Old Maiden Aunt.
We’re off to Scotland tomorrow, which naturally means plenty of research into indie fibre artists we may encounter along the way.

One of the first I discovered was Old Maiden Aunt, based in Glasgow.

In an ideal world, I’d be buying up her Superwash Merino / Bamboo Sock in Neptune (drool):

While I was there, to save on shipping, I’d also throw in a skein of Superwash Merino Sock in Bumbleberry:

And one in Icarus, which strangely makes me think of Nick Cave:

This second, cheats version of Necking is for those of us lucky to have a vintage toy knitting machine in their possession. Those without, the original version is here.

This is an early 70s toy circular knitting machine.

You will need one of these
approx 40g sock wool
4.5mm/ US 7 circular needle or DPNs, as preferred
blunt needle for finishing

Cast onto your sock knitting machine using your sock wool, leaving a small tail.

Knit 25 rounds, then remove work from machine onto your circular needle or dpns.

Knit your favourite heel, or work a short row heel as follows:

At beginning of round, knit five stitches.
Turn, purl 10, turn
Slip 1, knit 8, turn
Slip 1, purl 7, turn
S1, knit 6, turn
S1, purl 5, turn
S1, knit 4, turn
S1, purl 3, turn

Turn the heel as follows:

S1, knit 3, turn
S1, purl 4, turn
S1, knit 5, turn
S1, purl 6, turn
S1, knit 7, turn
S1, purl 8, turn
S1, knit 9

Return work to knitting machine and knit until scarf measures a approximately six inches less than desired length.

Remove work from machine again, repeat heel, then replace work on machine.

Knit 25 rows.

Cut yarn approximately one foot from end of work, thread through loops on machine as you remove the work. Pull yarn taught, tie off and weave in end.

Thread beginning tail through cast on stitches, pull taught, tie off and weave in end.

For a Second Sock Syndrome version, omit second heel and simply crank until scarf reaches desired length, then bind off.

Wear with pride.

Necking by Spiraling is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Non-Commercial-Share Alike 3.0 Unported License.

You will need:

approx 40g sock yarn
7mm / US size 10 3/4 circular needle or dpns, as preferred
4.5mm / US 7 circular needle or dpns, as preffered

Using your preferred cast-on method (I like to use long-tail, so I can skip a row) and 7mm / US 10 ¾ needles, cast on 16 stitches.

Being careful not to twist, join in the round, mark beginning of round and knit 25 rows.

Change to smaller needles.

Knit your favourite heel, or work a short row heel as follows:

At beginning of round, knit five stitches.
Turn, purl 10, turn
Slip 1, knit 8, turn
Slip 1, purl 7, turn
S1, knit 6, turn
S1, purl 5, turn
S1, knit 4, turn
S1, purl 3, turn

Turn the heel as follows:

S1, knit 3, turn
S1, purl 4, turn
S1, knit 5, turn
S1, purl 6, turn
S1, knit 7, turn
S1, purl 8, turn
S1, knit 9

Return to working in the round, change to larger needle/s and knit until scarf measures around five inches shorter than desired length.

Work another heel, as per the directions above.

Knit another 25 rows once you return to working in the round.

To finish, cut about six inches of yarn, thread onto blunt needle and thread through working stitches.

Pull tight and secure. Weave in ends.

Thread cast on tail onto blunt needle. Thread through cast on stitches.

Pull tight and secure. Weave in ends.

For a Second Sock Syndrome version, omit second heel and simply crank until scarf reaches desired legnth, then bind off.

Wear with pride.

Necking by Spiraling is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Non-Commercial-Share Alike 3.0 Unported License.