I love Pippi. I grew up watching the Swedish classic film version of Pippi Longstocking, released in the United States in the early 1970s. Although her last name is Longstocking, there is no clear description of the socks Pippi wears. In illustrations, television, and film portrayals, she often wears mismatched long socks with one garter not attached correctly, so at least one sock is falling down.
It was clear to me that the socks should not match but still be delightful to wear together. I settled on a stripe pattern because stripes are always playful, and I wanted to use Swedish blue and yellow for one sock. When I was contemplating what colors to use for the other sock, I came upon an Internet photograph of the store sign from Pippi’s Longstocking, a ready-made sock store in Fort Bragg, California. The store graciously allowed me to mimic its artisan sign by creating the second sock with red and yellow stripes.
Pippi’s Long Stockings designed by Laura Ricketts are fantastic. Put a big smile on the face of someone you love with these oh-so colorful socks. Photo by Joe Coca.
The Pippi I knew and loved wore nylon socks. But nylon would never do for this project! I chose Madelinetosh yarn. Because each skein of yarn is generous enough for a pair of socks (depending on sock size), you may have enough yellow yarn to knit two pairs: one of each color (for nutty and “not” days) or mother-daughter matching pairs. You can style the length to suit. If the finished sock is too long, the top cuff can always be folded down.
Download a copy of PieceWork’s September/October 2016 Literary issue and cast on a pair of these delightful stockings.
Laura Ricketts lives and works in north-central Indiana. She knits, crochets, spins, reads history books, and incorporates all of these activities into her articles, patterns, and classes. Visit www.laurarickettsdesigns.com to see more of her work. She also is the author of the PieceWork eBook: Discover the Wonderful World of Sami Knitting.