The Knitter’s Book of Socks

A sock is a work of wonder. No other knitted garment has as many structural demands or endures as much wear and tear. The humble sock must defy gravity, suffer the confines of our shoes, and endure being trampled on all day long.

All too often, the root cause of a sock’s triumph or failure is the yarn itself. In The Knitter’s Book of Socks, Clara Parkes shows you how to knit socks from yarn up, following the sock yarn life cycle from its foundations to its final moments on a proud foot. By understanding a sock’s basic needs—elasticity, strength, and moisture management—you’ll learn how to play with these tools like building blocks, confidently combining fiber, twist, ply, pattern, and clever stitch tricks to construct your perfect pair of socks.

To help put these principles into practice, The Knitter’s Book of Socks also offers 20 fresh, original patterns from today’s sock-design luminaries, including Cookie A, Cat Bordhi, Ann Budd, Nancy Bush, Anne Hanson, and Melissa Morgan-Oakes. The socks presented here run the gamut from simple knit-and-purl combinations suitable for beginners to innovative designs with lush colorwork, swirling cables, and delicate lace.

Understanding the elements of yarn is the first step on every successful sock knitting journey. With this book as your guide, you’ll learn how to make any sock yarn shine and love every pair of socks you knit.

PRAISE FOR THE BOOK

In The Knitter’s Book of Wool and The Knitter’s Book of Yarn , Parkes educates knitters on the ins and outs of fiber and makes minutiae interesting. Here, she describes the qualities that make yarn suitable for sock knitting, explores the different types of fibers that can be used in sock yarn, and analyzes stitches and stitch patterns commonly used in sock knitting. There’s also a beautifully curated selection of sock patterns, including new designs by some of the biggest names in the field. Though the instructions are clear, the majority of the patterns are best suited for those with sock-knitting experience. An essential addition. -Library Journal

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Clara Parkes left her career in San Francisco’s booming high-tech industry to pursue her love of knitting. She now lives on the coast of Maine in a farmhouse full of fleece, fiber, and yarn. Best-selling author of The Knitter’s Book of Yarn, she is the publisher of the top-ten knitting website knittersreview.com and a frequent contributor to Interweave Knits and Twist Collective.