I had never been a big sock knitter until I discovered 9" circulars and forethought heel construction. With that discovery, I began a whole new adventure and the book 52 Weeks of Socks happened to be my map. I got the book for my birthday in June from my mum, who was looking at the photos as I was leafing through the pages. Then she pointed at the Hestia Slippers, and I immediately knew I had to knit them for her birthday in August.

I knitted the slippers in the original yarn, Ulysse by De Rerum Natura. I already used this yarn for Sonrae sweater and even for my own designs, Emsian hat and cowl, so I knew that knitting with this yarn is pure joy. However, I changed the colours – I used colourways Nuit (the blue one) and Goeland (the grey one).

I have to admit, I was too lazy to knit the swatch. I just grabbed the recommended needles, and I think it ended well. I knitted both the right and left panels in size 1, but I decided to knit the sole in size 2. It fits my foot well, so I hope it will also fit my mum’s foot. I did another modification – I skipped the thrums as I didn’t know whether my mum would like the touch of them on her feet. The finished length of the sole is 21 cm, and the width at the widest point is 8.5 cm.

First, you start with two right panels and then two left panels. They are knitted flat, and you use just one colour in each row, knitting a simple tuck stitch. It’s very similar to brioche stitch (which you knit on the beginning / end of each row as well), very easy, and kind of fun. However, it gets boring when you have to knit a very similar piece four times. Never mind, it’s still very quick to finish.

After you knit the panels, you steam block them. It was the first time I had done something like that, and I think it went well! It’s actually fascinating and satisfying to do. Really. Trust me. You shouldn’t be scared of it.

A much more complicated part – knitting the sole – came after. It’s not really that hard; I just got confused in the first place, so I tried free-style knitting, but it didn’t work, so I unravelled it. When I picked it up a few days later and followed the instructions (which I didn’t understand at the beginning but kind of understood later), both slippers were finished in like two hours.

So, in the end, I really love the result. The process was a bit painful here and there, but it was worth it. If I’d ever knit another pair, it would be definitely much easier. It’s Friday night when I am writing this post, and it will be published on Saturday when I’ll give them to my mum. I hope she’ll like them as much as I do. And I hope I chose the right colours for her!