very cool! what kind of yarn are you using?

It's Patons Kroy Socks (the color's "vista sea"), it's a super wash wool blend (75% wool 25% nylon) that you can machine wash and dry.

(There are only a few occasions that I would make socks you COULDN'T atleast machine wash ;-) )

I have noticed in Marcia's pics and now yours, that there are more than what looks like 2 knitting needles. Does making socks require special knitting needles?

Yep, they're douple point needles - they have points on both ends and you use 4 to 5 needles in the sock depending on your pattern. That's so that you can go in small circles but vary in size. They're also often used in larger projects like hats since the top gets so much smaller than the beginning, cicular needles can't change size that much, but with douple points it doesn't matter how many or few stitches you have on them (welllll... there is a limit to how many it can hold ;-) ).

So for a sock you would usually have something like 17 stitches on each of 4 needles aranged in a square shape (so that each end where the stitches stop and start touch another end on a different needle with more stitches, all the way around the square). You take needle 5 and starting on needle 1 you knit all of needle 1's stitches off on to needle 5, now needle 5 is full with needle 1's stitches and needle 1 is empty and becomes your working needle, you move onto needle 2, knit off those stitches with needle 1 and move on with, now empty, needle 2 to needle 3, and so on with 3 and 4 and then 4 to 5 and you're back on 5 to 1 and so on, knitting circle like that... clear as mud, eh?

Sharon, you should go to knittinghelp.com's advanced techniques video section and watch her "working the heel of a sock" video if you want to see how it's done. It's really a LOT less complicated than it appears.

>>It's really a LOT less complicated than it appears.

yup.

Good job explaining it though. I was thinking that there is NO WAY I could tell someone how to knit with DPN's. Show, maybe (if they are a mixed-up lefty anyway LOL) but explain, never.

I've been reading this all week:
Move first stitch from Needle 1 to Needle 3 by knitting first stitch on Needle 1 through the back loop and transferring that stitch onto Needle 3.

Transfer first 13 stitches from Needle 2 to Needle 1.
Transfer remaining stitches from Needle 2 to Needle 3.

...oh yeah, and I had to do all that backwards...

lol

Actually that makes sense. I was just curious since I had not seen those in the yarn section. Of course I have only glanced at the knitting section.LOL I am still trying to finish my crocheting project. I have watched the video on knitting help. I am looking forward to getting started.

Concerning the toe thing. That is a Celtic toe and just means you are of Celtic descent. It is actually common.