Cybersocks
Sideways Cuff Socks

Lesson Five - Shaped Toes

If you have opted for shaped toes, here are the directions. This toe can be substituted in any sock pattern if you decide you like it. I use it on all my socks.

Note, this toe is decreased on every row and is therefore a bit shorter than other toes. I usually allow about 1 1/2 to 1 3/4 inches for this toe to fit my foot.

Decide whether this will be for your left or right foot. If you did shaped arches, that decision as already been made and you will shape the toes to match the left and right shapings for the arch.

Place a marker at the little toe side which is where the decreases will begin. Before  beginning your toe, double check to be sure that your center back is lined up with the center back of the heel...otherwise the sock will torque and be a disaster. Try it on again to be sure

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Begin toe decreases ON EVERY ROUND on the little toe side ONLY. Knit to 3 sts before marker, K2 tog, K1. On next needle, K1, SSK.

Continue decs on little toe side only until there are just 4 sts left on the little toe needles. At this point, re-divide the sts so there are ~the same # of sts on all needles. Place marker for big toe side and begin decs [same as above] on the big toe side, continuing with the decs on every round on the little toe side at the same time.

Work until there are just 2 sts left on each needle. Rearrange these sts on two needles so there are four sts on each needle 'facing' one another and graft. 

At this point you will be moving the four pairs of remaining sts to just two needles with 4 sts each. Examine your toe construction. The toe decreases have formed a 4 stitch-wide 'panel' as they move down the toe. The stitches for grafting will NOT be facing the 'normal' way for grafting, ie sole sts to top sts...but will instead be rearranged so that four decrease 'panel' sts are facing the other 4 decrease 'panel' sts on two needles to be grafted so the panel will remain intact and be continuous. Try on the sock. Your two needles should be in a vertical position pointing to the floor and the ceiling. If you use the excellent instrux in the MiniLesson, this positioning of sts will produce an invisible join...see the pix of finished socks below.

If the working yarn winds up in the center of one set of four, work two more sts to bring it to the end for grafting. Graft 4 sts to 4 sts. [See mini-lesson on grafting Mini-Knitting Lessons on if you need to review this technique.]

Reverse the shaping and do the other toe, work in the ends and voila! your Cybersocks are finished! Put them on and enjoy!

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COPYRIGHT NOTICE: Copyright 1999 by Carol T. Griffin. All rights reserved. This material may be used by individuals for personal use only. It can be distributed to and shared with others as long as it remains fully intact, including this copyright notice. It may not be sold, used to produce items for sale, or used on a web page or in a compilation or archive without written permission from the author.