New England's Narrow Road

Knitting Flip-Flop Socks

Until just the other day I hadn’t heard of flip-flop socks. I had begun to try my hand at knitting socks, and asked my daughter if she would like a pair. She said instead she would love a pair of flip-flop socks.

(When I first wrote this page, I followed a pattern that no longer exists. I have linked to other patterns for my readers, but I did not knit those. I hope you will still find my notes interesting and helpful.)

Flip flop socks in aqua blue variegated yarn with open toes and no heel.

My next question, which I thought was pretty logical, was “Why?”. Flip flops are to be worn in hot weather so why would you add socks? As someone who has outgrown flat, floppy shoes and now needs arch support in my sandals, I was obviously out of touch with the flip-flop wearers.

Who Wears Flip-flop Socks, and Why?

It appears that many people who love flip-flopping so much they will also wear their favorite comfy footwear in cooler weather. Because there must be compensation for the toe split, special socks are needed. People of all ages love these socks, and even men will wear them… who knew?

Choosing Yarn For Your Socks

It will not be difficult to find yarn to knit flip-flop socks. Any “sock yarn” will work fine as long as it is washable. I prefer natural, animal fiber, but cheaper acrylic yarn can be used. I knit my socks in DK weight, 100% merino wool. My yarn is Madeline Tosh DK, Hydroponic. I believe this colorway is discontinued, but you still may be able to find it.

knitting flip flop socks — Beginning to knit the second sock

This Pattern is Gone – So….

The FREE pattern I closely followed is called the Arizona Flip Flop Sock, but that pattern is no longer available for some reason. Maybe the sharer was not the original designer, or maybe they no longer have the website, or ??? For whatever reason I can’t give you the link.

SO…. here is a link to another Flip Flop sock pattern which is a free Ravelry download. It is not the one I knit, which changes things. I’ve also listed more socks like this at the bottom of the page. Some are free, and some are to purchase.

Joining in the Round – Switch Stitches

I used US size 2 addi Flexi Flip needles. I had never used this type of short needle before so I had to wing it. I prefer the 9 inch circular needles, but didn’t have any at the time.

Cast on however you like and join in the round as you prefer. Or you can do as I do.

Once all stitches are facing the right way – no twists, and working yarn is coming off the Right needle – drop the first stitch on the L needle and let it hang. Move the first stitch on the R needle over onto the L needle (use the spare needle to do this). Pick up the dropped stitch and put it onto the R needle. Place marker here to mark the beginning of the round (BOR). I used the cast-on tail as my marker.

How to do the flip flop sock pattern cast on with flexi-flips — flip flop sock pattern cast on

Once the stitches are joined, begin knitting the pattern using the free / empty needle. I’m using Flexi-Flips here, but DPN’s, 9inch, or Magic Loop would work.

Joining in the round using Flexi-flip needles

Making the Toe Opening

Most likely at some point, the big toe area will be separated from the other stitches. In the pattern I knit, I had to cast on 3 stitches. The video below helped me do that.

Flip flop socks with big toe separate from other toes

BE SURE TO BIND OFF LOOSELY !!! Or your toe openings will be too tight.

Here are my finished socks after being washed (below). Now I will pack them up and mail them to my daughter.

The photo above was taken after the socks were washed in the washing machine. I let them air dry and they got a tiny bit fuzzy, but remain nice and soft and did not shrink. I had a few ends to re-tuck, but that was all.

I will admit that I dislike knitting socks. I’ve tried various patterns and have never fell in love with knitting them. Many, many people knit loads of socks, and sock patterns seem to be very popular. Knitting one sock can be sort of fun, but then you have to start again and knit the same thing all over again!

The nice thing about the flip-flop sock is that it is a much quicker knit because you are only knitting the sole and toe holders. There is no cuff or dreaded heel to deal with like regular socks. But you still must make two! By the time I finished the second sock, I was ready to celebrate.

I choose this free pattern because I have made socks and I thought I could figure this one out. You should be careful of knitting free patterns because they can end up being incorrect – (share them and then they disappear!). Read my next post about that.

More Flip Flop Sock Patterns

Not all patterns will be the same when you search for “flip flop socks”. Some designers will have you knit the whole sock and separate the big toe. Some have the heel included with the sole / instep area. Other socks are very short and cover only part of the foot.

Here are some patterns I have found and want to share. I have not knit any of these myself.

Flip Flop Ankle Socks (pattern to buy – cuff, instep, and open toes)
Flip Flop Winter Socks (pattern to buy – whole socks with split toe area)
Summertime Flip Floppers (FREE pattern – knit a whole sock without the toes)
Flippant (FREE pattern – short socks meant for toe comfort more than warmth)

Knitting The Moon Sisters Shawl Pattern in Orange

I purchased the Moon Sisters shawl pattern in June 2019 (and finished June 2020! – see the end of this post for the update).

This triangle shawl is knit by holding two fingering weight yarns together except for the middle section where the yarns are separated to create a pattern. The cast-on for the shawl begins with a typical shawl cast-on, only much longer than any I’ve ever done. The center pattern is a chart only, which for me was not all that easy to figure out. Fortunately I was able to view what other knitters had done, and that helped. It is a small chart, and once you get the hang of it, it goes along fine.

So besides doing that long cast on and figuring out the chart for the center stitches, you will have to know how to knit / purl through the back loop, and how to “make one” left and right in order to knit this pattern. Most of the shawl will be knitting or purling with that break for the center design.

This pattern can be found on Ravelry – Moon Sisters, by Caitlin Hunter.

Moon Sisters Shawl beginning the project — Moon Sisters Shawl

The center pattern is a series of triangle shapes which, to me, look like arrows. Because the orange color I am using is variegated and not solid bright orange, occasionally my center stitches are come out lighter. Then, my center pattern does not stand out as much as it should. Still, I love these colors together. My plan is to use up some dark colors in my stash, but the orange will be used throughout.

“10 Questions” Emma’s Yarn, is the orange yarn I’m using.

The Moon Sisters shawl is finished with fringe, and I think that is the charm of it. I’m a bit of an old hippie from the 70’s, so fringe appeals to me – sometimes. In this case, I think it makes the shawl even better.

Orange and blue knitting shawl pattern "Moon Sisters Shawl" by Caitlin Hunter — Main color orange is “10 Questions” shown here with Denim blue

While I am knitting this shawl, I was also working on the Quince Wrap, the Fine Sand sweater, and a baby sweater called Playdate. Those are now finished, and so are my Pink Mitts and Winter Morning headband. So Moon Sisters has become my occaisonal go to knitting project. I’m in no hurry to finish it and it’s straight forward enough to do while I watch TV.

As of November, this is where I am with my progress on this shawl. I just added a dark purple (a Wild Iris colorway by Miss Babs) to knit with the orange because I wasn’t liking the green all that much.

I’m still on my first of three skeins of orange yarn so I should have plenty. I’ll keep some of all the colors I use to apply the fringe at the end.

Moon sisters shawl knitting — Getting on with my knitting and added dark purple.

Moon Sisters Has Fringe!

I have yet to wash and block my shawl, but today I got all the fringe attached – no small feat!

I saved a ball of my main color: Emma’s Yarn, in “10 Questions” orange to mix with other yarn for the fringe. I ended up using all the orange.

Cutting yarn for fringe — Scrap yarn for fringe

Fringe on orange Moon Sisters shawl — Adding all that fringe is a job!

Cutting yarn for fringe as Fontana watches — Fontana loves all that string!

I do recommend this shawl, if you like knitting shawls. This one is a biggie. I used all three skeins of orange yarn, and it was held with lots of other colors. I needed to buy a 60 inch circular needle to finish it up, but you could always cut it shorter.

The somewhat boring knitting and purling is interrupted with that little center pattern, which is nice.

It took me a year to finish this, but I kept putting it aside to work on other things. Tomorrow I will wash it, and it will be ready to wrap up in – just in time for 100+ temps… LOL.

Ahhh Ravelry, What Have You Done?

Today I saw the changes that Ravelry made to their site over the weekend. As I opened their front page I saw the rainbow flag next to their name. Then I read the paragraph:

“We are banning support of Donald Trump and his administration on Ravelry. We cannot provide a space that is inclusive of all and also allow support for open white supremacy. Support of the Trump administration is unambiguously support for white supremacy. “ (Taken from the Ravelry website.)

What?? I support my country, and whomever is in office, whether I “like” the person or not, but to do so means (in the eyes of Ravelry) that I am a bigot and hater of blacks and pretty much everyone who is not white?

AND, just below this paragraph is one addressing specifically the LGBTQIA+ community. I’ll be honest, I’ve lost track of what all those letters stand for, but Ravelry wants them all to know that they love and support them. Yes, they are lumped together as people to love…. Trump supporters are lumped together as no good and banned. See a problem with this way of thinking?

FYI Ravelry, this is a hateful thing to say.

At least I know where I stand.

I went on to view some postings at Twitter and other places about that notice at Ravelry, and not surprisingly the Trump-haters were pleased as punch. Some were even considering taking up knitting because they loved Ravelry so much for the statement! For me, its just another fun place to hang out online that has become intolerant of anyone who does not believe like they do. (And I bet I pretty much do believe like they do except for the mass hating of a specific group of people.)

Pointing the finger when you need to look in the mirror. What’s new? This type of thing has become so tiring.

I’ve only recently become a member of the largest knitting and crafting website out there, and honestly I am still finding my way around Ravelry. But I’ve liked (until now) what I’ve seen. I’ve been building my FO’s (finished objects) section, finding and saving favorite knitting patterns from around the web, and learning from KAL (knit-alongs), forums, and others who love knitting as much as I do. Sharing photos about my projects as they progress has been fun.

I’ve never seen hate speech on the sight, and everyone seems to be friendly and helpful. But apparently a seething hatred has been building towards a group of people, of which I am a part.

I’d Love to Close My Account, But

They apparently don’t want any of us who support the leaders of America. We are ALL racists if we support our President. Removing and banning all political statements / designs from the site would have been fair, but this is not about fair. This is the typical hate message of the left, and phew… finally they got it out there!

The pattern designers are one big reason I am hesitant about closing my Ravelry account. They design and sell on Ravelry, and without the site, it will be difficult for me to find new patterns and pattern support. A lot of people who would like to make an exit from the site may feel like there is no place better to go, because presently there isn’t, as far as I know. That could change soon.

I also have a lot of links on my blog posts that go to my Ravelry pages. I don’t want to lose those links, but I do plan to remove some. Links to Ravelry helps them, and I will not do that from now on.

My Support of Ravelry is Gone

I’ve been working online since 2007, and I know a thing or two about promoting myself and others, but I will no longer promote Ravelry in any way. I will not Tweet them, Pin them, FB them, share them on Instagram, or (after today) blog about them. Yup, they are quaking in their boots over that! I am one, but I know I am not alone.

This does not include the designers, unless I see hateful posts from them individually, or see that they support Ravelry’s decision to exclude a big part of the membership (don’t know for sure, but I bet it’s a lot) on their site by lumping us into a collection of bigots.

Beware yarn-dyers / sellers and pattern designers, do not go down this road. It would be a mistake. I believe Ravelry may be sorry.

Finished Knitting Photography of My Dewdrops Shawl

Just a quick post to show my finished photos of the Dewdrops shawl. I began knitting the peach -colored triangle section a few months ago. (See my cast on post here.) I loved the yarn (Emma’s Yarn) so much that I then had to wait for the Four Purls yarn truck to visit my area again in April to pick up a denim blue color for the border.

Dewdrops shawl in peach and dark blue colors.

From the time I cast on I had pictured a dark blue color for the border. I love the outcome and am very happy with the way this shawl turned out. I’m not a super experienced knitter, but I had no trouble with that lace border.

I have more trouble trying to get good photos once my projects are complete! Outdoors is the best choice for bright, true color photos. But I don’t want to get my newly cleaned and blocked shawl dirty! So I simply held it with one hand and pointed my iPhone with the other.

Dewdrops shawl is finished! — Outside photo shows the true colors

Get the Pattern

Want to knit Dewdrops yourself? Here is the link to the designer’s Dewdrops pattern page at Ravelry. Or visit Woolenberry.com to see more of Janina Kallio’s massive selection of shawls.

More of What I’m Knitting

So what am I knitting now? Well, I always have a few things going at once but I’m focused on the Sun Kissed shawl, which is also being knit using Emma’s Yarn. When I want to relax and knit something simple, I work on my Ruffled Scarf. I’m working on a pair of socks – which are coming out okay. I’m not a sock-knitter, but I’m trying to be. A post on that is in the works.