Wandering Socks

I finished the Wandering Socks and we photographed them while relaxing with a picnic on Lettergesh Beach in Connemara. It was a lovely sunny day and the golden sand shimmered with a heat haze.

Lettergesh Beach is a beautiful beach. We went for a few walks on it while we were staying at Dawros. It is so restful wandering along the beach listening to the waves rippling on the beach.

We are used to checking the tide tables before we walk Bene every day, and the local magazine printed the tide tables, which was useful as this tidal beach completely disappears when the tide comes in.

Yarn

One 100g ball of Sock Yarn

Needles

3.25 mm Clover Bamboo double pointed needle (dpn) for casting on
2.75 mm (set of 5) Clover Bamboo dpns for knitting socks
tapestry needle for finishing

Tension

I knit my socks to fit a UK shoe size 5/6 using a tension of 30 sts/42 rounds = 10×10 cm (4″x4″) which works out at 7.5 sts/10.5 rounds = 2.5×2.5cm (1″x1″) when knitting stocking stitch (stockinette stitch) in the round. The circumference of my foot is 21.5cm (8.5″). You don’t want your socks to be too loose when you’ve finished knitting them, so I like a little bit of negative ease. At this point I’m going to talk in inches… sometimes it is just easier… so, 8.5 (foot circumference) x 7.5 (tension) = 63.75 stitches. I like my socks to have about 5% negative ease. So, 63.75 ÷ 100 x 95 = 60.56 stitches. I round this down to 60 stitches for knitting my socks.

Abbreviations

double pointed needle(s) – dpn(s); stitch(es) – st(s); knit – k; purl – p; knit two stitches together – k2tog; yarn over – yo; slip slip knit – ssk; purl two stitches together – p2tog;

Cuff

Cast on 61 sts using a 3.25 mm double pointed needle using the long tail cast on or a different stretchy cast on.
Join into the round as you knit the first round using 2.75 mm dpns, 15 sts on each needle. Knit the first and last stitch together.
Work 16 rounds using k1, p1 ribbing.

Leg

Knit the next 54 rounds to complete the leg.
If you want your socks to be a bit longer you could add additional rounds at this point.
I finished the leg at the Centre Back then knit across the stitches on needle 1 using needle 4. There are 30 stitches on needle 4 which are used for knitting the heel flap.

Heel

Heel Flap

After finishing the leg you’ll be working the heel flap over half of the total number of stitches, working in rows rather than rounds.

Row 1: *sl 1, p1; rep from * to end.
Row 2: sl 1, knit to end.
Repeat rows 1 and 2 fifteen times more. A total of 32 rows finishing with a Row 2.

Dutch or Square Heel Turn

Set up: p20, p2tog, turn
Row 1: sl 1, k10, ssk, turn
Row 2: sl 1, p10, p2tog, turn
Repeat rows 1 and 2 until 12 stitches are left, ending with row 1.

Gusset

Continue knitting, without turning, as you will now be knitting in rounds again.

Pick up and knit 18 stitches along the edge of the heel flap. (Needle 1)
Knit across the 30 instep stitches. (Needles 2 and 3)
Pick up and knit 18 stitches along the edge of the heel flap. Then knit across the first 6 stitches of the heel. (Needle 4)

This is the starting point for the following rounds.

Before you start the next round, slip the next 6 heel stitches onto needle 1. Needles 1 and 4 should have 24 stitches on each. Needles 2 and 3 should have 15 stitches on each.

Next round: K6, k18 tbl, k30, k18 tbl, k6
Next: knit

Gusset Shaping

Round 1: Needle 1: k to last 3 sts, k2tog, k1; Needles 2 and 3: k; Needle 4: k1, ssk, k to end of needle.
Round 2: K
Repeat rounds 1 and 2 until there are 15 stitches on each needle. (60 stitches)

Foot

Knit 42 rounds or the number of rounds that you need for your foot.

Classic Toe

Round 1: Needles 1 and 3: k to last 3 sts, k2tog, k1; Needles 2 and 4: k1, ssk, k to end of needle.
Round 2: k
Repeat rounds 1 and 2 until there are 7 sts on each needle. (28 stitches).
Then repeat round 1 until there are 4 sts on each needle. (16 stitches).

Making sure that the toe stitches align with the heel, slip the stitches from needle 4 onto needle 1 and the stitches from needle 3 onto needle 2. You will have 8 stitches on each needle.

Graft the toe stitches using Kitchener Stitch.

Finishing

Sew in the ends using the tapestry needle. You can wash and block these socks if you like or just add them to your sock drawer. On the other hand, if you can’t wait just pop them on your feet and enjoy wearing a lovely new pair of socks! I’m finding it quite hard to resist wearing my nice new socks that I’ve been knitting this year.

Wandering Socks – Lettergesh Beach

Wandering Socks