Curiously Clever Clogs Redux

Sorry for some of the cross posting from Crafster and Knitters Review forums. These are some of my more indepth observations and comments with regard to the pattern and my FO. If you don't have the pattern, a good bit of this isn't going to make sense:

More on the Curiously Clever Clogs. Here are a couple of finished shots of them:


Curiously Clever Clogs

Curiously Clever Clogs

Pattern: Curiously Clever Clogs by Stitch Diva

Yarn: (main body) 1 skein Patons Merino in Denim, (inner sole) 1 skein Cascade 220 off white, (outer sole) 1 skein Galway dark brown heathered

Needles: US size 13 Denise needles

Misc: clip on stitch markers, waste yarn, scissors, row counter

Time: 6 - 8 hours approximately


* IMHO, this pattern has a high fidget factor. I've been knitting for 20 plus years and have knit lace, fair isle, cables, etc. so I'm okay with fidgety patterns. That being said, the pattern is definitely worth fidgeting through. You will definitely feel more confident about short rows after knitting this pattern and the ktch and ptch stitches are so freaking clever. There is very little seaming which is an added bonus in my book.

* I flew through the sections of the main slipper body and inner sole. Where it gets fidgety is when you begin to attach the outer sole to the main slipper body. If I had been able to print it, I believe that the chart would have helped me with these directions but reading them on screen was just too hard for me. I also had a hard time envisioning how this pattern was constructed. There is a fair amount of written detail about it but I'm a very visual person and could not for the life of me figure out how the outer sole was attached to the main body (even though there are pictures of this too). It didn't help that my printer died and I couldn't print a hard copy of the pattern. After knitting the first slipper, I finally figured it out. Below are a few in progress pictures that explain some of the concepts that my poor brain couldn't grasp at the time.


Curiously Clever Clogs - attaching outer sole

Curiously Clever Clogs - Outer Sole attached

Curiously Clever Clogs - The flip side and the inner sole

Curiously Clever Clogs - Seaming the outer sole

Curiously Clever Clogs - inside out post seaming

Curiously Clever Clogs (with i-cord added) before and after felting



Needless to say, my first slipper is a lot more "special" than the second one. Unless I point out the issues though, you can't tell that its kinda twisted and wonky because felting concealed a number of the issues.

* I knit mine with a single strand of worsted weight yarn vs. the double strand that is recommended. Mostly because I didn't want to waste a ton of yarn on the first pair just in case they didn't turn out so good. I personally tend not to like hot feet and even single stranded, these babies are plenty warm and comfy. The sole is still nice and squishy (which is a value add that Stitch Diva promotes) and they're quite sturdy. I also didn't add the beads because I plan to needle felt designs on the tops of the slippers (though the beading is a very clever technique I plan to use on future clogs).

* I'd highly recommend that you knit a test slipper first (or don't be afraid to frog that first slipper) to get the hang of the ktch and ptch that you begin with the outer sole. It makes so much more sense to me now that I'm working on the second pair and I wish that I'd frogged the first slipper instead of plodding ahead.

* You can adjust the finished size by pulling them out of the wash sooner. After the first 8 - 10 minutes of felting, I could have easily blocked the clogs to fit my husband who wears a size 9.

* Use a row counter! There are several places where you go back and repeat certain rows and without a row counter, it can get very confusing.

* I would guess that you could get child sized clogs by knitting with DK weight yarn and using the same instructions for the regular clogs. I'm not sure that I'd try to adjust the pattern otherwise. Anyone else with the pattern have any suggestions?

I've cranking through these for holiday gifts and will post more on the needle felting once I decide what to put on each pair. The second pair that are pictured next to the first pair are made from Araucania Nature wool, Cascade 220 and Patons Merino. Can't wait to see how some of the others turn out. Best of luck!