Cozy slippers are great for any season. Wearing them around the house keeps the chill off the feet. I wanted to create something to keep my family’s feet comfortable when walking inside our home. Hand-knit slippers look cozy and fairly simple to make. I like to look through knitting ideas and patterns on Ravelry and Pinterest.

A Popular Slipper Pattern

A granny-type slipper is very popular on Ravelry and Pinterest. Going through Ravelry, I stopped counting after I passed over 20 individual patterns for a similar slipper. I wanted to try out some of the patterns. All of the patterns for this slipper that I found are for 2 straight needles. It is knit flat in one piece. Then the toe and front area of the foot is pulled together and seamed. Finally, the heel is stitched together. Each of the patterns are very similar, but differ slightly. One difference is the needle size used. Another way is how many stitches are cast on. Also, where to stop the garter section and begin the ribbing differs in some patterns. After reading through many of the specific patterns, I decided to try two different ones.

Make-up of the Slippers

In these patterns, the body of the slipper is in garter stitch, while the toe is ribbed. The garter body gives this slipper a snug fit around the foot. The ribbed foot section allows for some stretch to fit many foot widths. This type of knit slipper is easily tucked into a pocketbook or backpack to take along! Some examples of places include the nursery at church; visiting friends or family; or anywhere you feel comfortable wearing them. 

Choose a Pattern

One of the patterns I chose to make was, “Family Slippers,” by Churchmouse Yarns & Teas. The other pattern was, “Aunt Maggie’s slippers,” by Bev Qualheim. Of the 2 of those, I prefer “Aunt Maggie’s.” I can remember that pattern easier. The “Churchmouse” pattern had better additional information. The only reason I prefer “Aunt Maggie’s” is because “Churchmouse’s” uses markers. I sometimes use stitch markers. However, for some reason in this pattern, I kept losing my count when I slipped the markers. Subsequent times of making this pattern, I omitted the markers and had no issues.

Aunt Maggie’s pattern has instructions to knit for children, women and men sized slippers. Likewise, Churchmouse’s pattern offers instructions for sizes small, medium and large women’s slipper. The children and small sizes are very similar. Similarly, medium and women sizes are alike. Also, the men and large sizes are similar. Both of the finished projects created a comfortable piece of footwear. The “Churchmouse” pattern made a 3 ¼ inch high side to the slipper. However, the “Aunt Maggie’s” was slightly shorter at 2 7/8 inches high.

Both pattern instructions call for two strands of worsted weight yarn, held double. This equates to a bulky weight yarn, which is also an option of yarn to use. The writer of “Aunt Maggie’s,” Bev Qualheim, mentions to use a single strand of worsted weight yarn for a lighter slipper. However, like her, I prefer 2 strands of worsted, held double, for extra warmth. Worsted weight yarn held double also creates a thicker, more durable, finished product.

Select Yarn

I chose to use 100% acrylic yarn. This fiber is easily laundered. Wool yarn gives a warmer product. Superwash merino wool is washable and warm. However, my final decision came down to the acrylic. That fiber is washable, available in my area, and more cost-effective. Also, acrylic comes in very many color options and finishes.

Decide on Materials to Knit Slippers

To begin, I chose a printed yarn and a solid color that coordinates with it. There are many brands of acrylic yarn locally for me to choose from. A few include Red heart, I Love this Yarn, Yarn Bee, Caron, Big Twist, Loops & Threads, Crafter’s Secret, Lion Brand and Bernat.

Follow the Pattern

The beginning of the pattern is very simple. Just cast on the amount of stitches necessary for the size of the foot. Most of this section of the pattern is made with knit stitches on the front and back, creating the garter stitch. Two purl stitches are used on every wrong side of the slipper to create the bottom edges of the slipper. The next section of this pattern is to knit a ribbed pattern for the toe area. The ribbing creates a more stretchy material for various foot widths.

Be Safe Wearing Slippers

Though they can be worn on any type of flooring, I strongly recommend keeping safety in mind. One way to be safe is to only wear these slippers on carpet. They tend to be very slippery on hard floors.  Another option for safety is to add a non-skid finish. The person wearing the slipper could very easily fall while wearing these. The carpet-type floors provide some traction.

Options to Add

I have seen many options to make slippers anti-skid. One of the options I saw was to attach a non-skid pad or patch to the underside of the slipper, under the ball of the foot. Another option is anti-skid gripper fabric. This is usually found in craft stores. Something else for anti-skid is fabric paint. There is a product called “Sock Stop” that is a fabric paint made specifically for this issue. Some have suggested plasti-dip. Alternatively, puffy paint can be used on the underside of the slipper. Similarly, hot glue added in designs or shapes on the underside of the slipper creates an anti-slip surface. One more option to use is non-skid shelf liner, cut to fit the slipper. There are more options and ideas that creative people have come up with. Share any ideas you have.