I am working on a pair of "fox" socks (socks made to look like a fox) for a commissioner and it struck me how hilarious it is that I can work from the same pattern I use for all of my socks and, depending on the yarn I use how DRASTICALLY different they will be in size.

NO LIE.

From right to left:
1. A blue and green variegated pair of child's socks that I will be listing on Etsy soon. They are literally probably not big enough for anyone past the age of 8. They are made of hand-dyed fingering weight yarn and are super soft and fine.

2. A purple variegated pair of small / women's size socks made of traditional "sock weight" yarn that will also be up on Etsy soon. They are also very thin and soft, but obviously the result is much bigger. I would say that they are probably for up to a woman's size 8, as they fit me but are a little snug.

3. The fox socks. They are made with standard 4-ply worsted weight acrylic yarn. They are pretty big. Probably a medium men's size, so they should fit any adult unless they have truly insanely enormous feet. These are a little more "comfortable" than the other socks I make, as the yarn is much plusher. I prefer to use this yarn for socks that are more for being adorable than for being practical.

But these literally have EXACTLY THE SAME NUMBER OF STITCHES (or at least will, once the fox socks are done) in each, and this is another reason I wanted to post this: USING DIFFERENT YARNS COSTS MORE not just because of the initial supply cost but because it may literally take twice as many stitches IF NOT MORE to achieve the same result in very thin yarns, though the end result is sometimes nicer or more appropriate to the project. Please keep that in mind when you request custom work or are boggling over the price of what looks like a small and simple item.