Tea and Tootsies

Sandi Asche and Vicki Dietz at The Dusty Rose Tea Room

I've shied away from knitting socks for years, convincing myself that it's a tremendous amount of work with pretty fine yarn, on very small needles (actually, I've sometimes had larger toothpicks in my burger when dining out!) all for something that either gets lost in the laundry or eventually sports a hole at some strategic spot.  But, after a year and a half at The Quilted Purl, I was ready to give it a whirl due in large part to the two characters pictured above, both of whom are sock knitting enthusiasts.  Vicki Dietz and Sandi Asche, two talented and fun-loving women, will be teaching a three week beginners' sock class at The Quilted Purl on Wednesdays Feb.20, 27, and March 6 from 11:00 am to 1:00 pm, finishing in time for a high tea at The Dusty Rose Tea Room or lunch at one of Georgetown's many fine eateries if you'd like.  Check my website, www.thequiltedpurl.com  for more information.

Being a retired history teacher, I couldn't just show up for class.  I definitely had to do my prep work first.  So, I pulled out "I Can't Believe I'm Knitting Socks" and got to it.  Since this was just for practice and to see if I could follow the directions for each portion of sock knitting, I didn't carry each step to its conclusion as you can see in this picture.  A friend says this would be perfect for someone in a leg cast and a customer yesterday asked if it was for a golf club!

As a history teacher, I also had to know bit about the history of knitting socks and with just a few minutes of research found this delightful article on the subject: History 101 on Knitty.com.  Be sure to check out the picture of socks dating to the 300s - they make my attempt look pretty good!  Even if you're not interested in socks, author Julie Theaker presents some fascinating information about the history of knitting in a humorous way.

In case you're interested - I've completed one sock, am now working on my second (they're not a pair, but more on that another day) and have thoroughly enjoyed the experience.  The small needles and   fine weight yarn make for easy travel and take up very little space.  With the various aspects of a sock (cuff, leg, heel, instep, toe) the knitting changes often for variety of challenges and skills and surprisingly, once you have the stitches in place there's very little counting.  In short, I'm hooked!  Come by and see what it's all about!

Socks Made Simple Class

February 20, 27 and March 6

11:00 am - 1:00 pm

$60.00 plus materials