The Blazes Socks are inspired by the entrancing patterns of burning flames. Without getting too pyromanic about it, I do love a good fire! The smell of fragrant wood, the ever-changing patterns of flames, the bursts of sparks, the shifting colours as the heat intensifies or cools. These socks are designed to feel like a procession of torches, so I hope you’re more inclined to follow Indiana Jones into a long-unexplored cavern, rather than chase after Frankenstein’s monster!

Pattern Description

These toe-up socks have a colourwork pattern that starts after the toe, is incorporated into the gusset increases, and continues on the leg to the cuff. They feature a gusset and heel flap heel using German short rows and a 2x2-rib cuff. The gusset increases are worked on the sole of the foot for the most seamless possible final look, and both socks are worked identically. Corresponding written instructions are provided for the colourwork charts.

This pattern is available in three foot circumference sizes and the socks are adjustable in length and height. It requires the knitter to be able to knit a small circumference in the round (the pattern is method-neutral to suit your preferred technique for socks — double-pointed needles, magic loop, two circulars, or small circular needles). It clearly explains all techniques required and provides links to several useful video tutorials to assist you.

Yarn Requirements and Sizing

Sizes available: Adult Small (Medium, Large) for finished foot circumferences of 17 (21.5, 25.5) cm / 6.75 (8.5, 10) inches with completely-adjustable finished foot lengths and leg heights. Due to the wide pattern repeat and the colourwork fabric, the sizes are more spread out in stitch count than vanilla socks would be: 61 (76, 91) st. Note that these are finished measurements and they do not include any negative ease. Choose a size that is up to 10% smaller than your own foot measurement for the best fit.

This pattern requires two highly-contrasting colours of sock yarn to ensure the detailed motif stands out. The Main Colour (used for the background of the colourwork, plus the toe, heel turn, heel flap, and cuff) uses approximately 225 (250, 275) m / 245 (275, 300) yards and the Contrast Colour (used for the foreground of the colourwork only) uses approximately 140 (150, 160) m / 155 (165, 175) yards.

As you can see from the sample pair, the two contrasting colours do not both need to be a solid colour! However, to ensure the best finished results, I recommend having at least one colour be solid, with no colour overlap whatsoever with the other colour.

These socks are rated 4/5 — Adventurous — on my sock pattern difficulty scale. This is because they have a detailed colourwork chart that requires some float management.

You can also order professional-quality full-colour printed versions from Magcloud.