The Strong Heel

Well, I sorta cheated. I got to 5 1/2" for the leg, and I measured my own leg. I know - almost every pattern says 7" for the leg length. On my stubby legs, that would almost be a knee-high! So 5 1/2" is where I started the heel. I stuck to the pattern on the leg, but I'm not doing it on the heel; that row of purls on either side of the heel would be annoying. 

I may do a star toe - in for a penny... or just a regular one. Haven't decided yet, but notes will be in order so that I do the exact sock on the other foot. I suppose I could have grabbed a second pair of needles, pulled the yarn from the middle and knitted both at the same time. But that's a bit too fiddly for me. I see folks doing multiples on long circulars, but that's not a challenge I wish to take. 

As you can see from the picture above, the 5 1/2" leg is a good length. The Strong heel, created by Gerdine Crawford-Strong, is outlined in The Sock Knitter's Handbook, as I indicated in my last entry. I had to change up one little thing: See the holes along the side? Those are the result of the M1 (make 1), lifting the lower bar of yarn. I didn't like them, and I realized that the last time I did this, I did Kfb (knit front and back) - which I switched to, so now there's a "little lace" right there on both sides, which is fine. I'm not going to bother to close them up; they're now a design element. 

I had to watch a YouTube video on the process, because I couldn't remember whether the heel turn was done flat - which it is... But I want to know why nobody shows anything on DPNs. It's all circulars and it can be a little mind-boggling. But I got the gist of it. 

It's moving along. I have to admit, once you get the hang of this heel, you might just be converted. No picking up stitches, which is where a lot of us express some frustration. Personally, my "sides" never look the same. The K2tog side is always neater than the SSK side. First World problem, right? Well, if you think that in the history of sock making, it was often delegated to 5-year-olds... Oh well. I know that, logically, if someone is THAT close to notice, they're wayyyyyyyy too close. 

The COVID Update...

I am "half-vaxxed." My next shot is April 9. And I think (fingers and toes crossed) that my sense of smell is coming back. Last night, we had "baked/fried" cod -- our version of fried cod, but baked, with a panko crust. And when Hubby opened the package of cod.... I SMELLED COD!! My "phew!" was automatic, so I wasn't really trying to smell. It just happened. Finally. I'm not sure if it's sticking yet. I smell stuff, but usually "off." 

I'm told that's common once it starts to come back. 

By the way, the cod was done perfectly. Would've been nice to have been able to taste it. But this gives me hope that it will eventually happen. 

It sounds silly, doesn't it? I mean it's taste and smell. A lot worse things have happened: I had a seizure while recovering, my A-fib is back with a vengeance thanks to the virus. And the word loss - the brain fog. Yikes... It takes me forever to blog, to write, to edit. To speak, some days. I laughingly say that I wish I was eating like I couldn't taste anything! 

Random Picture...

Not much else to write about at this point. I'm sure next time I'll be a little more vocal. 

Seems I picked another needlework pic... This is a batch of the ear savers I made. 

I've given away a bunch of them; and since it looks like masks will be with us for a while, I may be making more. This is a great way to use up your cotton yarn stash. I bought white buttons, but for myself, I just go into my button tin and pick out a couple. They should be about 1/2 inch or more. 

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