It's often hard to know what to make for non-crafty friends. Socks can seem a little boring but at least we know they will be useful and as soon as the recipient starts to use them they will instantly be converted to the comfort and warmth that hand made socks have to offer.
I like to use up scraps of sock yarn leftover from other projects and so I've developed this method of changing the colour after the rib, heel flap and for the toe. It makes them a little more interesting than standard plain socks. And more to the point it's a great stash buster for all those little leftover bits of yarn.
I find I get a ladies pair of socks from one 50g ball of 4ply yarn. A gents pair takes one full ball plus a bit extra for the cuff, toe and heel.
The pattern is an old vintage Patons one that I came across in an inherited stash. There is a free sock knitting pattern on the Coats website and of course there is a huge selection on Ravellrey.