Ah, the joy of knitting socks. So many books to choose from, so little time. Here is my take on the book Socks A La Carte by Jonelle Raffino.
At first glance, this book is awesome. I love the flip chart, I love the variety of patterns presented, and the book seems easy to navigate. So I check it out from a local library. Then I dive right in and start knitting a pair of socks.
This is where the enchantment ends and the reality sets in. The first problem I encounter is how difficult it is to see some of the stitch patterns. I pick one at random, and though it turns out to be a nice pattern, it has a lot more texture than the photograph shows. A bit frustrating as I now understand to really see what the patterns look like, I'll have to knit them up. So the flip section of the book is less useful.
The next frustration is the lack of explanations about different toes and heels. I've only tried a short row heel, so I want to try something new. With no real explanations on when it might be useful to use a band heel (to continue a color pattern or if you don't want a gusset) I pick it at random, and it turns out I don't like it. With better descriptions, I would have picked a different heel to try.
Another problem with this book is a misprint in one of the patterns. The Origami Heel pattern is completely wrong. The reason it irks me so much is that I spot the mistake as soon as I glance through the pattern, even though I've never knit anything remotely resembling this heel. It is 18 lines of the pattern that is wrong, not just a couple.
Well, just when you think I have nothing good to say about the book, I do give it an average rating. For experienced sock knitters looking for a bit of variety, this might be a good book. It is packed full of ideas and I like the format of the book.
I would not recommend it to a beginning sock knitter.
3 comments:
Hi, I also just discovered this problem with "Socks A La Carte." Since I've never done an origami heel before and am now completely confused. Could you tell me how to fix the pattern and finish my socks? Or am I just better off doing a different pattern.
Thanks,
rattysis@yahoo.com
Here's the link to the correction for the origami heel. http://soysilk.com/socks-errata.html
You're right about the obviousness of the pattern for the Origami Heel being wrong just by reading it. Very frustrating. I just printed out the errata and will give it a try. Otherwise, I love this book!!! I am an experienced knitter but only started knitting socks 9 months ago and have already finished at least 26 pairs. Yes it has become an obsession. I refer to this book often for the basics of the various ways of getting around the corners. I'd love to see variations on the theme of 64 stiches . . . most of my socks are only 56, so I've had to refigure the directions, which isn't too hard, but it'd be great if it were simply written out. Cheers!
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