A real treat for my feet

As a sock knitter, there a few things more frustrating than knitting yourself a pair of socks that you absolutely adore, and then washing them for the first time only to find that the design you loved is now obscured with too much of a fuzzy halo and the awesome stitch definition is, well, no longer so defined.  The socks are still perfectly wearable and in fact may even be softer, but that sharp, perfect look is gone for good.

When washing my Alchemy Juniper socks for the first time yesterday, I was worried that they wouldn't hold up as well as I was hoping.  The yarn is a bit more expensive than most fingering weight sock yarns, and to me, that kind of cost should translate into an especially wonderfully wearing sock.  I absolutely was not disappointed with the washing of this yarn.

 
 

As you can see, the stitch definition of this sock is still wonderful.  I usually wash my socks in a mesh bag and pull them out of the load before putting everything else in the dryer.  But I just threw these socks in the load and they really, really look great, don't you think?

The color is Vintage Jade (these pictures make the color look a bit more gray than it actually is), and the pattern is the Nutkin pattern(this links to a pdf).  I knit these with a US 0 needle, as they yarn is on the thinner side of fingering weight like Lorna's Laces Shepherd Sock.  I added an extra pattern repeat, because after finishing most of one sock, I found I couldn't even fit the sock over my heel.  The pattern doesn't have much give to it, so I'd recommend knitting it for someone whose foot you know the exact size, or for yourself.

I finished these awhile back, but still hadn't worn or washed them yet.  Because this yarn performed so wonderfully, I've already snagged two skeins of the variegated colorway Clarita.  If you want a sock yarn that gives you a wonderful knitting experience and washes and wears wonderfully, I highly recommend Alchemy's Juniper sock, in either the semi-solid elements, or variegated colorways.

Comments

[Jolene]

mmm very pretty :) Good to know the yarn holds up well too!

[Janet]

I just washed my first pair of Junipers and had the same experience as you. And I even mistakenly ran them through the dryer. They're still soft and beautiful, and I didn't lose any stitch definition. I'm very impressed with this yarn!

[Allison]

Janet, that's so great to hear! It's a perfect pairing when a yarn not only knits wonderfully but washes/wears well to.

[Robin]

Wow, I love this pattern. Those are beautiful socks!

[Virginia]

I love knitting socks with Alchemy Juniper. I even have a pair of socks knitted using this particular colorway in my projects page on Ravelry for my hubby. He just loves them!

[bev]

OMG! I didn't know you knit Nutkin! Glad I read this post and will make sure that I swatch before starting the sock. They do look nice. Lovely yarn, wonderful pattern. Awesome knitting by you!

[Kathy Barton]

thanks for the link to the pattern - they are beautiful!