A Simple Way to Cover a Hole in a Sock

I’m not quite sure how this old post ended up on my radar, but this guide to sewing a patch to cover a hole in a knit sock is timeless.

The tutorial, from Jackie E-S, shows how to cover up a hole by picking up stitches below the hole, stitching a patch that is attached to the sock as you knit, then grafting the patch onto the stitches of the sock below the patch.

It’s a really great idea and an easier way to do it than more traditional darning where you’re trying to re-create the lost stitches. It of course doesn’t look seamless — you might not have matching yarn by the time you need to fix a hole, anyway — but the odds are that a place that needs mending won’t show when you’re wearing shoes, anyway, and visible mending is kind of cool, too.

I haven’t been knitting socks long enough to have needed to fix holes in any of them, but I do have a pair that I think might need some reinforcement soon.

How about you? Have you ever mended a hole in a sock? How did you do it?

[Photo via Jackie E-S.]

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It’s been well documented that I love a knitting pattern with a bit of whimsy, so when I saw the Mine! Pullover from Sarah L. Kelly recently I knew I had to share it with you.

I mean, who wouldn’t want to knit a sweater with a yoke full of seagulls? And another seagull at the waist? Chasing little crabs?

The story behind the sweater (and you knew there had to be one, right?) is that while Sarah was traveling around Europe there were a lot of cheeky seagulls about. They reminded her of the scene in Finding Nemo where the seagulls say “mine, mine, mine” and thus the Mine! series of patterns was born.

Oh yes, there’s a whole set. It was the sweater I saw first but there’s also a pair of socks (and the pattern says there’s a cowl, too, but I couldn’t find it as of this writing. If you see it let me know and I’ll add the link here!) so you can totally deck yourself out in pesky seabirds if you want.

But back to the sweater for now. This is worked in DK weight yarn from the top down in the round. The yoke and a section at the bottom are worked in stranded colorwork, with stripes on the body, though you could make the body a single color if you wanted. Details like the beaks and eyes are added with duplicate stitch to make the knitting a little easier.

The colorwork sections are charted. The pattern comes in 10 sizes, with a finished chest circumference ranging from 32 to 68 inches, or 80 to 170 cm.

The socks are worked in sock yarn and come in three sizes. There worked from the cuff down and change needle sizes to accommodate the less stretchy nature of stranded colorwork. You can choose from a side profile or a seagull that’s looking out from the sock. Make a matching pair or mix it up.

Both patterns are available on Ravelry: sweater and socks. If you make them I’d love to hear about it!

[Photo: Sarah L. Kelly]

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