Yoga socks and legwarmers

Published on January 10, 2006 By dharmagrl In Misc

I've been practicing yoga for a long time now; since '98 or so. recently I got myself a pair of gloves that have a layer of rubbery stuff on the palms so that they won't slip when I'm doing downward dog or other poses that require me to place my hands on my mat. (The pair I have also have pouches around the wrists so that you can place little weights in there and add and extra ooomph to your owrkout - the one that you're supposed to do with the weights is full of slow, controlled arm movements - the first time I did it was Sunday, and my arms knew that I had done it on Monday - they were a little sore)

Anyway, my feet and ankles often get cold when I'm working out. I've tried some of the yoga socks that are available commercially, but I don't care for them. The soles are like slipper socks; they have those non-slip dots and designs on them, but it's the toes that really bug me: they have your big toes separated from the rest of your toes. It's almost like they're designed for wearing with flip-flops, and it gets on my last nerve. It just feels so unnatural! I see a lot of little old Asian ladies at the commisary who wear flip flops all year round wearing tube socks with their flip flops in the winter and I've never understood how they can stand it. It's THE most uncomfortable thing.

So, I thought I was destined to have to do yoga barefoot for the rest of my life. Then, as I was browsing for new and exciting knitting pattrns, I found this:

I have to pay for the pattern for them, but it's only $5 so it's not so bad. I'm terribly excited about finding them; I think that they're going to be wonderfully comfortable and will really help my cold yoga feet problem! If I make them and they're everything I think they'll be, then I'm definitely adding these to my repetoire of hats and scarves and baby beanies.

In the meantime, I'm going back to my teen years and making myself some legwarmers. I'm going to follow the pattern for these little beauties, only mine are going to be in thin black and purple stripes:

They seem to be a simple knit 2, purl 2 rib, knit in the round so there's no seam (knitting in the round means knitting on circular or double pointed needles, which produces a tube rather than a flat piece). I just got a 16" circular needle, which will be perfect for those legwarmers (and the yoga socks, for that matter).

I said that I wasn't going to add any more projects to my list of things I want to knit.....but then i saw these and I just couldn't resist them.

Now where did I stash that purple yarn.....

Comments

dharmagrl

on Jan 10, 2006

I just read an article by someone who paid for the yoga socks pattern....and they're not knit in the round like I thought they were. They're knit flat, which makes things MUCH easier. I think that I'm going to knit in the round to start off with so's I don't have a big ol seam under my instep, then bind off stitches where the heel would be. I'll knit the rest with straight needles (so it's flat), then all I have to do is increase equally on each side so I have enough to go around the ankle, knit up a few inches, bind off and sew the back together with as flat a seam as possible.

Of course, I could always use double pointed needles for the increase and knit in the round that way....then there'd be no seam at the back of the ankle.

Hmm...I need to think about this for a while and try to crunch the numbers for stitches and stuff.....

MarcieMoo

on Jan 10, 2006

Wouldn't punky Shea like a pair of your legwarmers, too?

dharmagrl

on Jan 10, 2006

Wouldn't punky Shea like a pair of your legwarmers, too

Nah, she thinks they're terribly uncool!

HC1240

on Jan 10, 2006

... cool!

My daughter thinks the 80's were SO uncool. I take great pleasure in pointing out to her each fashion trend that seems even remotely a throwback to that time period. Hehe...

dharmagrl

on Jan 10, 2006

My daughter thinks the 80's were SO uncool. I take great pleasure in pointing out to her each fashion trend that seems even remotely a throwback to that time period. Hehe...

So does Shea. So, when I'm done with my legwarmers, I'm going to proudly sport them with my converse, over the tops of my bondage bootss (they'll be more like knee warmers then) with my stiletto heels, and with my canvas mary janes. I might even wear them to the next PTA meeting....hehehehehehe.

Dr Guy

on Jan 10, 2006

I think I have found your marketing problem. We are supposed to be up to 70 tomorrow!

Global warming I guess, but if I take HC up on her offer, I will be contracting some of them from you! Right now, short sleeves and (OMG yes!) shorts are in order down here!

As you are getting rain, I dont guess you are freezing either?

Where's my snow!

JillUser

on Jan 10, 2006

Boy, legwarmers take me back to Middle school! They kept us from getting pneumonia when we wore short skirts so that weren't just for fashion

They make a lot more sense than a lot of the fashion trends today.

lifehappens

on Jan 11, 2006

Hmm...I need to think about this for a while and try to crunch the numbers for stitches and stuff.....

I'm amazed that you can figure that out. Knitting boggles my mind.

recently I got myself a pair of gloves that have a layer of rubbery stuff on the palms so that they won't slip

If your hands slip and are not just cold, you can apply heavy duty antipersperant to your palms (the soles of your feet too!) I ended up getting a perscription from a dermatologist after M was born and it made a big difference especially in Texas summers!

dharmagrl

on Jan 11, 2006

I think I have found your marketing problem. We are supposed to be up to 70 tomorrow!

Hehe, yeah.....noone wants scarves when it's hot. But, if I knit all summer, I'll have a stash of stuff to sell next winter. I met a lady at the BX who told me I should rent a booth at the front of the BX next fall, because she thought my stuff would sell really well...and I think I'm going to do it. There's a lady who sells her knitting there already, but her stuff is very traditional, and my stuff is aimed more at a younger, funkier crowd. There are a LOT of young people around here, so I should do well!

kept us from getting pneumonia when we wore short skirts so that weren't just for fashion

Yep! I hated wearing hose, so legwarmers really helped me out!

I'm amazed that you can figure that out. Knitting boggles my mind

It's not really that hard. I use graph paper, and I use each of the squares as one stitch. I sketch out what I want to make - I have to know roughly how many stitches I need first - and I figure out the increases and decreases from there. The yoga socks look like they're going to be relatively easy!

If your hands slip and are not just cold, you can apply heavy duty antipersperant to your palms (the soles of your feet too!)

The gloves that I have have pockets in them for little weights to go in. They came with a 'Yoga Burn' DVD by Rodney Yee....it's a good workout for me now that I'm getting back into yoga because it's slow and not too challenging. Like I said, the gloves are supposed to be used for that, but I'm going to use them for everything else too! My hands don't get cold when I'm working out, but my feet do...and when my feet get chilly, my instep cramps up and that's no fun! Hopefully these socks will prevent that from happening!

TaBoo Tenente

on Jan 11, 2006

i don't know much about yoga, but i wonder why your feet get cold. my girlfriend is a yoga addict, and she usually comes back looking like she's spent an afternoon at a russian schvitz.

just two non-knitting related thoughts: when you're yoga-ing, do you wear tight, restricting tights or something to show off your bod? and how's your blood pressure?

they say (i guess there's no "they." all right? im the "they") that no matter how much scratchy wool youre wearing, if your circulation is restricted, youre going to get cold, especially your fingerees and toesees (by the way, Where did the general keep his armies? In his sleevies!). Same goes for bad blood pressure, swollen joints.

all right. cool. I guess that's it.

tbt

Janders

on Jan 12, 2006

I love it! My DH calls Jayna 80's baby, since I always have her in leg warmers! THey are the best for the gap between her socks and pants when i carry her.
If you evenr wanted to knit baby leg warmers, I would buy your stash!

SheilaE

on May 09, 2015

Hello!

I have been looking for a flat- knit pattern for yoga socks for ages. The only one that I have found is on Ravelry,,Sausalito stirrup socks.

Would you kindly send me the link for the pattern that you have written about.

Thank you,

Sheila

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