Knitted slippers are some strange mix of completely impractical (they absolutely do not do the same things as shoes, they will not keep your feet dry if you decide to go check the mail in the pouring rain, and I, personally, would not elect to wear them to wander the grocery store aisles) and unspeakably cozy (they absolutely do make reading by the fire or eating breakfast on your porch or puttering about in the kitchen significantly more enjoyable). Plus, if you do it right, they’re gorgeous.

I love designing them (because really, they’re so delightfully architectural, tiny little engineering marvels every single time) and knitting them (all the satisfaction of socks in way less than half the time) and wearing them (I live in Maine, it’s either cold or muddy for a truly shocking amount of the year). And from what I hear, an awful lot of you like them, too. So grab some thick, smushy yarn, make a pot of tea, and settle in for a couple of hours of knitting. You can be wearing a pair of your own this weekend!

General Information

This delightfully thorough pattern is tremendously detailed and holds your hand every step of the way. There are pages and pages of step-by-step photos to show you exactly what to expect as you work. It walks you through everything from casting on to checking your fit to blocking your slippers.

The pattern is almost absurdly detailed, but it really does mean you can totally make these, even if they look a bit like magic!

Skills & Scope

These are surprisingly quick, especially if you use a thick, cozy yarn. You’ll start out working flat, then transition to working in the round. And much of the process will feel familiar if you’ve ever worked top down socks.

The pattern uses charts, so you will need to know how to follow a knitting chart.

Yarn, gauge & sizing

The slippers come in four sizes (44 to 62 stitches around the ball of your foot) and is written for five gauges (from 4.5 to 6.5 stitches per inch in half stitch increments).

That means you can use any weight of yarn from worsted up through bulky, and there will be a size to fit pretty much anyone’s foot. The thicker the yarn, the sturdier and more slipper-like they’ll feel, the thinner the yarn, the more sock-like they’ll feel.

The slippers in the picture used about 200 yards of an aran weight yarn held alongside the same amount of a fuzzy, laceweight yarn. I recommend having about 225 yards of bulky weight yarn or 250 yards of aran or worsted weight yarn, just to be safe.

Tools & supplies

You’ll need needles that let you work in the round (circulars or DPNs) in whatever size lets you get a fabric you like with your chosen yarn plus the general knitting tools you need for most projects (scissors to cut your yarn, a darning needle to weave in ends, the occasional stitch marker or bit of scrap yarn to hold stitches). You’ll work part of your fabric flat, and part in the round. Some people get a different gauge working flat versus in the round, so if that’s you, be sure you change needles as needed to keep the same gauge throughout.