Orchid Socks Bring More Fun with Cables and Lace

Just the other day I was talking about combining cables and lace to make a fun knitting pattern that uses lots of skills and brings different textures to the party, with the example of a cable and lace shawl. Here’s another version of the same idea, this time in socks.

The Orchid socks from Mirella Moments are worked from the top down, with a twisted rib stitch on the cuff and panels of cables and lace worked down the leg and the top of the foot.

It uses a heel flap worked with slipped stitches, a gusset for the foot and a wedge-shaped toe.

The pattern comes in a single size (a women’s medium, worked with 60 stitches). You could make it bigger or smaller by adding or removing a repeat, but since lace is stretchy there’s probably some variation in the size of feet this sock will comfortably cover.

The designer used a solid color sock yarn but I think this one would be pretty in a tonal yarn, too, or something multicolored with longer color runs. You don’t want a yarn that’s too busy or it will detract from the pattern.

This is a free pattern available from Mirella Moments.

Looking for more Sock patterns to knit? Check out our dedicated Sock Knitting Patterns board on Pinterest. A couple of great sock knitting patterns I’ve shared recently include Roam (If You Want to) and these shorty Sneaker Socks, which are a perfect way to use up leftovers from other sock knitting projects.

Or if you’re looking for a way to use sock yarn that isn’t socks, I’ve collected a whole bunch of shawl knitting patterns that use a skein or so of sock yarn. They’re perfect for that single skein you bought on vacation or on sale that you never figured out what to do with!

[Photo: Mirella Moments]

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I’ve shared a lot of Christmas stocking knitting patterns over the years (see posts 1, 2, 3 for example) but what if you want to knit a stocking for a non-human member of your family. If you’re looking for Christmas stocking knitting patterns for your cats or dogs, this is the post for you.

These large paw print stockings are perfect for either dogs or cats, so they’re great to knit if you have both. They are worked in the round using DK weight yarn, and the stocking measures about 17 inches/43 cm from the top to the heel. You can get the pattern from nicolaluke.

The K4 Project has a super cute Kitty Christmas stocking pattern, which is worked in worsted weight yarn. They also have a dog version, or you can buy both and get a discount if you have both dogs and cats to knit for. Both projects have two patterns, showing how to work the stockings flat or in the round.

Put your dog into a Christmas scene with this stocking pattern from ifanhourChild. It shows a dog in a dog house in the snow, and has room for the dog’s name at the top. It’s worked flat using worsted weight yarn and the pattern includes charts for many small and medium dog breeds (there’s a separate listing for bigger dogs) so you can stitch a dog that looks like yours.

Annie’s Woolens has both dog and cat stocking knitting patterns that are worked in worsted weight yarn in the round. You can change up the colors to suit your pet if you want, and they come with an alphabet chart for personalization. Or you can stick with holiday colors and buy a kit to make the dog or cat stocking.

Waiting for Santa Paws is a pattern from Kate Agner on Ravelry that would be cute for a dog or a cat. It looks like a leg with a paw print on the bottom part of the foot and more paw prints running around the top of the leg. This is a great option if you don’t want to mess with a heel turn because it doesn’t have a heel, because dogs and cats don’t have heels so why would their stockings?

Book Review – 20 to Knit: Tiny Christmas Toys to Knit

Book Review – Knit Christmas Stockings

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