Tag Archives: Better Dorm Boots Deluxe

More doubles

by
4

Maybe, possibly, well likely not, you remember that Nate the kindly rural mail carrier so loved his first set of these mittens that he asked if I could make him another pair. His special request was to ask if I could knit him a camo-colored pair. Nate is not a knitter and had no idea how difficult it would be to find a worsted weight yarn (or any weight yarn, actually) in a decent camouflage colorway. These mittens, knit in Patons Classic Wool Worsted in “Forest” (#77014), came as close as I could find in a wool yarn.

I don’t know whether or not this colorway’s been discontinued. But it was extremely difficult to find. I couldn’t find it on-line. I finally located one skein in the back of a bin in a shop near me. It was just barely enough yarn to complete the mittens. Shopping in person was more fun than I anticipated:

Me: I’m looking for some camo-colored worsted weight yarn. I really like Brown Sheep Lamb’s Pride but I don’t think it comes in any colorway that would work.

Dorinda: How about this, wouldn’t this work…(bringing me to a dark taupe shade of Lamb’s Pride)?

Me: (Puzzled.) No, I really want it to be camo-colored. It’s a special request.

Dorinda: Did you see this color…(bringing me to a darker shade of brown Lamb’s Pride)?

Me: (Even more puzzled). No, that’s all one shade.

Dorinda: What kind of camel are you knitting?

Me: Camo as in camouflage, Dorinda, not as in Bactrian.

Much laughter ensued. And then Dorinda found the one skein in the shop that worked out well.

This mitten pattern is Mittens From the Top, by Elizabeth Zimmermann. Nate thinks his new mittens are the cat’s meow.

But I wasn’t completely satisfied that Paton’s Classic Wool was going to give Nate the warmth of Lamb’s Pride. So I doubled up and knit him another pair, this time in the Lamb’s Pride Old Sage (M-69) colorway. Khaki, the green shade, is sort of in the same aesthetic as camo. There’s nothing much warmer than the Lamb’s Pride mix of wool and mohair.

Next up is a freebie slipper pattern that I’ve knit so many times it’s embarrassing. Nola’s slippers, by Nola Miller. This time I used King Cole Big Value Chunky. It’s a good non-pretentious 100% acrylic that will wear well and wash up easily

One modification to the pattern that I make is to use chunky or bulky yarn rather than knitting worsted weight doubled. I feel that worsted doubled produces such a stiff fabric that feet don’t so much get cuddled as manhandled. Plus, speaking of hands, mine don’t do well knitting worsted with doubled strands.

My other main modification of Nola’s pattern is that I extend the ribbing to form a nice deep cuff. Knit on US size 10 needles, following the pattern yields a slipper that fits a woman’s US size 8-10 foot.

Here’s another Nola’s, this time knit in Brown Sheep Lamb’s Pride Superwash Bulky. I love the name of the colorway: Explosive Berry. I haven’t used this yarn very often. Good yarn.

Here’s a look at the soles, showing my final modification. I work a 3-needle bind-off that shows up as the center garter stitch ridge. You could bind off and sew the seam instead. But why bother when the stitches are all live. As I recall, there’s an odd number of stitches so I just knit 2 of the stitches together as I bind-off.

Next up is one of Kris Basta’s freebie dorm boots variations: Better Dorm Boots Deluxe. This first pair is knit in Plymouth Encore Chunky. The XL size, with the body of the slipper knit on US Size 9 and the cuff knit on size 10 ends up fitting a woman’s foot from about a size 8 to a size 10 (US sizing).

That little bit of lacework in the cuff dresses up the slipper quite a bit.

Here’s another pair, this time knit in Hayfield Spirit Chunky, an 80% acrylic, 20% wool. It’s been many decades since I knit with Hayfield yarn. It just hasn’t come up in my knitting world lately. A yarn shop near me stocks the yarn and I was drawn to this appealing colorway (Orange Swirl). It turned out to be wonderful to work with. I’d buy it again in a heartbeat.

And finally, the same pattern in Cascade Yarns Pacific Chunky Multi in their Brights colorway. WEBS had it so seriously discounted that I gave it a try. It’s 60% acrylic, 40% wool. For this type of project, it worked out really well. Oops. Not doubles anymore, triples, I meant triples.

I know. I can get ridiculous with my knitting stutters. Double doubles, this time. Here are Basta’s Better Dorm Boots Deluxes again in Plymouth Yarns Encore Chunky.

My recipients always also receive a warning with my slipper gifts: they are slicker than slick and don’t even think about wearing them on hardscape floors. In fact, I call them bedsocks.

I totally enjoy having 100% confidence that what I’m knitting will work out well. Maybe that’s one reason for all these repeats. Plus, with so many of my knit recipients having chilly feet these grown-up booties get snatched up from my choose-your-knit baskets very quickly.

Even more doubles

by
4

I’m in some sort of belated Groundhog Day loop. And I didn’t even like that movie. Because I’m still having a good time knitting stuff more than once. This nifty cowl is Elizabeth Smith’s Soundtrack Cowl. I knit this first one in Malabrigo Rios and used the Frank Ochre (the gold) and Tormenta (the gray) colorways. 160 yards (76 grams) of each color completed the cowl. It’s been one of my go-to accessories this winter. The Rios is next-to-the-neck soft superwash merino. The easy slip stitch pattern worked out perfectly.

To make the cowl a bit wider in circumference, I cast on 136 instead of the 116 stitches the pattern called for. Unblocked the cowl was 12.75 tall by 26.5 inches in circumference. Steam-blocked gently, my cowl is 13″ tall and 28″ in circumference.

Here’s the designer’s Soundtrack Tips page, including how to carry the non-dominant color over the stockinette section without having it show through at the round change. See 6:25-8:50 into the video for that tidbit. Essentially, Smith recommends gently twisting the yarns only after round 4 of the pattern. That worked well.

Next I tried the Soundtrack Cowl in Plymouth Yarns Worsted Merino Superwash, in Cream and Caraway Heather. It used exactly the same amount of yarn as my first Soundtrack. I handled the finished cowl exactly the same, a light steaming. But the yarn didn’t relax into the pattern to the same extent as the Rios did. I like this version, quite a bit actually. But I’m not as satisfied that the yarn was best for the pattern. The single slipped stitches, especially in the creamy top section, seem a tad too dominant. The Plymouth yarn has great stitch definition, maybe a bit too great? It’s a nicely rounded bouncy yarn. It doesn’t want to chill out to the same extent as Rios.

Here’s a look at how nicely Soundtrack sits at the neck. And as a bonus you can choose what colorway you want to have next to your face.

Next comes a blog mainstay: Chris Basta’s great freebie pattern Better Dorm Books for Men. I’d link to all my various versions of these, but we’d all find that tedious. I make a few easy modifications. Instead of knitting with two strands of worsted weight, I use a bulky weight. And I lengthen the cuff so it can be folded over.

This pair is knit in King Cole Chunky Tweed in the Orkney colorway. They’re knit flat, on US size 10 needles, and can be completed before the fourth episode of The Great British Baking Show names the Star Baker. Truly a pattern to be trusted. When binding off at the cuff, I use a size 11 and a very relaxed grip. That’s because cutting off circulation at the ankles isn’t a good plan for feet.

As slippers, the soles aren’t grippy enough unless you apply some of that plastic goop or make another plan for safety on hard surfaces. But as bed socks they are the best! They kick off easily once feet warm. But they stay in place even for restless sleepers.

Here’s the same pattern in Plymouth Yarn Encore Chunky. I especially like this Garnet Mix colorway.

Better Dorm Boots for Men work equally well for women’s feet, of course. But if you’re looking for a more decorative cuff try Basta’s Better Dorm Boots Deluxe. Again, I use a bulky or chunky weight instead of doubling worsted. Why? To me, the resulting socks are more cozy and less stiff feeling. Plus, I’ve never really taken to doubling yarn and yardage if I can manage the pattern with one strand.

This first “deluxe” pair is knit in King Cole Shadow Chunky, in Black Currant.

If you’ve wondered what these dorm boots look like before being stitched up, here’s a look. You’re seeing the reverse side of the cuff. Be sure to shift the right side to the wrong side as you work the cuff so the lacy detail will end up on the public/right side of the slipper.

And here’s Better Dorm Boots Deluxe worked in strong solid shade (Burgundy) of Plymouth Yarn Encore Chunky. When I knit the largest size, on size 10 US needles, the bedsocks easily fit a woman’s foot from size 8-10. And they’d easily stretch to fit larger feet.

This is the first time I’ve knit the XL largest size. I’m pretty sure that there’s an error on the XL directions at row 54. Row 51 confirms there should be 34 stitches after the one-stitch decrease in that row. No other stitch count change comes in for the XL size until Row 54. There are 4 YO’s on Row 54, and the stitch count is said to be 37 after that row. Obviously 34 plus 4 is 38. You need 37 stitches to make the lacework on the cuff work out correctly. So on row 54 for the XL size I made 3 YOs instead of 4. That worked.

It’s getting to be a bit of long, cold, windy winter “up north” in Michigan. This pair of Rachel Borello Carrol’s Little Kindness Monsters brought some February sunshine. I knit my set in Novita 7 Veljesta Solids. Please forgive that I don’t know how to type the two-dot umlaut in the yarn name that belongs above the “a” and my hopeless provincialism.

This freebie is totally cute just as the designer wrote the pattern. But I decided to shorten the hats some, knitting 12 rounds of ribbing instead of what the pattern called for. And I knit one round in between each of the k2 together rounds in the crown decreases. On round 15 of the head, I knit 8 stitches and then “planted” a purl stitch on either side of those 8 to mark where I’d attach the safety eyes. I added a nose because I thought it would help distract some from the still wide-set eyes.

The designer suggests we duplicate stitch a heart on the monster’s left side, below the mouth. They are super cute that way. But I stink at duplicate stitch. My monsters are heartless. But my granddaughter loves them!

The remedy for cold feet

by
4

We all get cold feet. Literally and emotionally. But let’s just examine the literal side of this.

Knitters for many decades have knit something we’ve called “Dorm Boots.” The original circulated pattern may have been Amy Detjen’s “Aunt Alm’s Dorm Boots.” Veterans of knitting on the web will remember the camaraderie of the old knitlist. It was in the knitlist days that I knit my first pair of Aunt Alm’s Dorm Boots. Brenda Zuk modified the pattern a tad and came up with a good comfy pair of Dorm Boots. Garter stitch soles for a bit of traction. A nice cuff so they don’t slip off. And an excellent spine up the top of the slipper for a bit of style.

Ditching the center spine, Kris Basta has been working up variations of the so-called “dorm” boots for quite a few years now. The boots in the top photo are her Better Dorm Boots Deluxe. By now, college students with ties to the knitting universe must have a lot of warm feet. Basta’s patterns are free, which is incredibly generous.

I knit my Better Dorm Boots Deluxe in King Cole Comfort Chunky, on US size 9 needles. They fit a women’s size foot from about 8-10 (US sizing). Basta’s pattern calls for worsted weight yarn, doubled. I have an aversion to knitting with doubled yarn because, for me–especially in an acrylic yarn–using doubled worsted yarn makes my hands hurt. But you of the nimble-handed world may prefer doubling worsted weight to wrestling with chunky.

Basta calls these next ones her Better Dorm Boots for Men. Again, I like to knit them in a chunky/bulky weight. And I prefer lengthening the cuffs. So far, no men I know say they want a shorter variety.

This pair is knit in King Cole Shadow Chunky on US size 10 needles. I’ve not used King Cole yarn in a month of Sundays. Let’s see, you ask exactly how long is a month of Sundays.

Thirty or thirty one Sundays would pass in 30/31 weeks. I last used King Cole when I was a teenager, more than half a century ago. Wow. OK I’ve not used King Cole yarn in way way longer than a month of Sundays. I should stop this before I depress myself. According to the Oxford English Dictionary, the first printed use of the phrase is from 1759 when someone named Hamilton Murray was writing his “Life & Real Adventures.” He reported that his commander swore he would dance to a particular part of a tune “for a month of Sundays.” At least I don’t personally remember 1759. Just take my word for it that a month of Sundays is a very long time.

The point is that I like the yarn. It’s excellent 100% acrylic yarn, if that’s what you need. And this Black Currant colorway is wonderful. Manly even, in a womanly way. Again, I used a chunky weight rather than doubling the yarn. Mine fit a man’s size 10 foot nicely and will easily stretch to fit a larger foot. You’ve seen me working this pattern before, within posts here and here and here.

Basta has even more dorm boot variations. I decided to try Crocodilly Mocs for Women. Same basic construction. These have a fun crocodile stitch on the cuff. Basta provides a video link that clearly instructs on how the stitch is worked.

These mocs look sweet on feet. I especially like the mismatched result when knit in this Adriafil Mistero, a 47% acrylic 53% wool mix.