Before I get to the recap of my sock design classes with Cookie, I wanted to quickly thank you for all your amazing comments and although I've been horrible (again) at keeping up with blog-reading, I do appreciate you for stopping by here occasionally to check in on me and I do consider those who comment here frequently, to be true friends. Thank you for sharing your personal stories with me and offering me words of encouragement during the last few months. I don't think you'll ever know how much it truly means to me.
So now that you know I love you, (in spite of my lack of commenting on your blogs), here's just a little re-cap of my Cookie class!
A few days before my birthday, I told DH that I hoped he hadn't purchased anything because I knew what I wanted. He was a little surprised but not shocked when I told him I wanted to spend the day in Burbank, California on a Sunday to learn sock design from the sock design queen herself,
Cookie A. Of course, he asked the typical "how much is it", question, and agreed that $150 was a fair enough amount for two, 3-hour classes from someone who I obviously admired. I promptly placed my online order at
Unwind for the two classes, gladly gave them my credit card info, and within moments I was confirmed for the classes.
Sunday morning, I arrived at Unwind 15 minutes before the class started and Cookie was still setting up her mannequin display legs outfitted in her beautiful sock creations. The first class was named
Top-Down Sock Design and the description stated:
"Learn how to design a sock using the stitch pattern of your choice. We will use a standard sock construction including a ribbed cuff, heel flap, gusset, and wedge toe." We were each given a 10-page handout that included all the material we learned in the class along with some worksheets and charts that are worth the price of the class alone. The class taught me so much, but I now finally understand why it's easier to design a sock from the cuff-down instead of the toe-up. Not that it can't be done toe-up, but with complicated designs, it seems to be much easier cuff-down (or top-down). The three hours flew by and although my design worked in theory, when I got home and worked on it further, I realized it didn't work in function. The lace pattern was diagonal and so it ended up pulling the sock diagonally. Back to the drawing board.
There was a one-hour break between classes and so I took a leisurely walk down the street towards
Porto's to have lunch. This is an amazing Cuban bakery and cafe, and if you're ever in the area, make sure you don't miss it! When I was there it was crowded and difficult to find a seat, but if you're patient, it's worth the wait. I didn't "brave" the traditional Cuban sandwich, but instead ordered a usual favorite of mine, the Italian Sub. I would not hesitate to order it again!
The first class was great, the lunch was great, the weather was ideal, and so I had high hopes for the afternoon. The class was named
Sock Design Overview and the description was
"learn about various concerns in sock design including which numbers need to be calculated, where stitches need to line up, what to factor into your personal fit, heel types, pros and cons of top-down vs. toe-up." This class included a 5-page handout and including a few sections that were the same as the first class, but it definitely seemed more mathematical, which is definitely what I needed, but I'm not sure my brain was prepared for it. We seemed to have a lot of additional "free time" at the end of this class where we could either draw out a sock design or swatch, but I personally would've rather heard Cookie teach some more. It seemed like she either ran out of material to discuss, or we didn't ask enough questions or something, but I was a bit disappointed the class wasn't as "jam-packed" as the first. Then again, my head was already spinning from the first class, so maybe that was a good thing.
Would I recommend Cookie's classes? Absolutely! Would I change anything about the classes ... well ... since you asked .... My personal opinion is that it would be nice to combine both classes into one full day class, or if not, maybe schedule them differently. I would've preferred that the Sock Design Overview class in the morning for 2.5 hours and then after an hour break for lunch, the Top-Down Sock Design class could be scheduled for 3.5 hours. It all still ends up being 6 hours total, but to me, it just makes more sense to have the overview class come first and the design class to follow.
It was a great experience and I now appreciate even more how brilliant of a sock designer Cookie
is. I have a better understanding and appreciation for the
patterns she charges money for and will not hesitate to purchase anything she designs because for what you get, the price is amazing. I sorted through all of her patterns for quite some time and finally settled on purchasing
Twisted Flower and
Thelonious, although I'm sure I'll be adding to my Cookie pattern collection a little bit at a time.
Meanwhile, since I'm waiting for a few skeins of Louet Gems to arrive at my doorstep to start one of the patterns I purchased, I think I'll attempt my own simple sock design and hopefully will be posting a successfully designed sock here soon.
Pattern: Waving Lace by Evelyn A. Clark
This is the first pattern I've knit from Favorite Socks, and I am more than pleased with the pattern. There's two options for the cuff, either a basic rib, or the designers scalloped edge. I obviously chose the later and I'm very pleased with the result. The waving lace pattern is comprised of 8 stitches over 20 rows, but it's very easy to memorize.
I ordered the Risata yarn the first week it was introduced by Knit Picks. I'm such a sucker for "new" yarn. The jury's still out on whether I like it or not though. It's not super squishy, or super soft, but I'm sure the nylon content will help these wear a lot better than my squishy soft socks too. I absolutely adore the color and this was a pleasant surprise because in my opinion, I've never been a huge fan of the Knit Picks colorways. After seeing their fall yarn lines though, I think they may have figured it out.
I lucked out and caught the Loopy Ewe sneak-up on Wednesday, so I was able to acquire a few new items for my stash, but you'll have to wait until they arrive for the details. I also decided to hop on over to Amazon.com and pick up Cat's latest book, New Pathways for Sock Knitters. I blame this purchase solely on the influence of Judy's blog posts taunting me with the fabulous-ness of the book.
I'm halfway through the Twisted Flower socks and I must admit that if you cannot devote full concentration to this pattern, do not purchase it. I'll go into more details why when I post the finished socks, but I will say this ... I love them!
