Toe Up Socks 101
I was asked tonight for a basic sock pattern. This isn’t how everyone knits socks. I know my grandmother shudders at the thought of knitting from the toe up rather than from the cuff down. I know others who learned knitting socks toe up and will probably never knit them cuff down. I’ve done both, and I find this method easier to explain, and more practical to knit.
Benefits of knitting socks from the toe up
- you can try it on as you go and make sure it fits you
- you can use up all your wool…making the leg of the sock longer or shorter is easier than changing the length of your foot!)
- nobody will ask you what you are making….they should be able to tell it’s a sock.
*progress pictures will be taken when I knit another sock*
Basic Socks (Toe Up Version) Socks that are knit to fit!
Materials:
- sock yarn (100g) split it up into 2 balls (50g each) before you start–one for each sock!
- 2.5mm DPNs-double pointed needles (set of 4)
Skills: knit in the round on DPNs (tutorial) , figure of 8 cast on (tutorial), Kfb increase (youtube), picking and knitting stitches (tutorial), K2tog decrease (tutorial), SSK decrease (youtube), K1 P1 ribbing (youtube), cast off (tutorial)
My basic sock recipe (written from memory, please let me know if you get stuck and I will clarify)
Casting on
Using figure of 8 cast on method, cast on a total of 32 stitches (16 on each of two needles).
Divide the stitches so there are 16 sts on needle 1, 8 sts on needle 2 and 8 stitches on needle 3.
It is a little hard to manage at this stage since there are so few stitches and so many needles. Be patient though, knitting socks from the toe up is easier to modify so it fits your foot.
Increasing at the toe
Row 1: Knit all sts.
Row 2: begin toe increases (you will end up with 4 new stitches at the end of the round)
- Needle 1 K1, Kfb, K to last 2 sts, Kfb, K1
- Needle 2 K1, Kfb, K to end of needle
- Needle 3 K to last 2 sts, Kfb, K1
Alternate between rows 1 and 2 until the toe of the sock fits over your toes nicely. This is usually somewhere around 60 sts depending on the yarn, needles, gauge etc. Don’t sweat it though, as long as it is big enough for your foot, that is what matters.
Knitting the foot
When your sock can cover your toes nicely, stop increasing. Knit every stitch around and around and around and watch your sock grow!
Knit until the sock goes up to about the middle of the arch of your foot (the longer the foot, the longer this will take. I am jealous of those with dainty feet…but I digress)
Increases before the heel
Row 1:
- Needle 1 K all stitches
- Needle 2 K1, Kfb, K to end of needle
- Needle 3 K to last 2 sts, Kfb, K1
Row 2: Knit all stitches in the round
Alternate between row 1 and row 2 about 12 times.
Pardon my mathiness, but you’ll be creating a right angle triangle with the perpendicular sides running along the floor and up your leg, and the hypotenuse going along the top of your foot. Your goal is to have the side of the triangle that is going up your leg be about 1.5 inches long.
Setting up for the heel
You need to shift some stitches around before you make the heel. Currently needle 1 is holding all of the stitches for the top of the foot, and needles 2 and 3 are holding the stitches for the bottom of the foot, and the sides of the foot (the triangle stitches).
- Slide half of the stitches from needle 1 (the top of the foot) onto needle 4 (the empty one).
- Shift the triangle stitches (the ones that you increased) from the ends of needles 2 and 3 onto the ends of needles 1 and 4.
- This leaves a much smaller number of stitches for the heel (probably around 30 stitches, depending on gauge etc)
- Put all of the heel stitches on one needle.
- We will now call the heel stitches needle 1, and needle 2 and 3 will be the ones holding the stitches on the top of the foot.
Ok, that probably sounded difficult. I promise you that it is easier to do, than it is to write down. You should have about 30 sts on needle 1 (heel), and about 60 stitches split evenly between needles 2 and 3.
Knitting the heel flap
Working back and forth on needle 1 only
Row 1: K1, SSK, K to last 3 sts, K2tog, K1
Row 2: Purl all stitches
Repeat rows 1 and 2 until about 6 stitches remain.
Turning the heel
Pick up 12 (or so) stitches from the SSK decrease side of the heel. Knit the heel stitches, then pick up and knit 12 (or so) stitches from the K2tog decreased edge of the heel flap. (it should be about 12 stitches, but could vary based on your gauge. Just be sure that you pick up the same number on each side)
You should now have about 30 stitches on the heel needle.
Another bit of rearranging stitches (here we go again….moving stitches around!)
Slip the first half of the heel stitches onto needle 4 (the empty one). Slip the “triangle stitches” that we had moved earlier, onto the end of needle 4.
Slip all of the “top of the foot” stitches onto one needle. This should leave the remaining “triangle stitches” on another needle ready to be knit.
Pretty soon this will look like a sock….I promise!
Finishing the heel
You have just knit the heel stitches, and have not knit the triangle stitches on the needle to the left.
Turn the work (the wrong side will be facing you)
Row 1: Purl until one stitch before the triangle stitches. Purl the last heel stitch together with the first triangle stitch. Turn the work
Row 2: Knit until one stitch before the triangle stitches. K2tog with the last heel stitch and the first triangle stitch. Turn the work.
Alternate Row 1 and Row 2 until all of the triangle stitches have been incorporated. You should be back to almost the same number of stitches that you had in the foot.
Knitting the leg
knit in the round until the sock is almost as long as you want it.
Making the cuff (you need an even number of stitches….increase or decrease to make it so!)
K1 P1 ribbing in the round for an inch or two.
Cast off loosely, and sew in the two ends.
Put on that sock….march around proudly….then cast on for a second one
