I am still just as in love with Weichien’s designs as I was in 2021 and I test knit for her for the first time, so I try and apply to test knit for her every chance I get. This time, she created a perfect cat design, and I was so happy that I got to give it a try.

• 12g / 50m of Diamond Select Footsie – a fingering weight (1) yarn (colour A: 2504 Beige)
• 10g / 40m of Faking Sanity Compulsion – a fingering weight (1) yarn (colour B: Born This Way Non-Binary Black)
• 26g / 104m of Faking Sanity Compulsion – a fingering weight (1) yarn (colour C: Born This Way Non-Binary Yellow)
• Size 2 (2.75mm) knitting needles (I used ChiaoGoo 23cm circulars)

Pattern (Size 16.50cm) by Weichien at The Petite Knitter

One of the reasons why I like Weichien’s designs is because she continually pushes me to get better at colourwork knitting. I ended up making this sock two times, once with the recommended 2.25mm needles, and again with the 2.75mm. With the 2.25mm, I found that my stitches were pulling in at the cat section because my floats were too tight (as always). The thicker needles did help to add some relief to my colourwork tension, but more importantly, the switch in needle size was also accompanied with a switch in needle length. I continue to find that working in the round on shorter circulars always leads to more even knitting than when I use the magic loop technique, but it’s just not practical to have a million different cord and needles lengths for each project.

I also did some internet sleuthing to see if there were any other techniques that could help with my tension, and I came across the idea of knitting in the round with the wrong side facing out. You don’t have to change the pattern as it’s still all knit stitches, but having the wrong side out forces your floats to be carried a little further and can also help with getting tension under control. I didn’t have a chance to try it on this project, but I can see this being really helpful in the future. The only downside is that you don’t get the joy of seeing the colourwork pattern grow until you flip it inside out, but it could make for a better reveal after the final cast-off!

All in all, these socks are very cozy, especially around the cuff due to the different strands of yarn being carried. I really liked the pose of the cat and thought that Weichien did a great job with the design. If you wanted, you could even pick and choose what motifs you might want to keep from this pattern, and which you might want to leave out if you are a fan of more minimal socks and designs.

Until next time, happy crafting!