Some Things

You never have to carry a stitch pattern down the foot if you don't want to

Try new things, specifically needle type, heel construction, and toe up / cuff down. I cut my speed from 1 pair a month to 1 pair a week just through experimentation (and practice, of course)

Contradictorily, there's nothing wrong with adapting pattern stitch count / repeats to fit your preferred recipe/dimensions.

If you gift knit, keep a spreadsheet about it. Mine has my friends/family, their shoe size, rows needed to fit their foot, and any preferences they might have (ex, wool allergy or preferred sock height). I wish I'd thought to put a birthday column so I could organize it by who I need to knit for next through the year, but I just use my calendar for that.

Lazy color change weaving in the ends: knot new color in leaving ~6 in tail on each color. Knit tails with working yarn for 6 st. Knit 1 more stitch with whichever tail is longer, then knot the two ends together and trim the excess. Yes it shows. It's also secure as hell.

If you're using a CC for the toes of cuff down socks, change colors like 5 rows before you start decreases. Trust me

I like to cast on socks every Friday. That way even though I usually have 2 pairs of socks on the needles I know I'm finishing one pair a week.

Make a pattern spreadsheet of owned patterns. Include a column for what type of yarn would suit it best (solid, self striping, variegated) and another column for when you knit this pattern last. Use a number generator to pick your next project or go down the list.

Use a lazy susan bathroom organizer for manually striped socks

Yarn cozies are your friend!! They eat up all your awkward scraps and keep your yarn cakes intact

Buying a sock organizer for handknit socks is incredibly extra but it also keeps your dresser drawers from getting overrun with handknit socks

A handknit pair of socks will fit into a 4x6 organza bag pretty neatly. Buy a pack of bags for like $5 at your local craft store and never gift wrap a pair of socks again.

Addi Flexiflips label both 2.25mm and 2.5mm needles as US1. 2.25mm is 1 and 2.5mm is 1.5. For me that's the difference between casting on 64 st or 56 st.

Chiagoo cords are Like That bc they're magnetized. This means you can store them on magnet strips if you so desire.

CC heel yarn can be knitted in with itself for a knotless join. Also when you go back to your MC after knitting a heel, you can start that row from any point in the sock, rather than from where the CC ends.

Nylon/silk/polyamide blends make wool more durable than it would be on its own

Nonsuperwash wool can't go in the dryer and will get more snug over time. Superwash wool will get more loose over time and putting it in the dryer helps it maintain proper dimension.

Kitchener stitch doesn't need to be pulled super tight (I learned this the hard way)

You don't usually need to change cast on stitches for men/women. You do need to change cast on stitches for someone with wide feet (I do +4 st)

The Row Counter app is your friend. Import patterns directly from Ravelry, track your rows, draw on charts, annotate instructions, and more. It's delightful

Subscribe to the newsletters of your favorite pattern designers. Yes it's another email. But I haven't missed a pattern drop or bought a full price pattern since April.

Join the knitalongs while you're at it! They're fun and you can win stuff.

If you have a knitting group, consider doing a knitting pattern exchange for a secret Santa. It keeps the cost below $10 and is super fun

Ok, I think that's everything I've learned this year. There might be more, but I've now spent upwards of 3 hrs on this LOL. I hope you find at least some of these tips helpful.