Cybersocks
Denise's Toe-up Socks
Instructor Denise Powell
Lesson Five -
"Round"
Heel for Toes up Socks
This shaping was devised by Dianne Martin of the West Toronto Guild. It makes a
U shape under the heel, which some people prefer to a square heel.
You work back and forth on only the original heel stitches (do not include the
gusset increase stitches or the 2 stitches outside them that mark the edge of
the sole)
For example, if your sock had 48 stitches after the toe increases, you will have
22 stitches for the round heel - half of 48, minus the 2 stitches at the edge of
the sole which are now outside the gusset stitches.
Over central sole sts, work ever shorter rows always slipping the first stitch
of a row, decreasing to about 8 stitches. This number depends on how many
stitches you started with and how rounded you want the heel. If you were
doing a child's sock on 32 stitches, with the heel done on 14 stitches, you
might decrease down to 6 stitches. If you were doing large socks in fingering
and had 72 stitches, you might decrease down only to 12. Knitter's choice!
The diagram below shows the arrangement of stitches for a sock that had 20
stitches after the toe increases and 3 gusset increases. The round heel is
worked on the 8 stitches at the centre of the sole.
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Arrange the stitches for the heel on one needle, rearrange the rest onto two
needles (or three if you use 5 dpn's) First wrong side row: slip 1, p to one
stitch short of end First right side rows: slip 1, k to one stitch short of end
Second wrong side row: slip 1, p to 2 stitches short of end Second right side
row: slip 1, knit to 2 stitches short of end Continue in this manner until you
have 8 (or number of your choice) stitches remaining.
Turning the heel: Next right side row:
Return to centre heel, Knit-side facing. K4, *(K1 through back loop
together with top loop of stitch 2 rows below it in SSK-style) [k1bl-2loop],*
repeat to last slipped stitch. Incorporate 1st st of gusset with the last
K1bl-2loop) [k3tog, ssk-style]. (note that is you had a different number than 8
stitches left after the short rows, you change the K4 above to be half your own
number. For example, if you stopped the short rows with 12 stitches left, you
will k6 before picking up the slipped stitch loops.)
Turn, slip first stitch, purl to first of the remaining slipped stitches, *purl
slip st. tog. with loop of st 2 rows below [p2tog-2 loop]*, repeat to last of
the slipped stitches and incorporate first gusset st in final stitch.
Turn.
Heel Flap (this is the same as the reverse square heel) Row 1: sl 1, K1, across
to last st., SSK last stitch with next gusset st.
Turn. Row 2: sl first st. Purl 34, p-tog last st. with next gusset
stitch. Turn.
Repeat rows 1 and 2 until all gusset stitches have been incorporated, and you
are back to the number of stitches you had after the toe increases.
/Denise Powell
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