Part One of the New Year’s Resolution: Handknit Socks!
March 16th
My big resolution this year is to make an entire outfit for myself. I made the resolution in the hopes of becoming a better seamstress, a better knitter, and a more aware consumer. I’ve always been a huge fan of thrift stores and hand me downs, but I wanted the satisfaction that comes from knowing exactly how an article of clothing was made. I have been making very slow progress, since I was side-tracked by other fun (and utilitarian projects), but I am happy to report that I finally completed my first piece. A pair of hand-knit wool socks.
I bought this yarn from a local shop in Charlottesville, but I plan to make most of the other outfit pieces out of reclaimed and secondhand materials. The socks were more expensive than store bought socks, but man are they good. I can’t wait to wear them on the next rainy work day or cold bike commuting day. They’re warm, fit perfectly, and are darned cute on top of it all. The knitting was much simpler than I thought it would be, and it was a perfect bus/movie watching sort of project. I know I will never have the time to make all of our clothes by hand, but even just finishing these socks makes me feel more connected to my foremothers who spent vast chunks of their days sewing, knitting, and darning in addition to all of the other daily chores.
Also, I am pretty hard on socks, so min etend to develop thin spots and holes pretty quickly. When this happens to a pair of store-bought socks, I shed a tear and throw them away. You can be certain I’ll never throw these things away. With a little extra yarn on hand, I’ll repair these babies until the very end.