Happy new year, folks! It’s time for me to get started on what I hope will be a fine year of knitting stuff, documenting it, and complaining about the results! Whooo!

I am pretty satisfied with my yarn collection. I have enough for most of what I want to make, and I’ve found myself really uninterested in yarn shopping lately. But about a week ago I started reading about Noro’s new Kureyon Sock yarn OMGWTFBBQ? Why did it take them this long to bring out a sock yarn! And suddenly I found myself manufacturing a reason to drive all the way to San Francisco, home of Imagiknit.

 

 

Totally worth the drive. Kureyon sock arrived just last week, and I was directed toward it by none other than Kurt Fausset, designer of SoSNB’s Beer Gloves. (Ravelry links, all.) Though Kureyon Sock costs roughly $21.00 with tax and I am hugely parsimonious with my sock yarn dollars, I almost walked out of there with two or three skeins.

Maaaybe it’s best that I only left with one? While I’m completely in love with the experience of knitting a sock out of something that is Just Like Kureyon Only Smaller, this yarn has a few very serious caveats.

1. Wear issues.You know why we don’t often see single-ply sock yarn? Single ply yarn is more fragile than plied, and wears more quickly. It takes some doing to break a regular sock yarn, but you can just kind of tug Kureyon sock apart. Clearly the designers did not understand that these socks are going to go on my feet, inside my shoes, and the backs of my heels are ready for a brawl.

Here’s how I’m handling this:

• Reinforced toe and heel. If I made a second pair of these, I’d probably just make a contrast toe and heel out of some other more sturdy yarn.
• Toe-up heel-flap heels. I like to use short-row heels, because anything else messes up my sock mojo. But I think the fussy heel-flap thing wears better. grumble.

2. Gauge and texture hilarity. If you’ve never knit a sock yarn swatch in your life, Kureyon Sock should be your first. The yarn has no loft, no elasticity, no sproing. It’s as stiff as wires (until you wash it), and it looks for all the world like some kind of slubby lace-weight. I had a conversation with an Imagiknit employee about whether I intended to knit it on size 0 or 00, but the label says size 1 or higher.

Here are my gauge swatches on US 00, 0, and 1 needles. They are 9st/in, 8 st/in, and 7 st/in respectively. When I made these swatches, size 1 seemed the most logical choice– the smaller knits were just too stiff. But after a washing, the yarns softened and bloomed a little, and the 0 seems optimum. I might even consider the 00, because the soft density of the fabric makes it seem a bit sturdier. But don’t use my gauge info for your socks. I think this may be the most user-specific yarn I’ve ever worked with, due to the initial stiffness. Please, please swatch and wash this yarn before you cast on for socks. Do it for me.

3. Bias. My sock twists gently to the left. Oh well.

4. Wash issues. In very fine print, the label reads: “This is a single-ply wool yarn, please wash with maximum care”. Is this not the scariest thing you’ve ever read on a sock yarn label? For $21.00 this yarn should be superwash! EISAKU NORO, WHY DO YOU WANT TO MAKE ME HAND-WASH SOCKS? I NAMED MY FAVORITE MONSTER RANCHER ADVANCE MONSTER AFTER YOU