90. The More Things Change

Do not be alarmed. You are at the right blog.  The banner has been retired and I am redecorating a little bit. See yesterday's post for more details. Best man Dave Daniels is on the job, so anybody who wants to challenge him to a banner-off will have to get up pretty early in the morning, I'd say. I told him there'd be somethin' special in it for him, but then I remembered his flag doesn't fly that way. Oh, yes. I am that bad. But the contest IS still on!  We may even have readers vote on the best one (over which I of course will have veto power, this being my blog and all, ya know...)  Banner on, people!  I'll sweeten the spinning pot with some special fibers to go with the spindle.  Designers, start your engines!

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So, yeah, the more things change, the more they stay the same. I am not so much a lace person.  I am not drawn to drool the way other knitters seem to be at the lace shawls, and particularly not the triangular ones. I love my Flower Basket "Shawl," which is really just a scarf, but I'm not tempted to make another lace shawl.  Maybe another lace scarf or two or three, but that's it.

But I see something like this, and THIS speaks to me. This looks like something I could incorporate into my wardrobe. And every single thing Jared knits makes me want to KNIT. He has the taste and sensibilities that are the closest to mine on the entire 'net, I think -- and the courage, like the Mason-Dixon gals, to knit garter stitch without fear of being thought a knitting cretin.  (although scrolling down reveals that Jared has recently been knitting -- LACE!  Damn.  So much for my theory. Well, still. I admire and covet everything he knits. And honestly I would not kick a lace shawl out of bed if someone were to knit one for me. I'm just not so interested in knitting one.)

So it's like being hit in the head with a (padded) crowbar.  Suddenly it clicks again, because I've realized this before and keep forgetting it. 

Let us review, shall we?

I love tweed.

I love simple.

I love elegant.

I love shapely, but not outlandishly so.

I love garter and moss and stockinette.

I like cables, but not if they are overdone or fattening or boxy or fussy or make my shoulders or arms look like those of a football player. Which brings us back to the word of the day:  Simple.

These are the things that make my knitting world go 'round.

My advice to myself:  Keep it simple, stupid, and stop feeling like you need to love to knit what everybody else loves to knit.

Oh, and while we're talking about this, I love the way a short-row heel looks.  But it does not fit my heel well.  I'll stick with the heel flap and gusset in future.

For example, this cute sock fits me -- in Pretend Fit, which coincidentally Ryan just wrote about the other day, and which is otherwise spelled D-E-N-I-A-L. 

If I really tug at it and MAKE it fit, it will fit around my heel and be good enough for its photo op for the blog, and if I never said anything, you'd all be fooled and think it was a great sock, which it is.  But the heel cup is too shallow to be pretty on the foot OR comfortable, and I think it'd be the kind of thing that would ride down when walking, annoying the hell right out of me. I sure hope the intended recipient of these has stubby heels.

I'm quite sure I've read somewhere (Priscilla Gibson-Roberts, maybe?) that there is a way of making a deeper short-row heel cup.  Then why do all the patterns give it this way? Does everybody but me have short, stubby heels and ankles? Surely not.

Thank you for indulging me.
I've enjoyed this little chat with myself.

Comments

[Debi]

Do the socks I knit you *truly* fit ok? (be honest!) Cause I use PGR's yo short row heel but I invented my own mini flap and gusset ti make the heel cup deeper for just the reasons you describe. The how too is on my side bar or you can have a personal trainer if you wish :)

[Debi]

How too? ack!!!

[Kristen]

AACK--I see dead people! Well, at least I see a supposedly dead banner at the top of this blog. ;)

I tried a short-row heel once and didn't like it. So, it's always been flaps for me. But I also have a ridiculosly high arch, so I think the gusset construction just works better for me. Sorry you're struggling with this lovely Koigu!

[Kristen]

Oh--and I can totally see you rockin' that tweedy shawl thingie.

[Nora]

I'm sad to see your banner go - I always thought it was lovely. But change is good! And I can't wait to see the new one!

I ADORE the tweed shawl - it's right up my alley, as well, and the colors are MY colors. I know I'm hosting a lace KAL and all, but that shawl is calling my name. Some day...

[Carol]

Love the sock! It is so very easy to get caught up in a knitting frenzy, I do it all the time, then realize my mojo doesn't live as fast as my eyes can peruse the vast knitting world. And I knit something completely different.

[Carole]

I really believe the secret to enjoying knitting is to knit what you enjoy. It doesn't get more simple than that, does it?

[nat]

I hear ya about the short row heel. Love the look of it. Tried it. Never repeated it. I must say though, that if you have never tried a turkish heel before, you can get the diagonal seam of a short row heel, with the option of adding in extra st st rows, which provides all the ease you'll ever need for the bigger heel. Its the only heel that does not ride down on my hubbie's enormous foot. And don't ask, cause I'm not answering ;O)

[margene]

It's about time you cleaned up your act, er blog.

[margene]

It's about time you cleaned up your act, er blog...scratch that...around here.

[naomi]

I don't think it counts as heel-flap equivalent, but I start the ribbing on the back of the cuff maybe a cm past where I start knitting the instep stitches again (toe-up). The extra stockinette makes the heel fit me better.

[Ruth]

I gasped in delight when I saw that tweed shawl too. You should go for it! (Also, there is no pretend fit with shawls.)

[Kathy]

I'm with you on the simple. I'm knitting a seed stitch scarf currently in tweedy yarn (with little fingers at the ends)-- simple, but fun!

[Elizabeth D]

Norma, when you changed to your un-banner, apparently something changed in your URL, so my google reader didn't pick up on new entries. I was worried about you! Almost had to search the Caledonian Wretched for news of disaster!

[Elizabeth D]

(I know, it's the wrong newspaper. . . but has a better ring to it)

Pretty short-row heels don't work with my foot either. The combination of unusual width and enormously high instep and arch have doomed me to the heelflap heel. I have, kind of, figured out a way to finesse the afterthought heel to work with my foot, but it's not as good as Old Reliable.

[Cathy]

To make a short row heel that fits a bit better, I use more than half the stitches for the heel. I add 3-6 stitches on both sides of the heel, and it works much better.

[Cathy-Cate]

Love the shawl! Thank you for the link.

My 'issue' with short-row heels is getting my wide ol' bunion-y foot in the sock; because gusset heels have a little more room for maneuvering. But I prefer toe-up socks; not that I can't Kitchener if I want to, but if I don't have to, that's OK with me, and mostly I like to use every bit of yarn (without taking the time to wind two balls of yarn going the same direction). And short rows are easier for toe-ups, though I've done gussets too, and I like the look better for many yarns.

So I make the heel over about 60% of the stitches instead of 50%. I have seen this suggestion a couple places for different short-row heel issues; perhaps it would be of help since you note the heel to be shallow. Wendy Johnson's book talks about customizing the short row heel to different people's feet and heels too, if I remember correctly.

But whatevah! I'm not emotionally invested in short rows, I promise. I think pattern writers are just stuck on doing short rows on half the stitches because it's easier, and mathematically elegant, and it looks a little better (but feels not as good for many).

It's kind of like where they put the token cotton lining in fancy underwear, ya know? Doesn't make sense, necessarily, but it might not look as good from the outside to put it where it should be, so a not-very-functional compromise occurs.

[Chery]

I must make heel flaps, the others don't fit me or my husband. I could start a war with an unsaid comment, but I won't. Love your blog, Norma. Thanks for sharing.

[Marcia Cooke]

You do what you have to do, girl! We'll still read. (I'm a heel flap person, myself.)

[marianne]

That IS a gorgeous little sock... I'm a heel flap person... and I even tend to make them longer than what's usually called for, high arches, that's me.
LOVE that shawl, everything about it. Thanks for the link!
I find myself at Jared's and spending lots of time dreaming... he's amazing.

[AnnaMarie]

Lady, you are my kind of knitter. I often wonder if I should even mention my knitting because I like to knit the same patterns over and over again, I like simple rhythm like the very stitch patterns you mention and I use variations of Old Shale everywhere. I want a cozy garment when I'm done, not angst in process. Thanks for making me feel like I really AM a knitter!

[sil]

"Norma has short stubby ankles". I've never noticed that, but I may have been distracted by the hot designer jeans and the margaritas.

[Roxie]

Knit the knits that bring you joy. I hates to knit lace! That garter stitch with the ruffle is divine!

[jessica~]

"his flag doesn't fly that way" ha ha. Tweed, I love tweed. Never knit it, but it sure looks pretty!

[Annie]

Hey, has anyone else told you that Google Reader isn't picking your feed up? I thought you had taken a blogging break!

[LaurieM]

I put in a 2 or three paired increases before my short row heels and then decrease them away again after the short rows are done. I also go further than 1/3 of the way when short rowing. This gives me a deeper heel that fits my big foot.

[Kay]

We like garter stitch and it really helps us to like it that it is so HARD to do anything else. Oh just kidding. I could totally knit something non-garter if I wanted to. Totally.

THANK YOU SO MUCH for the link to Terhi's tweed ruffles. It is the best thing I have seen in years. Perfect reinvention of an old standard that I would never have seen the chic potential in. NEVER. Totally jazzed by her taste.

xox Kay

[Lucia]

Aw, Cathy beat me to it, or to part of it, anyway. I also use more than half the stitches, and I go back and forth once before and once after the short rows.

[Sarahfish]

If you're going top down I'd just switch to stocking stitch about an inch or so before you start your heel. I think that would help, no?

I hadn't seen that tweed ruffles wrap before. It's beautiful!

[Cookie]

Did you know that your comments are now on two different pages? :? Just thought I'd mention it.

Do the socks I knit you fit? I mean really fit? Or were you just being nice? I should knit you lace next time, huh?

Knit what you enjoy, love. Life's too short to knit things that you hate.

[Sue]

You can make short-row heels deeper by working them over more stitches, say 2/3 rather than 1/2 of the total. I have this problem, too, and fiddled around until I figured this out.

[Dave]

Yup, add a gusset or extra stitches, or short row over more than half. I typically use two-thirds for a short row heel. It's pretty, tho. Can you undo and redo?

[Beth S.]

I feel the same way about the short-row heel. It looks fantastic... until I put it on my foot. ;-) It's a shame, because it's such an attractive choice for self-patterning yarns! Oh well. I tell myself that the flap is more durable, and that helps lessen the short-row envy by a surprising amount.

[Ryan]

Have you seen the Kimono Sweater book? Except for the fact that the patterns aren't fitted, the items in the book seem to be right up your alley.

Yes, Pretend Fit does mean D-E-N-I-A-L. That being said, your sock is still beyootiful. I'm sorry it didn't fit, m'dear.

[sandy]

That shawl is great! Do it! (it's not haggy at all!)
Dave is the man. I might just say that I love him but I wouldn't want to go all mushy and all.
xo

[Paula]

That shawl is totally you. You should make one. I should make one too because I love garter stitch and tweed and a wrap with some body to it.

[Visionsister]

All feet in my house prefer flap heel socks. I've tried the short row heel and it doesn't fit. I've not tried the "60% heel", so I won't rule it out until I have. But as the Harlot says, turning a heel this way makes me feel clever, so I'll keep on with my flap heel sock knitting.

[lisa]

Yeah, I do my heels a bit longer than most patterns, but then sometimes the gusset/instep is baggy. Oh. Well. Years ago my mom got me a VANNA WHITE shirt for xmas, white with rhinestone buttons. I couldn't help myself and I wasn't gracious. Basically asked her WTF was she thinking? In the end I gave her this advice (it was the early/mid 80's, a time of no taste if there ever was one), "If you see something and you wonder if I would like it, ask yourself if Scott (my gay but very conservative brother with taste along the lines of Jared) would like it. If the answer is 'No', then you can be pretty sure I also would NOT like it. And if the answer is 'Yes', then I will like it." I have to remind her every now and then, but she has gotten better.

[Warrior Knitter]

I'm mostly a heel flap person, too but I like the look of the short row even if I don't like knitting them.

What ratio of heel stitches to instep stitches do you use?

I knit a pair of Lucy Neatby's Mermaid socks last year from her book "Cool Socks Warm Feet". That was my introduction to short row heels. I'd never done any before. She uses almost a 60/40 ratio (60% heel stitches to 40% instep stitches) in that particular heel which is what I've used in the 5 I've done.

I also understand from some folks in my knit group that that's a pretty deep heel. I don't know. It's the way I learned and it's the way I do it.

[ellen]

Who ARE these people who love the short row heel? They sure don't fit me, and to fuss over the holes on a heel that I know won't fit me is just too much trouble. Luckily it's easy peasy to substitute "old faithful", and it's so much easier to make it a little wider or skinnier for gift socks.

[AmyP]

The 60% rule for short row heels works well for me (I've done it on a pair of Braodripple socks and my own design Elodea), but I also worked them in garter stitch for extra s-t-r-e-t-c-h. It worked!

[Sara]

Don't want to fight against Dave... he'd kick my ass major big time with his design skills!