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PICNIC SOCKS
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This second instalment in the Simply Stranded Summer Sock Club is a tongue in cheek reference to the mythology of the Irish picnic…

A tradition dating back to 1700s France, the picnic is a whimsical meal enjoyed outdoors, upon a blanket or spread. And admittedly, in the Irish climate it tends to be enjoyed 
as a fantasy more so than a reality! Because very seldom do we get an hour - let
 alone an entire afternoon - without surprise showers or disruptive gusts of wind.

To see a 
 family chasing after wind-strewn napkins, picking sand off their soggy sandwiches, 
or rushing across the beach with baskets and blankets held over their heads as 
shields from a sudden downpour - is a sight far more familiar than that of anyone 
actually eating a picnic meal!



And yet we still love the idea of it. The preparation, the accoutrements, the carefree
 aesthetic. And so, whether in your 
neck of the woods picnics are real or imagined, you can enjoy the idea of them with 
these whimsical socks - evoking beachiness, baskets, and colourful checkered blankets.

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Like all patterns in the Simply Stranded Summer Sock Club, the Picnic Socks feature the following:

. instructions for knitting the socks cuff down and toe-up

. options for two types of heel construction:
peasant heel and short row heel

. colourwork charts based on a simple 4-stitch repeat that is top-down reversible, and can be worked either for the entire sock or just for the leg

. an extensive appendix with adjustment and modification options

. a short narrative about the inspiration behind the pattern

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MATERIALS & INFORMATION

Gauge
36 sts x 42 rounds = 10cm x 10cm/ 4” x 4”
in stranded colourwork


Needles

circular needles suitable for Magic Loop
(or short circulars, or double-pointed needles)

2.5mm in diameter or as needed to meet gauge

Yarn
suitable for fingering-weight sock yarn
(400-420m/ 425-450y per 100g/ 3.5oz)



Yarn Quantities Required
up to 50g of each C1 &C2

If using a heavier sock yarn (fewer m/y per 100g),
additional quantities will be needed

Notions

measuring tape, tapestry needle;
optional: sock blockers



Special Techniques

stranded colourwork, Kitchener’s stitch,

optional: Magic Loop; 

for toe-up version only: Judy’s Magic Cast-On 




Construction
cuff-down or toe up
with peasant heel or short row heel

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SIMPLY STRANDED SUMMER SOCK CLUB

PUBLICATION SCHEDULE

Pattern No.1: Friday 16th May (Flowerstone Socks!)
Pattern No.2: Friday 20th June (Picnic Socks!)
Pattern No.3: Friday 18th July
Pattern No.4: Friday 15th August
Pattern No.5: Friday 5th September

The name and theme of each pattern is announced upon publication!

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