Blessing Socks Pattern Available

This design is dedicated to my Nana, who survived stomach cancer, heart surgery and the death of her husband of 50 plus years all within 18 months. The original socks will be going to her because she can use all the blessings she can get.



The motif of these socks is Arabic calligraphy of the word "baraka", meaning "blessing". The chart was originally published in A History of Handknitting, and was found on a pillow entombed in 1275.

The twisted cuff echoes the spiraling purl decreases on the toe, which it turn mimic the garter ridges and seam stitch on the comfortable, turned German heel. Knit these for someone in need of a few blessings. With good thoughts and a prayer in your heart, the recipient will know they are cared for.





These socks are worked from the cuff down with the twisted edge worked flat and then joined in the round for the rest of the cuff. The heel is a turned German Heel with a garter “seam-stitch” on the center back of the heel flap, which echoes the garter ridges on the sides. The toe is decreased over 3" using purl decreases to give a comfortable and beautiful fit.

Yarn Requirements: 100 grams (378 yards, or 2 skeins) of Main Color (MC) (2232- Tan), 25 yards of Contrast Color 1 (CC1) (5755- blue), and 30 yards for Contrast Color 2 (CC2) (0083- gray). All of Dale of Norway Baby Ull (100% Superwash Merino wool).
Suggested Needles: US Size 1.5 (2.5mm). These can be tricky to find, but I like Crystal Palace 6" bamboo.
Gauge: 18 sts and 22 rows per 2 square inches in stockinette without colorwork.
Finished Size: Unstretched, 5.5" from cuff to top of heel flap, 8" around upper cuff, 8" around foot and foot length to measure. The sample fit a size 8 women’s foot with a good amount left of the MC. If you want to lengthen the foot more than 2 shoe sizes, I would suggest buying a third ball of the MC.
Techniques Used: This pattern uses the following techniques:
knit, purl, k2tog, knit front & back, slipped stitches, p2tog, ssk.

Other Notes:

• The motifs in this pattern are charted. Charts are in black and white.


• This pattern is 5 pages long, and will print on standard 8.5" x 11" paper.


• This pattern is a downloadable .pdf file. You will need Adobe Acrobat Reader to open it. You can download Acrobat here for free.


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pdf file updated 7-11-2006