Olive Green Slippers by Mimi Alelis

Last December I am sure some of you saw my blog entry about a pair of plain cappuccino socks I made for crochet designer Mimi Alelis, here and on Ravelry. She made this lovely and snug-fitting pair of slippers for me in exchange, from my favorite color of mercerized cotton.

Here are the slippers, folded flat.

And here they are, on me:

Do they fall off when I walk? No. Are they comfortable? Yes. My feet are narrow and flat, and these manage to fit me EXACTLY. The amazing thing is that, after months of exchanging messages on Ravelry, Mimi and I met for the very first time at Chocolate Kiss coffee shop at the University of the Philippines campus last Wednesday, May 20th. I'd never met a needlecraft designer before! In my excitement, I forgot to bring a camera. *knocks head against wall*

Mimi arrived carrying a box of threads, and she showed me the front half of the kid's dress she had knit. I was knitting pen tubes, with small-repeat lace stitches. My mom joined us briefly. We chatted and chatted until sunset arrived.

One day perhaps our small group of friends should have a Stitch n' Bitch Diliman hangout. Nothing but knitting, crochet, needlecraft and talk. And coffee/tea/juice. Amy (Dreaming Knitter) wasn't feeling well that day, and new mommy Gene (geneinthebattle) was busy with newborn Una. Yes, I know, it's funny we can talk crafting all day without really noticing we're doing it. But I guess it's the same with guys and cars.

Wishlist items: A living room for 12. A clean bathroom. A coffeemaker. A shelf with pattern books. A plate of cookies. Friends, needles, fiber, chat.

WIP: Prototype Ballet Slipper

Like I usually do on weekends, I surf Ravelry and other sites for free patterns within my skill level that appeal to me. Now that I basically have top-down basic socks well in hand, I wanted to try other shapes, like Pocketbook Slippers by Lisa Vienneau and Allison Barrett. The pattern is also available here. My feet are small and narrow, and while I haven't actually started that particular pattern, I also wanted to learn knitting toe-up basic socks.

The toe-up pattern here is a mishmash of things I've learned, which I wrote to fit my own foot. While I haven't done things scientifically (as in specifically write steps down row by row as I knit them, counting and all -- I only have a shorthand index card) I can at this point give you a basic outline if you want to modify something for your own foot.

Pattern Outline:

1) Magic cast-on from Knitty, using an 80cm circular needle.

2) Toe increases.

3) About an inch of stockinette rounds from toe increases. Or your preferred shoe entry depth.

4) Divide instep stitches into 3. Knit first third with first dpn, bind off middle third, knit last third with next dpn, place heel stitches on last dpn. Dpn 4 is the working needle.

5) For instep stitches, your selvedge will always begin with a slip 1, whether knitting or purling. Knit or purl heel as usual.

6) As you work try on the slipper. Slipper body should reach up to an inch before your heel ends. Leave stitches on instep dpns unworked.

7) Round heel shaping as usual.

8) Heel flap either plain or reinforced depending on your preference (not a very deep one for my foot).

9) When it's time to join the instep stitches to the heel flap, you will notice a gap that forms between the heel flap and the instep stitches. To address that, knit together (or skp) the last stitch on the heel flap and the first stitch on the instep needles nearest. Knit 1. Turn. Knit across and do the same thing on the other side (instead of skp, p2tog). Purl 1. Turn. And so on. Just keep doing this until you knit the last of the instep stitches and are working with only 2 needles instead of 4.

10) Bind off back of slipper. Instead of cutting the yarn, do a single crochet beginning from the last bind off loop. The single crochet will go around the selvedge of the slipper.

11) Use bright contrasting yarn, add details. Present crochet chain is 18". If you want it to go around the ankles, I suggest you crochet 30".

This slipper is made up of exactly one small ball of choco brown Red Heart worsted weight acrylic yarn, plus some contrast color for decor. It took me just under 4 hours. I had to knit AND unravel AND write shorthand, and do finishing carefully. Maybe less if I memorized it already.

Notes: For my foot cast on should be about 10+10 stitches on a circular. This one is 12+12, which makes for a wide square toe. Body stitches follow a 20 instep +20 heel total.

Rewriting as I blog before the lunch break. Will do the other slipper tonight after dinner. With the 30" chain to go around the ankle. Joy wants to wear it at the Little Gym when she plays with Lilo. Just to feel like Gymnast Mommy. As for Lilo, I still have to trace her foot. Hers will be a princessy pink.

I want to try the same thing with mercerized cotton, possibly 3 strands together. So excited!