One Sock Guidebook BY KATE ATHERLY INTRODUCTION One Sock is designed to be an excellent introduction to sock knitting, and your best everyday, all-purpose sock pattern. If you’ve not made socks before, grab some leftover DK or worsted weight yarn and make the first size of the baby sock. It’s the simplest version of the pattern, a very quick knit, and it teaches you everything you need to know! The full-size sock pattern uses the same overall process but has a few key differences: more stitches and longer lengths, of course, and a snugger ribbing for improved fit. The heel flap and turn are worked in a reinforcement stitch pattern to help the socks last a long time. ON SOCK SIZING Socks should stretch to fit, so that they stay up and stay in place on your feet. Yarns made with wool and other animal fibres stretch out with the warmth and moisture of your feet. If your socks remain in your boots when you take them off, that’s a sign that they’re Meauring your tension probably too big! For a teen or adult sock, you should be making a size that’s about 2.5 cm (1 in) smaller around than your foot. Kids’ If you know that you’re usually a looser or tighter knitter, you’ll want socks should be about 1.5 cm (0.5 in) smaller. Socks for babies, to start with a needle size that makes sense for you, but still check however, should be the same size as the actual foot – even a little your tension before you continue. bigger, to accommodate fast-growing wiggly toes! Note that tension is crucial for the heel, foot and toe, but there’s a Measure around the ball of your foot, just above your toes. (If you’ve little bit of flexibility for the leg, as that doesn’t experience nearly as got significant bunions, measure just above and below and take the much wear and tear. average of the two numbers.) There’s an interesting symmetry in ON NEEDLES the average foot: the measurement around the ball of the foot and Socks are worked in the round, so you need appropriate needles. the narrowest part of the ankle are usually about the same! This is Because they’re small in circumference – smaller than most why most sock patterns have you work the same number of stitches conventional circular needles – you need a “small circumference” for the foot and the leg! If your two measurements are different, setup. The traditional way of doing it was by using double-pointed always choose the sock size based on your foot measurement. You needles but now, there are more options. can adjust the leg by either changing needle size for that section or adjusting the stitch count. If your ankle measurement is bigger, use DPNs (Double-Pointed Needles) a larger needle or more stitches for the leg, adjusting needle/stitch Short, straight needles with points at both ends. Stitches can be count before you start the heel. If it’s smaller, use a smaller needle or distributed across three or four needles, and then a fourth or fifth is stitch count for that section. used to work the stitches. ON GOOD SOCK FABRIC AND TENSION Socks need to last a long time and feel comfortable, and a dense fabric is key. You’ll be knitting tighter than you would expect for a garment. When the socks are stretched out on your foot, you shouldn’t be able to feel the individual stitches. The fabric should feel solid. Checking Your Tension Do make sure you match the tension given in the pattern. The best way to do this is to work the cuff as written. Once the ribbing is complete, thread a lifeline through the stitches – this is a strand of fine thread or unwaxed dental floss that saves your stitches in case you need to rip back. Change to the needle size required for the leg and work approximately 3 cm (1 in). Thread another lifeline through your stitches and take the needles out (if you’re using a long metal circular needle, just slide the stitches onto the cord). Soak the sock in lukewarm water for twenty minutes, squeeze all the moisture out and lay it flat to dry overnight. If you’re matching tension, keep going with the needles you’re using. If you need to adjust needle size, DPNs (Double-Pointed Needles) pull out the sock leg to the initial lifeline, change your needles and Magic Loop continue. Unless you’re wildly off tension, a slight variance in your This isn’t the name of a specific needle, but rather a new way to use ribbing won’t matter. an existing needle. This method uses a single long, usually 80 cm (32 in) circular needle, with a flexible cord. One Sock Guidebook V1 09/2020 | 1 Magic loop Flexible DPNs ON SOCK YARN The stitches are distributed evenly so that there’s half on each side. A good sock yarn is designed specifically for sock knitting. Socks When knitting, the half being worked sits on the needles, whilst the need to withstand the wear of being walked upon, being slipped in other side sits on the cord. The cord is folded at each side – creating and out of your shoes, and being washed. The best sock yarns are a the “loops” that the term refers to. natural fibre. Animal fibres are best for warmth and their ability to The Two Circulars Method wick moisture away from your skin, meaning your feet are always Closely related to the Magic Loop method, this uses two shorter warm and dry. Experienced sock knitters like a bit of nylon added circular needles, rather than one long. The stitches are split across to their preferred sock yarn to add strength and to help the socks two needles; to work, you knit the stitches with the needle that keep their shape over time. It is significantly more convenient if the they’re on. yarn is machine washable. When The Fibre Co. set out to design a sock yarn, we stayed true to our guiding principle of harnessing the beauty that nature provides in a way that is gentle on our planet. We waited until a recycled nylon and an alternative to the standard chlorine processed washable wools became available. The end result is a blend of 70% “Easy-wash” Merino, 20% “Easy-wash” alpaca and 10% recycled nylon. The recycled nylon comes from processing waste that would have otherwise ended up in landfills. “Easy-wash” refers to an eco-friendly anti-shrinkage treatment that makes the fibres machine washable. We named this yarn Amble to reflect the kind of slow relaxed walking that we enjoy here in the English Lake District. Please don’t put socks made from Amble in the tumble dryer, as the heat can hasten fading and all that tumbling encourages pilling, making the socks look tired and worn out before their time. When you are machine washing socks made from Amble, use as gentle a cycle as you can: a wool or handwash cycle is best with a maximum temperature of 30C or 86F. Make sure you’re using a Two circulars method washing solution made specifically for wool and silk. Many of the Flexible DPNs stain-fighting agents in standard washing products can harm wool These needles are the latest addition to the sock knitters’ toolkit. and alpaca fibres! They are a hybrid of the DPNs and two circulars methods. Sold in sets of three, they’re typically about 20 cm (8 in) long and have TURNING THE HEEL points at both ends like standard double pointed needles. The The heel turn might seem like an odd process: you’re working difference is that the middle portion of the needle is a flexible partway across rows and turning to the other side with stitches left cord; reminiscent of a very short circular needle. The stitches are unworked. That’s absolutely fine and correct! The turn in the first distributed across two shorter needles, and a third is used to work two rows creates gaps, which you can use to help find your way. On them. each subsequent row, you will work a decrease, over the gap. Those decreases “use up” one of the previously-abandoned stitches. One Sock Guidebook V1 09/2020 | 2 Pick up final stitch at black bulb pin Heel turn top view Heel turn bottom view To pick up stitches, poke the tip of the working needle under the full slipped edge stitch – both strands – wrap the yarn around the tip of the needle as if to knit and pull the yarn through. On the first side, you’re working up towards the instep. You’ll likely be able to find one stitch less than the pattern calls for without a problem; that last stitch might be harder to find. Avoid the tempting little strand at the corner – picking up a stitch here will leave a big hole. For the one at the top, continue up in the same column where you found the rest. Poke the needle tip from the front through to the inside of the sock, wrapping the yarn and pulling it through as before. It doesn’t matter if you don’t have an edge, you can still pick up a stitch! When working down the second side, it’s hard to know where to Picked up final stitch start. The bottom stitch is easy to find.