This chapter is part of our Magic Loop Socks, Top-Down Socks Video Class. Click here to learn more.
Choose Your Materials
Yarn: You'll need two skeins of fingering (sock) weight wool - about 150 yards for a pair of crew- length socks.
I recommend that you choose a machine-washable yarn in a light color (so you can see what you're doing).
Here are two of my favorite yarns to pick for this project. They are durable, machine-washable, soft, and come in cool color combinations.
Ask the yarn shop employee to wind the yarn into two separate balls.
Needles: The gauge for this project is 7 sts/in in St st (knitted in the round). Choose a 47-inch-long circular needle with pointy tips, such as Addi Lace, in a size that will cause you to achieve the right gauge.
Start with a size 2 and check to make sure you are getting the right gauge. Just make a round tube, like we did for the Intro to Magic Loop, block it, and then check your gauge.
You could skip this step and just start, if you are careful to check a couple inches into your sock and are okay with starting over. Up to you.
Next, choose which size you are going to make. This pattern comes in three sizes:
- Women's Small-Medium - fits a foot that measures 7 inches around the ball of the foot
- Women's Medium-Large - fits a foot measuring 8 inches around
- Men's Small-Medium - fits a foot measuring 9 inches around.
If your (or the sock recipient's) foot measures less than 7 or more than 9 inches around, go down or up a needle size to compensate.
