Conceptual Socks

from the Tail Spinner

Socks!  Just what makes up a sock?  --  There is the toe, the instep, the heel, the ankle and the leg.  The leg is optional if you prefer to have ankle socks.  I don't think of socks in terms of patterns any more.  I look at the yarn that I am going to be using and let it dictate to me how it wants to be knitted.  This is not a pattern, but more of a thought process.

When you think about it, you need to be most concerned with the measurement of your foot around the widest part and the length of the foot.  If you put in a gusset, this adds to the sock for that portion of the sock which needs that "extra" width for the back of the heel up to the top of the ankle.  A "short-row" heel also adds the needed stitches for this.

Generally, the leg, ankle, and instep all have the same number of stitches per round, unless you are doing a knee sock, which requires tapering from the calf down to the ankle.  When doing socks, don't hesitate to add stitches where needed.  If you have a thicker leg, then add stitches to accommodate for this (just like a knee sock) and taper down to the needed stitches for the smaller ankle.  If you need extra stitches for the area from the back of the heel to the top of the ankle, the same thing applies.  The only time you will have a problem with this is when you are working with a detailed pattern.  

Another technique to give you snug socks without having to adjust stitches is to  put in an extra wide rib in the leg and ankle area which can be carried down the top of a sock.  This is especially nice for self-patterning yarns.  Using a 7x1 rib will help your sock fit around the ankle and instep, yet be elastic enough to fit around the widest areas of your foot.  It will also keep the integrity of the patterning.  DO NOT use ribbing or patterning on the bottom portion of your sock.  The ridges and bumps from ribbing and patterns will make your sock feel very uncomfortable to the bottom of your foot.  Only do the bottom portion in stockinette stitch.  The top of the instep can be done with the ridges and patterns for a nice look and continuance from the leg.

When working with traditional sock yarn, I have found that using stitches that are divisible by 4 or 8 works best for me.  However, there is no set rule for this.  No matter what you do, YOU MUST DO A GAUGE SWATCH! 

Socks are supposed to fit snuggly, therefore, you need to figure out your gauge and multiply it by the circumference of the widest part of your foot.  Then, subtract approximately 10 percent of the stitches.  As an example:

Gauge = 8 st/inch        Widest part of foot = 10 inches

8 x 10 = 80 - 8 = 72 stitches

The 8 being subtracted from 80 is the "10 percent."

For me, working from the toe upward is the easiest method for doing socks.  Using the magic loop method with one extra long needle is the method I use and can do both socks at the same time.  I cast on using the Turkish Cast-On method.  The gauge of yarn and the size of sock will dictate how many stitches I start with.  If using a fingering weight sock yarn, I usually start with 8 stitches.  When using the Turkish cast-on, you knit one full row to start with.  If you knit one more needle, you will be at the point where you meet up with the tail.  At this point, I pick up the tail and knit both strands for one full round.  I then knit a full round going through each loop on the needles, resulting in doubling the number of stitches.  From this point, you begin your increases in any manner desired until you reach the total number of stitches that you want for your foot.

Knit the foot, until you are an inch to an inch and a half away from the total length of the foot.  The best part of doing socks this way is that you can try them on as you knit them to see how well they fit. 

The heel is knitted on half of the stitches, while the top of the sock lays in wait.  When doing a short row heel of your choice, you simply determine how many stitches should be left for the width of the heel.  The general rule of thumb is that you divide the number of stitches by three to determine how many stitches you need for the heel.

Let's continue with the sock measurements from the first example:  If you are knitting a sock with a total number of 72 stitches, you will have 36 stitches on each needle when doing the Magic Loop method.  If you divide 36 by three, you get 12.  Therefore, you will short-row the heel, decreasing one stitch at the end of each row, until you have 12 stitches remaining in the center.  Once you have short-rowed to that number, you begin to knit back and forth adding a stitch to each row until you have the original 36 stitches to knit.

You can use any method you want to for your heels, which includes adding a gusset.  Find your favorite sock pattern and improvise to use the heel of your choice.

Once you have completed the heel, you are back to your original number of stitches, and you continue to knit to the length of the sock you want.  This method does two things, it prevents you from running out of your sock yarn, and it also allows for you to use up all your yarn for your socks.

Happy Knitting!

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