I am, at my core, a creature of habit. This applies to all facets of my life. How I cook, how I style my hair, and extends into my fiber arts. I’m not opposed to new things, quite the contrary. But the familiar is comforting and is easy to fall back on.

Since designing for release (as opposed to designing for me), I’ve started going outside my comfort zone a little more often. I have never really called myself a sock knitter, until this past year or so. Mostly because I worked only the most basic of socks.

My first sock was a top-down, short-row heel, grafted toe(but I did 3 needle bind-off for some reason) vanilla sock. I still have them. I still wear them. I’ve followed a small handful of patterns, and I’ve made a heel flap in 3 of them (all top-down). Most of the socks I’ve knit without a pattern are either top-down (more recently toe-up) with a short-row heel. I’m COMFORTABLE with whipping up a short-row heel. Out of habit, when its time to work the heel, I instinctively start thinking about short-rows. In the past 13 months I’ve taught myself a new toe-up cast-on (Aggie’s Simple Cast-On), the Peasant (afterthought variant) heel, and now, the Fleegle Heel! I even tested out a method of increase I’ve dubbed the “Split Increase”. Who knows if its a “real” technique; but I did it, it worked, its going in a pattern, so its a real technique now!

Not the most elegant LOOKING of heels, but its not difficult, has no pick-ups, and fits just fine. I’m even writing it into my new house-sock pattern, because why not? I decided to be bold, live dangerously, and not let habit dictate EVERYTHING I make.