Round One

Alert the media – my Tropical Mer-tini socks are finished! Not only do Rutgers women advance to the Sweet Sixteen, I advance to the next round of Sock Madness. Go Rutgers, yay me!



When first off the needles, the socks were very compressed both vertically and horizontally. I frogged the toes and added an extra half-inch of stockinette st and also lightly blocked the socks, which helped them relax a little. But alas, the fit is still unpleasantly tight on my Frankenfeet – it's not so much the foot length as the heel arch. It may seem counter-intuitive, but the unusual afterthought flap heel has less ease than either a standard afterthought heel or a short-row heel (and much less ease than a standard flap heel). For me it's an ill-fitting novelty, but it could be useful to someone with a shallow and narrow heel.



A cocktail recipe came with the pattern, but I lack the necessary to mix it. According to "Your Signature Cocktail," that's telling; not to mention apparently Jimmy Fallon needs to drink a more manly drink. Yeesh, oh-so-serious! It's only round one – don't judge me by my drink choices, not least if I choose not to indulge.

Edited to add another photo for Craftivore (see her comment below). One reason the Tropical Mer-tini socks knit up so quickly is they're anklets, which may not be apparent when they're seen without a visual reference, but becomes obvious when compared with a calf-length sock like Kaibashira.



Another reason is I've made a conscious decision to fight Wollmeise Syndrome. Rawr!!