The Argyle finale

Contemplating the heel and toe for the argyle mini-sock, I decided I'd like a slightly different woven look--this one in three colors, rather than the two-toned version I worked on the previous country mini-sock.

I'd already stitched the tent stitches in white, skipping every other canvas thread, before I worked the darker threads around the heel and toe. Now to add the other two predominant colors--gray and red--to the mix! I alternated stitching the empty rows of threads, first working the gray and then the red.

With these areas done, I stitched the name in Kreinik #16 medium braid #001, beefing up the weight of thread from the #12 tapestry braid I normally use to give the letters a more raised appearance. I then moved to the toe, and after working only three stitches, realized the silver thread was definitely not going to work--it disappeared against the variegated background. So for the date, I switched to Kreinik #16 medium braid #005, which provides only a tiny bit of twinkle, but at least you can see it!

Going on a blog vacation now, so I can cook up a storm for my visiting family members this weekend, but I'll be back!

Almost there!

All the diamonds have been stitched and the criss-crossed black lines added--I'm almost finished with the argyle mini-sock!

Before finishing off the diamonds, I worked the toe in skip-tent stitch with the white Trio. Now I can go back and fill in the skipped stitches, as well as add the name and date.

Time to haul out the turbo needles--I have tons of painting to do and company is coming for the weekend!

Criss-crossing

I've been stitching diligently on the gray and red diamonds. All the white skip-tent stitches in the heel have been finished so I could continue working with the darker threads, moving toward the bottom of the mini-sock.

Time to add some criss-crossing black lines in the areas where the diamonds have been completed! This is the exciting part, where I actually get to see the full effect of the argyle pattern in the top left section of the sock. My canvas is upright as I stitch the lines from top right to lower left and turned 90 degrees for the lines from top left to lower right to eliminate the sawtooth effect of the tent stitches.

Several more diamonds need to be stitched before I can add more black, then it's on to the heel and toe!

Seeing red

Before stitching any more gray diamonds with Felicity's Garden "Baby Squirrel," I decided to take a break from basketweave and do the ribbing on the mini-sock cuff. It's the same Kalem stitch that I used on the green/red/off-white mini-sock, but worked in the white Trio, you can actually see it without enlarging the photo. Isn't it funny how decorative stitches almost seem to disappear when worked in a darker color?

That much done, I added some skip-tent stitches to the heel in white, in preparation for stitching more gray diamonds. I'll go back to finish the heel later when the rest of the sock is finished.

Needing a break from the gray diamonds, I finally treated myself to some red--one ply of Trio "Really Red." While it's the same red used predominantly in the other mini-sock, you'll notice that it shows up as more of a "cherry" red when placed next to the gray areas. Interesting how the juxtaposition of colors can affect the way a color's value is perceived, isn't it?

Diamonds without the bling

I've been stitching lots of diamonds the last two nights, but no twinkle here! To keep the argyle mini-sock looking like a real sock, I've raided my stash for several silk/wool blend threads.

First off, I stitched the background behind the name on the cuff with Trio "White" using one ply of the three-ply strand in basketweave. I then moved on to the white diamonds, finishing all of them before treating myself to another color.

The gray diamonds are being stitched in Felicity's Garden "Baby Squirrel." It always seems like a toss-up to me--should I stitch red before dark gray and black or vice versa? Either way, these colors can get pesky about poking their way to the front of the canvas where you definitely don't want to see them!

I'll be back in a couple of days with, hopefully, more progress and more color to show!

The Argyle

My mind was thinking over-time as I stitched on the "country" mini-sock, and this is one of the designs I was toying with. It's an argyle pattern, which gets its name from the tartan of Clan Campbell of Argyll in western Scotland.

After World War I, the argyle pattern became popularized in Britain by the Duke of Windsor, an avid golfer who wore tops and socks in this pattern when he took to the links. His socks were more subdued than this one, which I've designed in colors suitable for a "modern" young gentleman.

Fair warning! There'll be a lot of basketweaving going on here to give the canvas an "authentic" look, but I'll be adding a few other details to provide some additional texture. So stay tuned!

Another wrap

I'm finished--another gift for the holidays is ready to go!

In keeping with the country theme, I decided to give the mini-sock a "woven" look in the toe and heel. This was easily accomplished using the skip-tent method: stitching every other canvas intersection in one color of thread, then going back to fill in the "skipped" intersections with another color. In this case, I used Trio "Really Red" and Felicity's Garden "Evergreen," the two predominant threads in the mini-sock.

For the name on the cuff and date on the toe, I used Kreinik #12 tapestry braid #002V--the "vintage" gold that gives a little sparkle without too much bling to emphasize once again the country look.

I'm really happy with the way this mini-sock turned out! It was fun to stitch and worked up quickly. As I stitched, a number of ideas for more mini-socks popped into my head, which I may pursue in the near future!