We're still knitting shortie socks here at Alpaca Direct, and this week, Kelley finished a pair of Skimmer Socks by Sheila Toy Strombetzg.

These are great when you don't want your socks to show very much, because they're almost invisible under your shoes. I especially love this style because I'm a Dansko clog wearer, and this style of sock comes up lower on the top of the foot, so they don't show. Yay! These and the Turkish Bed Socks are my favorite knit sock patterns to wear with clogs.

These socks are a great way to use up leftovers from your stash. Aren't the contrasting heels and toes cute?

In this week's Technique Tuesday, Kelley demonstrated how to pick up perfect stitches for the heel gusset. 

I always pick up stitches through both loops, like Kelley demonstrates in the video. It makes a more stable edge, it looks better, and there aren't any gaps between the existing stitches and the picked-up stitches.

Whenever you need to pick up stitches, use this technique and you'll have a really nice transition on necklines, button bands, and of course, sock gussets.

Using Darning Thread

Handknit socks are so wonderful, we want them to last forever. Sometimes the toes or heels of your socks will wear thin, or even—gasp!—develop holes. Not to worry, though, because you can darn them and they'll be good as new. 

We use Regia Darning and Reinforcement Thread to darn socks at Alpaca Direct. It comes in lots of colors, and you can even run it with your yarn while you're knitting the heels and toes of your socks to make them less likely to wear out.

If you should need to darn your socks, we show you the ins and outs in this blog, and Kelley has some tips for darning store-bought socks in the video above.

We hope you'll join us every week at 9:30 am on Facebook Live for Technique Tuesday. Kelley always has something fun and interesting to share!

Cheers,