Baby Legs

Has anyone else heard of Baby Legs?
Here's an example of a website which sells them.
They're great! They cover baby's legs and look cute, and baby stays warm when you change his or her nappy, and did I mention that they look super-cute? I did? Oh. Well, they do.
Another thing about them is that they're stupidly expensive for what they are: socks without feet.
Oh wait! I've got some of those in my sock rug making bag.
If I just sew another sock's elastic onto the bottom, they'll be perfect. First pair:


Oh look, there's enough of one of these socks left to make a quick hat! Ha ha. Second pair:

Sock Rabbit for Squiggles

Last night I made Squiggles a sock rabbit! And I'm really pleased with it, especially the blissful expression :D

It felt so satisfying to sit alone in my bedroom surrounded by bits of collected fabrics, bags of stripey socks, and tangled and colourful embroidery yarns. In total, I probably spent about 4 hours making this, but it was a very relaxed experience and I was watching my Nanna's favourite film 'On Golden Pond' with Kathryn Hepburn.

The rabbit is made from one pair of regular size women's socks. I'd made a trial run using an old pair of holey grey socks a couple of months ago (that one was shaped more like a cat than a rabbit) - so I was confident that my slightly dodgy, inexperienced "method" was going to work out!


I suppose it's a tradition (of sorts) to give a newborn a fluffy little creature when it arrives (perhaps not immediately, ha ha! You don't want to freak it out), a little comforting friend to grow up with. What was weird about this was that once I'd finished it, I got it into my head to measure its length (head to toe, not including ears), and discovered that it's exactly 42cm long, which is what Squigs should measure this week. Of course that lead to feelings of awe at the sheer size of Squiggles, and wonder that my belly could contain him/her at all!

I should let you know that the sock animal was partly inspired by the creations of my friend Citrusgirl (also pregnant! Due in November), who makes the most wonderful things completely instinctively and as naturally as breathing. Her blog can be found here, and you can see lots of the amazing things she has made, except, strangely, her sock animal... hmm. Think I'd better put in a special request! :D

Birthday Sock Rug

I have fantasized for a long time that when we're established on the smallholding, we'll have the time to make each other birthday and Christmas presents instead of buying expensive tat. My mother's birthday was on the 30th May, and for the whole month I found myself sneaking away to secretly sew and get excited about making her a sock rug. A fair number of the (holey) socks which make up the rug came from her originally, so the idea was that the colour scheme would be to her liking.


I took about eight or nine pairs of old socks, and snipped them into one or two-inch wide rings (throwing away the heel and tips of toes), then played about with them for a bit to decide the order in which the colours would appear. Knee-length socks should generally come towards the end, as they are longer and provide more rings, which in turn makes a longer section (needed for the wider circumference). I looped the rings together to make a snake of some meters in length, before starting to sew the snake into an even spiral... There's something meditative about watching your mini rug slowly emerge. I must admit that I enjoyed the process, and not least because I was putting love into a handmade present which is so much more personal than a bought one.

The finished sock rug takes several hours, but provides a cosy and funky insulated layer to put between the cold chair and your bottom. It also makes an unusual hat, as my mother discovered, ha ha!