Welcome to tales of my stitching life, home, family and friends.

Sunday, August 23, 2026

Heels - Done

 I always feel there is something quite magical about knitting heels on socks.  On my warm and cozy 12ply socks, these  heels are knitted in three stages.  First the reinforced heel flap, then turning the heel, and finally the gusset, picking up stitches each side to do the heel shaping.  Somebody really clever obviously worked out how to do do all this, and I'm in awe.    I have to sit quietly with my pattern, knit one row at a time reading the instructions, and carefully marking off each row in my notebook.  

Heels, done

I like to knit my socks two at a time, flat, on two needles, because there is no way I would even attempt those tiny double pointed needles, that seems much too hard for me.  And because both the foot and the leg parts are just straight knitting, it's really quite simple.  

Our weather has been quite nice recently, and there was a sprinkle of snow on the ranges behind us last week.


A sprinkle of snow

And then it all changed, with Mother Nature reminding us that it is still winter, and don't you forget it!  What a morning, rain blown by strong winds and cold temperatures.  Reports came through of wide spread power outages, not in my area, thankfully.    Strong winds and lightening strikes caused downed power lines in the South Island, with flights cancelled, and the interisland ferries maintained their sailings in the very rough sea conditions.   I always worry about our Arch Gola when the wind gets up, as I can hear it rattle and moan in the wind.  


It was a wet, windy, miserable day today

The storm seems to have passed by as the day wore on, hopefully it will be a much better day tomorrow.  It was a good day to stay hunkered down at home, luckily I didn't have to go anywhere.  I was nice and cozy, with tasty homemade soup for lunch, while the wind and the rain did their darndest outside.  Did a little stitching, some knitting, read some of my library book, a nice quiet day home, safe and sound.

9 comments:

Vicki in MN said...

You remind me I have a pair of socks in the works. I do use the 4 double pointed needles for mine. I think it would be hard the way you do it. It's funny how we each like something different isn't it, just what our brain likes best, haha.

LIttle Penguin Quilts said...

Mother Nature does like to remind us that she's in charge! I'm glad you didn't have a power outage. Those socks are so fun in their combination of pinks!

Karen - Quilts...etc. said...

I'm glad you didn't loose your power and have trees down like we did! it can be scary can't it -- love the socks

loulee said...

I'm in awe of you knitting socks. I have tried and tried...

Karen S said...

With the weather being that cold you really need those gorgeous warm socks!

Julierose said...

We also have been in a spate of dark and gloomy days full of rain...I guess our drought conditions are over for now...the grass has even turned greener--usually in august it's burnt a crispy yellow color...
Lovely socks--yes, aren't heels like magic? I always was so pleased when I'd done them...nice color yarn on these...hugs, Julierose

CathieJ said...

I am happy to know that I am not the only knitter to mark each row on paper. It is what works best for me. I always like seeing the socks that you are knitting. I hope your weather improves.

Jayne Honnold said...

Love seeing your part of the world! I've always looked forward to seeing where you've been and interesting places you've traveled. I've gotten away from reading blogs regularly, so it's been awhile! Glad you're still at it! Knitting is something I do only in the most basic form. I think I could really get into it, but I've got so much invested in quilting, I don't dare take up another fiber art~~

FlourishingPalms said...

I appreciate reading through your process of knitting socks. All your reasons for each step make complete sense. And you follow a pattern. Good! :-) Whew! I thought for a bit you were remembering each step! Love that pink yarn! Sorry about your sad- looking/feeling weather, but you've done exactly what I would do... enjoyed the day eating and engaging in your favorite activities.