Two-Yarn Slippers

Wayne Pfeffer shared two clever footwear patterns in the Summer 2000 issue of Spin Off, one being these Two-Yarn Slippers. This pattern takes advantage of the characteristics of two different wool yarns to create a finished project that is durable and comfortable. Current magazine subscribers can log in to read more about Wayne's history with these slippers and get the full instructions to knit up a pair.

A few years ago my friend Becky showed me a pair of slippers that she’d bought for fifty cents at a garage sale and asked if I could knit a larger pair for her husband. That original pair was worked in two colors of acrylic yarn.

Immediately it occurred to me to use two kinds of wool yarn: a coarse wool tightly spun and plied for the outside of the slipper and a soft, fine wool or wool/angora blend for the inside. The coarse wool wears like iron, and the soft wool provides comfort and warmth.

[PAYWALL] Over the years I’ve knitted several pairs of these slippers. They are thick and warm, stretchy enough to fit very comfortably, and very durable. A pair I made for my friend Jenny, using her three-ply handspun Karakul for the outer (main color) yarn, seem indestructible. Another pair I made for Jenny’s son Andy, a high school senior, have gone through two complete winters. Andy has cold feet and puts on his slippers as soon as he gets home from school. Jenny says he’s always sliding across the kitchen floor and going out to the mailbox in them, yet they show no signs of wear.

Although I’ve never seen a pattern for this slipper, I have to believe that it has been published somewhere, sometime, and I wish I could acknowledge the original designer.

These slippers are easy to knit. It’s a very simple and clever pattern.

Instructions

Materials

Yarn Worsted weight that measures about 12 wraps/inch (2.5 cm) and 800 yards/pound (1625 m/kg). You’ll need about 3 to 4 ounces (80 to 110 g) each of two kinds of yarn.
MC = coarse wool tightly spun and plied for the outside of the slipper
CC = softer, finer wool or wool blend for the inside

Needles Size 7 or 8 (4.5 to 5.25 mm) needles

Gauge 5 sts/inch (2.5 cm)

Visit spinoffmagazine.com/spin-off-abbreviations for terms you don’t know.

Pattern

Multiple of 4 stitches plus 2.
Rows 1–4 With MC. Knit every row, making two garter-stitch ridges. I recommend that you knit (rather than slip) the first stitch of every row on these slippers.
Rows 5–10 With CC.
Row 5 *Sl2 purlwise with yarn in back, k2 *. Repeat from * to * , ending with sl2.
Row 6 *Sl2 purlwise with yarn in front, p2 *. Repeat from * to * , ending with sl2.
Rows 7–10 Repeat rows 5 and 6.

Directions for medium-sized adult foot

With MC, cast on 46 sts. Leave a tail to stitch up the heel. Work in pattern. You will be creating a flat fabric consisting of two ridges of garter stitch in MC and six rows of stockinette stitch in CC. Continue knitting in this pattern until the slipper is almost as long as the foot it’s meant to fit. For example, I work a total of 13 repeats for woman’s size large or man’s size small.

Then shape toe as follows, with MC.
Rows 1–2 Knit.
Row 3 Knit.
Row 4 K1, k2tog (or ssk) across row.
Rows 5–6 Repeat rows 3–4.
Rows 7–8 Repeat rows 3–4.
Row 9 Knit.
Row 10 K2tog across row (7 sts remain).
Row 11 Knit.

Finishing

Break yarn leaving tail. With yarn needle, draw tail through remaining sts, then sew about halfway up the instep to close the toe of the slipper. Sew the cast-on edge together to form the heel.

Make the second slipper the same as the first.

Wayne Pfeffer is an avid knitter and spinner who lives in Centralia, Missouri. His good friend Jenny Niekrasz spun the yarn for these slippers. She is the weaving and spinning teacher at Access Arts, a nonprofit school for craftspeople. Editor's note: Handwoven and Little Looms readers may know Jenny as author and designer Jenny Sennott. Three years after this pattern was first published, Wayne and Jenny were married, and he knitted her slippers, socks, and sweaters until his death in 2020.