WATG Sock kits- a review

Unfortunately the lighting on these photos is not great. This is my current project since I am unable to sew for the next few weeks. They are really just begun but starting to look like socks. Or rather a sock.

A couple of years ago I was given a WATG sock kit with yarn for 3 pairs if leopard print wool socks for a birthday. I was very happy but the pattern is different to the Winwick Mum sock construction so I did not feel ready to try it. I watched a video of how to change size of needles to get the pattern to work if you do not end up with spots. It all seemed straightforward. Also now I have about 10 pairs of Winiwck Mum socks successfully knitted so thought why not try this. Its supposed to give the leg ribbed striped bit without effort or need for a contrast ball of yarn annd then you do the sock till you get to the correct length and then do the toes. You do have to cut and rejoin the yarn for the toes and you are also meant to cut the heel yarn and roll into a ball for an "afterthought" heel. Ok thinks me I will have a go. 

Anyway it's a hard pattern. I had the right tension at the start because my top stripes all line up correctly. The pattern says that's how to check the tension. That was a normal (for me) 2.5mm needle,  but the leopard print did not work. So I unravelled it.

Next attempt I did my normal aran cast on and dumped the edge ribbed colour ( part of their pattern but to be honest looks rubbish in my opinion)  because there is not enough for a full contrast edge if you don't use long tail cast on which I didn't like. So second attempt I have started to alter the pattern!

The pattern does state you must follow their pattern for yarn to work etc.

Right so ribbed edge done and we get to the spots. They don't work. Change needle size twice. I really do not want to knit on smaller than a 2.25mm. I tried bigger but that gave me a random pattern. 

But small this time is 2.25mm and really I think perhaps this pattern needs 2mm needles. I think perhaps that's what I should do to get the pattern right. That's just too much for me. It physically hurts to use a 2mm so I have decided to stick with the 2.25mm and have what is more like camo pattern than leopard spots. Still nice though.

Then the yarn changes for the heel. We'll by now I am losing patience with the WATG pattern. They want me to leave the heel yarn in a ball, knit the heel later and sew it in. No.

I have tried their cast on and that looked so rubbish and really I like the heel flaps on my other socks. So anyway I took the decision to do the heel flap ( Winwick Mum style) and not listen to their pattern for this bit. You actually have a small amount left over after doing a heel flap.

Then I went onto the gusset. I do a Winwick Mum style heel flap. There is a small amount of blue left over after this. I cut and rejoin after trying several other methods so I did all this twice. Back to leopard print/ camo. As you can see the pattern goes out on the gusset decreases. That's not the end of the world. I think these will still be a nice pair of socks. At this point the spots pattern goes out. It changes to a random pattern like space dyed yarn. Here next to the gusset decreases the pattern breaks up until I get onto the foot part when it goes back to how it should be. Its hard to take photos of this but I think you can see the more random part next to the foot. 

Here also because I had tried using several balls of yarn round the gusset only to unpick twice and then went with rejoining but I had by then 3 strands of yarn to incorporate and  you can just see where I rejoined the yarn having cut off the rest of the heel contrast and rejoined the leopard. It was my 3rd attempt that I eventually stopped and just went back to doing a Winwick Mum basic sock pattern with zero adjustments. You can just see the line of thicker stitches accross the foot where the spots change to the random pattern

The pattern will work. I reckon I will get acceptable spots and stuff the slight randomness round the heel area. There is also now a small line where the end of the yarn is knitted in. I had had enough and decided it will wear in and I think it will. Either way its done now, they will be wearable and I am just experimenting to get these to work somehow!

 Now I will finish in the next few days and join in the blue for the toes. Then knit sock 2.

Once I finish these will will show you how they turn out.

A few things here about this WATG sock yarn/ kit:

I have 2 more balls of this yarn. I will not be using it as is again. I think there is too little ankle ribbing. I don't like the WATG heel. The whole ankle part of the sock is not adjustable unless:

1) add a second ribbing colour and some stripes at ankle

2) just do normal heel flap

3) I have yet to reach the toes but I reckon match them to the ankle stripes next time.

4) I am tempted to do a contrast underneath the foot to give me more potential spots. I will decide once I see what's left when I finish the first sock.

5) WATG say knit from centre of ball. That's fine if you don't keep unpicking. If you do it all gets tangled. I have already separated my next two balls of this yarn into two smaller balls to stop this. Thats what I do with Lang Yarns ( their directions) and I have done with one pair of WYS socks though it seems less necessary with WYS.

6) the amount supplied makes a very short sock with minimal ankle ribbing.

7) You know I am almost tempted to knit a hat or something else with the leopard spot part on the other balls.

 So my honest opinion on these kits: the yarn is lovely. Good quality sock yarn. Having the contrast ribbing as part of the ball sounds a great idea but stops the flexibility of a separate ball of yarn - ribbing length, more stripes etc. It has a bright yellow section where the two socks start and end which makes things very easy but there is loads of yarn in this section so I have kept to use as an edge or similar on another pair. So lots of wastage!

 I love the spots but need a much smaller needle than stated to get anything like the pattern it's supposed to. Yet with WYS yarns no I don't so it's unlikely it's my tension. Also my tension is dead on with the 2.5mm needle on the top ribbed section so this does not make sense.

It seems to my relative inexperience despite having knitted about 10 pairs of socks before this that the tension needed to get the ankle stripes is different to that needed for the spots.

Do I like this kit? 

We'll I will enjoy these socks but NO! I would not recommend because the leg length is set, ribbing is set, if you change the heel type it will work but will put the pattern out for a few rows.

I will knit 2 more pairs but I will not be buying more if this yarn. I will knit then incorporating a second contrast and trying out the above to get a decent pair of socks for winter. Its really not worth the bother of this kit (which is very expensive as well) just for leopard spot socks. I actually think it may be easier to just do intarsia for the leopard spots if you really want leopard spot socks rather than try using this kit.

So anyway if you do try out a WATG sock kit you are now informed and can make a sensible decision either way. This is obviously just my opinion and it may be most people love this kit but I prefer straight forward sock yarn. At least now I know that.

Have a lovely week, 

Take care

Bracken