A small luxury, for the coldest nights of winter. An excellent way to use and enjoy the most delicious of sock yarns. These shortie socks are soft around the ankle so that they don’t constrict, and they slip on and off easily; the foot is fitted, complete with a proper flap and gusset heel so that they don’t move around if you’re tossing and turning.

Both cuff patterns are charming variations on a ribbing. The Prince sock (light grey) is a modest cable that adds a degree of charm and distinctiveness, without making the knitting any more complex. And the Sullivan design (dark grey) is a lacy cable– a bit more challenging to work, but absolutely worth it.

Because these aren’t to be worn in shoes, I’ve forgone the typical type of heel reinforcement, and continued part of the patterns instead. For the Prince version, it’s an extension of the cable pattern; for the Sullivan, I’ve used a slipped-stitch rib that flows from the main pattern.

The toe is a simple and elegant star closure that doesn’t require grafting.

Each pair has a left and right version, for a bit of knitting interest, and to keep the Dreaded Second Slipper Syndrome at bay. There’s a different left and right toe on each pair; the Prince Sock has different heels, and the lace pattern on the cuff in the Sullivan design is subtly mirrored. The two can always be worked exactly the same, but where’s the fun in that?