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| (pardon the slipper that's stretched out...) |
I went to Ravelry, typed in my search, specified that I wanted something knitted with worsted weight yarn, and free. What I saw depended that feeling of nostalgia: slippers that looked like the ones my great-grandma used to make. She would make slippers for the whole family at Christmas, always adding little pom-poms to the girls slippers, or sometimes a crocheted flower. I could almost taste her sugar cookies while I was looking at the pattern photos. She passed when I was seven or eight, and I was so sad when my last pair of slippers wore out - they were a bright, Christmas red with a pom-pom on each one.
Now, these aren't the exact slippers that great-grandma would make - I remember hers, somehow, had a double-think sole - at least on the grown-up ones (I think the kid ones were single, since we'd grow out of them). But, these are very close to what I remember. When I'm down in L.A. for Christmas, I'll have to see if my grandmother has any left.
Similar to my method in finding recipes, I looked at a couple of patterns before deciding on one (or a hybrid) and how to proceed. These are the main two that I looked at, one from Block 'n Tackle blog, and the other from DROPS Design (I liked these, too). The DROPS pattern looked more like my great-grandma's, so I went with that one, but the other helped me with yarn and needle selection.
One of the fun things about this pattern is that it uses two strands of yarn at the same time, so you can mix colors and/or yarns for a unique look. I used all one color, because I already had two skeins laying around, but I plan to use two different colors next time. If you mix types of yarn, just be careful about mixing naturals and synthetics, because they wash differently - you are better off going with all all-natural or all synthetic.
Sizing: The sizing did not work out as well as I'd hoped - I followed the recommendation of both (they were similar) but I think I will make the next pair a bit shorter, or tug on the fabric a bit before measuring (see the photo below). It's better to be a bit smaller, because they stretch! My husband grabbed the first one I made and put it on his foot while I was making the second, stretching it out, but it looked like it fit him pretty well considering it was made for a ladies size 10 and he is a mens size 12. Oh, well. They will get a nice washing, and perhaps I'll just try felting this pair.
Skills required: You will need to know the knit stitch (k) and how to knit two together (k2tog), as well as a basic understanding of how to sew/stitch up seams.
Materials
2 skeins of worsted weight yarn (I used Patons Classic Worsted Wool in Seafoam)
5mm straight needles (depending on the thickness of your yarn, you might go up or down a size)
Darning or large-eye needle
Scissors
Method (photos following instructions)
For women's sizes 6+ and men's up to about size 10 (cast on more or less of larger/smaller sizes).
With two strands of yarn (one from each skein), cast on 29 stitches, leaving an 8" tail for seaming.
Knit all rows until the length reaches from your heal to the end of the ped of your foot, before your toes start - you might want to give a light, lengthwise tug on the fabric before measuring if the stitches seem very tight/close (this is what I should have done).
Begin Decrease on the right side (RS): k1, *k2tog. Repeat from* - 15 stitches
Knit the next 3 rows.
On the RS, *k3, k2tog. Repeat from * - 12 stitches.
Knit the next row.
*k2tog. Repeat from * - 6 stitches.
Cut the yarn, leaving an 8" tail for sewing up the seams.
Thread the darning/large-eye needle and pass it through the loops to gather the stitches. Remove the knitting needle. With the stitches gathered, tug the thread tight and begin seaming up the stitches, wrong side out. Try knitting the nubs, so that you don't have a think seam (see photo below). For more of a ballet slipper look, seam about 1/4 of the way. For a more closed slipper, seam up about 1/3 of the way. Make a knot and weave in the ends.
Now, sew the back seam, securing with a knot and weaving in the ends.
If you like, embellish with a pom-pom or knitted/crocheted flower, and enjoy your old-fashioned slippers!
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| fabric will be approx. 8" wide |
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| 9" long before decrease, per DROPS recommendation for women's size 10 |
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| You can see it hits my toes / and inch short of my foot - a bit too long... |
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| after decrease stitches are complete |
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| needle through the loops |
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| toe gather |
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| bumps all lined up for even sewing |
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| stitching through the bumps, one side and then the other |
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| weaving in the ends |
If you have any questions, please let me know. I am hoping to make a little video tutorial, as well - let me know if that interests you! If you make some of these slippers, I'd love to see how they turn out - feel free to tag me on Instagram, {at} workingyarns or {hashtag} workingyarns.
Happy Holiday knitting! Stay warm!
Stephanie
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