I have been wanting to knit some tall socks but was worried about my calves too, so thank you for giving me somewhere to start!
Also, tough love sock is pretty tough, so you probably won’t wear them out quite as quickly as you would a lot of other socks.
That was the attraction to this pattern – there are 7 different calf widths included so you can easily make the right calf size for any foot size!
These socks are awesome! Congrats, you did an impressive work, specially with the 12″ ribs. They look great on you and so warm, it would be a shame not to wear them!
LOVE them! Man, the patience to knit over-the-knee socks. I sometimes have a tough time finishing a second sock of normal size!
For me the only way to do it (now that I did my knee socks this way) is to buy two sets of the same size needles, and start both pairs at once. Knit a toe, then the second toe, then the first foot, then second foot, etc. It’s so rewarding to see them finished at nearly the same time!
I never new before today that I absolutely NEED over-the-knee socks!
Knowing how glad I am to come to the end of 7″ of 2×2 ribbing – kudos to you for sticking with it. They look awesome.
Those are really cool! I like them and yes, they do have a sexy look to them! They look super warm for that winter weather.
Your quality of work is impressive. If I made those they’d look very very different. One would be longer than the other, there’d be holes in them, they’d either be falling down or cutting off circulation. Well, you get the idea.
Good job!
Love these gorgeous over the knee socks! You’ve inspired me to start knitting socks. Also love those heals — very sexy with the socks. You are a lady of many talents!
Wow, these look amazing! I think you’ll get tons of wear out of them. I really want to learn how to knit – now I’m even more motivated.
I LOVE these! I don’t know that I have the patience to knit socks, but I’ll have to keep it in mind. I have the opposite problem from you with socks, in that my feet are big and my calves are scrawny, so I can never find socks that will stay up! Of course, if I tried to knit them, I would probably make one, and then never get around to making the other.
Ohhhhhh, these are so beautiful! I showed them to my friend who, like me, wants to like knitting socks but we haven’t gotten over that hump yet. The two-at-a-time is definitely the way to go! I bought the Melissa Morgan-Oakes book for myself for Christmas and haven’t been able to test it out yet! Any other TAAT, toe-up patterns you’d recommend?
They’re adorable!!! Love the dedication!!
I just started my first attempt at knitted socks, Patons “The Basic Sock” for beginners, it took me half a day to get use to dpns! Once I could figure out how to join in the round it got a bit easier. Beginner patterns are difficult for the beginner knitter! I’m about 6″ in length on my first sock!
Love them! Great color. I too have muscular calves but only wear a size 5 shoe. My prblem with socks is not just the length but the circumference of the foot. Even if they aren’t too long, they tend to be baggy. Manufacturers make them shorter, but not neccessarily smaller. I guess I could fix that issue if I knit them myself…hmmm.
I am totally impressed with your work ethic. Plus all of your other responsibilities of being a small business owner! You are a very talented lady! Keep it up!
Beautiful!
I love all my handknit socks, so much nicer than store bought. So far I’ve not done any knee highs, but I’m planning a pair of stockings sometime this year so I can wear them with my Edwardian clothes.
They look fabulous! Warm and cozy but not frumpy in the least :)
I know what you mean about not wanting to wear something in case it gets ruined – after I finished my first sweater, I was SO terrified to actually wear it. I eventually had to remind myself that it’s better to love and enjoy a garment that may eventually get destroyed, rather than set it away to keep it safe forever… but never get to wear it. I feel the same way about my quilts. What’s the point of making something lovely if you don’t ever get to use it? :)
I totally adore them!!! You’ve done a lovely job and don’t they look wonderful with your shoes! I had to laugh at your on the desk shots… the things we do for our blogs ;)
I so love them, you are so inspiring! I can totally see these being worn with boots, and an above the knee skirt.
Love them! Great color. I too have muscular calves but only wear a size 5 shoe. My prblem with socks is not just the length but the circumference of the foot. Even if they aren’t to
o long, they tend to be baggy. Manufacturers make them shorter, but not neccessarily smaller. I guess I could fix that issue if I knit them myself…hmmm.
I love the increases on the back of the calf! So fun!
Wow! They look great! And I’m pretty sure two months for OTK socks is more than damn good. I crocheted a pair of crew socks and it took me a year. How do you find the time?!
I knit everywhere – in the car, in front of the TV, on the bus, on the train, sometimes even in front of my laptop while it’s slow to load :) and I also made myself work on these pretty much exclusively, so they wouldn’t be the project that never goes away.
Also, there’s no fancy pattern to these, just a ton of round-and-round knitting!
I love them! I have the same problem with bought socks and I did not even know you can knit socks and choose the calf size etc. will definitely try some of these.
Congratulations on such a lovely labour of love Tasia. These are wonderful and inspiring and sound like a good example of why we choose to make things ourselves rather than make do with mass-produced goods!
Gorgeous work!! That took a lot of dedication!
Love your socks, love the color, love the yarn. Thanks for showing socks for women with calves.
I love them. I have really got to finish another pair of socks.
Tasia, I really love these socks! I am really rather envious of your knitting skills – I wish I could knit, but it really hurts my hands. I suffer from ridiculously bad circulation in the winter and my feet are always numb, so pure wool socks would just be so toasty and warm!!!
And I agree, the increase really does look like a stocking seam – v lovely detail.
P.S. Your shoes are fab!
These are awesome socks! And, a little bit sexy.! I admire your dedication to finish them. I’ve never knitted socks and I was planning to try them out maybe next winter.
Totally, totally gorgeous work. And it sounds like all that knitting was worth it in the end – you sound super proud of them!
And I agree – handknit socks are meant to be loved hard and worn over and over again. What’s the point of knitting them, otherwise?
Don’t get me wrong, I love your knitting and these socks ale byond cute, but I miss your sewing posts.
Super cute! Would love a pair for my wellies:)
Wow! These are great. I am impressed. I just learned how to knit and I cannot even imagine taking on socks. Way to go!
Beautiful knitting project! Tedious and skilled! Now, I am Florida gal- lots of year round warm weather, so I am having a hard time picturing the whole outfit…but it seems like it would be so luxuriuosly warm and cozy! I think we need a pic of the full outfit! Love, love love your blog!! Thank you for he inspiration!
Beautiful knitting project! Tedious and skilled! Now, I am Florida gal- lots of year round warm weather, so I am having a hard time picturing the whole outfit…but it seems like it would be so luxuriuosly warm and cozy! I think we need a picture of the full outfit! Love, love love your blog!! Thank you for the inspiration!
Very nice! Hope you have some knee boots, too! They’d look great with just a bit of cuff peeking over the top. Love SweetGeorgia yarn, too – I am “internet friends” with the owner and dyemaster Felicia, she’s a wonderful gal who does incredible work.
Oh! I hope you are wearing and enjoying these! I knit socks and they seem to hold up better than store bought socks, especially when I use a wool/nylon blend like you did!
They’re really cute! I love the color and the length, plus they look very comfy. It’s great that you have the opportunity to knit yourself such nice socks (I love knee socks, but I don’t knit).