The Infernal Monkeys

Cookie A's infamous Monkey Socks

Knit. Sock. Love

Sundara Merino Sock - 1 skein Tuscan Rose over Lemon

Knit Picks 2.25 mm needles

80 stitches, 1 inch 2x2 ribbing, 5 pattern repeats in leg, 10 pattern repeats overall

April 1 - June 2, 2011

Shelda and I decided to do a Monkey along in April as part of our grand sock scheme. Sadly, I made a poor decision regarding needle size given past knitting experiences and wound up with a mess. I started out with a size 2.0 mm needle, and quickly discovered how tough it was to knit this pattern at that tight of a gauge. That first leg was sooooo sloooooow, and I really hated the process. Moving to metal needles helped a bit...but nothing could make it a pleasant knit.

And then it didn't fit.

As in, it wouldn't even go over my heel. Ugh. I was so disgusted that the whole thing was thrown aside and I didn't pick it up again until a few weeks ago.

I moved up a needle size, started over with a bit of trepidation, and tried to trust the process. To my great surprise, the finished sock fits beautifully! Even better, with the slightly larger needle the process was very fast and comfortable.

Shelda and I have had many conversations about this, and have basically decided that this pattern draws in a lot more than you think it would. My comparison is that a plain sock in similar yarn and on the same needles would be a 68 stitch sock to get a good fit. It's just wild!

But then, that's why we are doing this...to explore, and learn and play!