Date: Thu, 22 Jan 1998 21:37:45 -0800 From: Jill Vosburg To: emily@woolworks.org Subject: Late knit list holiday 97 gift: Jill's Short-Row-Toe Socks [Editor's note: this version includes a section of tips from Jill. Thanks, Jill!] Jill's Short-row toe Socks These socks have the toe worked similarly to a short-row heel. I found working the toe and heel requires a bit of concentration. It's not a good beginner's sock, but it is interesting to work. No grafting, no sewing, no unsightly gaps! The socks can be made in any size by using the yarn of your choice with appropriate needles and casting on any even number of sts required. Since they are worked from the toe upward, you can try them on at any point. Materials: Brown Sheep Lamb's Pride, 2 skeins of MC and 1 skein of CC (I used Graphite as MC and Russet as CC.) Bamboo or wooden double point needles, #4 and #6 (US) The smaller ndls are used only to begin the toe as described below. Note: I knit loosely; if you knit tightly then use #5 and #7 or sizes needed to match gauge. Gauge: 4 1/2 sts = 1 inch Size: to fit women's size 10 (11" foot) With CC and smaller needles, cast on 48 sts onto #4 needle using Beverly Royce's Invisible Cast-On #1 from her book, Notes on Double Knitting. Rnd 1: Sl 1, *k1, sl1. Rep from *, ending K1. Turn and repeat. First round completed. (You just double-knitted one round inside out.) Slip stitches onto the larger pair of needles like so: slip one stitch to the first needle, then the next stitch to the other needle, until you end up with two needles side by side with alternating stitches on each. Now slip the stitches from one needle onto spare yarn (to avoid distortion as you knit toe). With knit side of work facing out, work short rows as described below on the remaining needle over 24 stitches, until 1/3 of sts remain in the center (8 sts). Short rows for first half of toe: Note: All slipped stitches are slipped purlwise. Row 1: Knit across toe stitches to last stitch, yarn forward, slip next stitch to right needle, yarn back, slip the stitch back to left needle. Turn. Row 2: Purl across to last stitch, yarn back, slip next stitch to right needle, yarn forward, slip the stitch back to left needle. Turn. Row 3: Knit across to the stitch before the wrapped stitch, yarn forward, slip next stitch to right needle, yarn back, slip the stitch back to left needle. Turn. Row 4: Purl across to the stitch before the wrapped stitch, yarn back, slip next stitch to right needle, yarn forward, slip the stitch back to left needle. Turn. Repeat rows 3-4 until one third of the toe stitches are wrapped on left side (8 sts), one third are not wrapped in the middle (8 sts), and one third are wrapped on the right (8 sts). At this stage, you should be ready to work a right side row. Short rows for second half of toe: Knit Row: Knit across to wrapped stitch, slip the wrapped stitch to the right needle, reach left needle under the wrap and pull the wrapped stitch out and onto left needle. Slip the (now freed) wrap back to the left needle and knit the stitch and the wrap together through the back. Yarn forward, slip next stitch to right needle, yarn back, slip the stitch back to left needle. (This stitch now has 2 wraps. When you unwrap it later, those 2 wraps will fill in where a gap might have occurred.) Turn. Purl Row: Purl across to wrapped stitch, slip the wrapped stitch to the right needle, reach left needle under the wrap and pull the wrapped stitch out and onto left needle. Slip the (now freed) wrap back to the left needle and purl the stitch and the wrap together. Yarn back, slip the next stitch to right needle, yarn forward, slip the stitch back to left needle to create another double wrap. Turn. Continue working the knit row and the purl row until you have worked all the wrapped stitches. You will be unwrapping two wraps from each remaining wrapped stitch. -------------------------------------- Detailed explanation of unwrapping and knitting the stitches: It can be difficult to see the 2 wraps, especially on purl rows. There's another loop at the base that tries to look like a wrap, but it isn't, and you don't want to pick it up! Here's the way I pick up the double-wrap and unwrap the stitch: Slip the wrapped stitch to your RH ndl. Hold onto that st firmly with your right index finger while poking the tip of the RH needle down into the wraps at the base, one at a time. When you've got the st and both wraps on the RH ndl, look for the base of the wrapped st below the tip of the RH ndl. Poke your LH ndl into the base of the st and pull the st out from under the wraps onto the LH ndl. Slip the wraps to the LH needle and you're ready to purl them all together or knit them together through the back (depending whether you're on a knit row or a purl row). And be *sure* to remember to wrap the next st before you turn and begin the next row. Forgetting to wrap the next st has caused me much tinking and consternation! And this unwrapped double-wrap business is not easy to tink - when I goof, I find I must tink back to before the double-wraps started. This is why I recommend paying close attention the first time you work this toe. -------------------------------------- Put the waiting instep stitches back onto 2 needles. Change to MC and knit on around the instep stitches and heel stitches, adding another needle to hold half of the heel sts if that is more comfortable for you. I prefer working with a set of 5 needles, myself. At this point, you can work a knit-purl pattern if desired (as long as it fits your multiple of stitches). I worked a simple slip stitch pattern on both the instep and bottom of the foot: Rnd 1: Sl1, k3, repeat to end of round (EOR). Rnd 2: K1b, k3, repeat to EOR. When sock reaches the length where you need to begin heel, change back to CC and make another short row heel the same way you did the toe. For 11" foot, I worked slip stitch pattern until I had 16 vertical slip stitches and then began heel. To figure how far to knit before beginning heel, just measure toe and figure heel will be that length. Subtract length of the toe and heel from desired foot length - that's how far to knit before beginning heel. When heel is finished, work up to cuff. To prevent holes, pick up 2-4 extra sts at corners of heel and decrease them away on the first full round (I picked up 4 extra sts at each heel corner). At cuff, I changed to CC and worked 3" of twisted rib (k1b, k1). Cast off *very loosely* using a needle 2 sizes larger. ***** Because of questions I have received about the pattern, I have included the following "Tips Section" Q. What about the Invisible Cast On? A. If you don't have Beverly Royce's Notes on Double-Knitting (I used an invisible cast on from that book), I think you could use any invisible cast on. I believe the book is available from Schoolhouse Press. It is a short book in length, but there are so many ingenious ideas packed in those pages that it's a real bargain! I highly recommend it! Q. The Heel Looks Just Like A Toe - Where Did I Go Wrong? A. You didn't. The heel *is* just like the toe! It looks a little funny as you're knitting, but just keep going. It will look good and fit well, once it's on a foot... Copyright 1998, Jill Vosburg This pattern may be freely shared if this copyright notice is included. Copies of the pattern may not be sold without written permission. --- This pattern downloaded from Wool Works: the online knitting compendium http://www.woolworks.org/