Its almost fall, and there’s nothing I love more than cozy warm feet when it starts to get cool out!
This new sock pattern is knit from the toe up with an afterthought heel -my favourite and, in my opinion, easiest sock knitting technique.
I used only one skein of Brava Sport Weight Yarn to make a pair – and still had lots left over! I love Brava Sport because its thicker than sock yarn, so it builds fast, but you can still make socks that are thin enough that your feet will fit into your boots. Its also crazy soft, very reasonable priced (only $2.49 a skein!), there are a tonne of colours to choose from, and its machine washable! You can’t really ask for more in a yarn!
Scroll down to see the free pattern for these cozy knit socks. The ad-free instant download PDF file can be purchased for easy printing and reading through Ravelry, or by clicking the button below.
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Materials:
To make one pair of socks, you will need:
- Size 4 (3.5 mm) 32” or longer circular knitting needles.
- 1 Skein (100 grams) of Knit Picks (We Crochet) Brava Sport Weight Yarn in Dove Heather.
- Scissors.
- Yarn Needle.
- Ruler or tape measure.
Size:
Width is for a typical Adult Female Foot. Length of foot can be customized in pattern.
Gauge:
5.5 stitches, 6.5 rows = 1″ in stockinette stitch.
Abbreviations:
K: Knit.
P: Purl.
KFB: Knit front and back (increase stitch).
SL1: Slip one stitch from left hand needle to right hand needle.
YF: Yarn Forward.
PSSO: Pass Slipped Stitch Over.
K2Tog: Knit Two Together (right leaning decrease stitch).
SSK: Slip, Slip, Knit (left leaning decrease stitch).
Notes:
These socks are worked from the toe up, using the Magic Loop technique and circular 32″ knitting needles. Complete the pattern instructions for each sock.
You will need to know the following techniques to knit these socks. If you do not know these techniques, please follow the links and read/watch the tutorials before you begin.
Russian Bind Off (or another stretchy bind off technique).
Magic Loop Method for knitting in the round.
Placing and Picking up Stitches for an Afterthought Heel.
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Pattern:
Toe Shaping:
Using Judy’s Magic Cast On, cast on 16 stitches (8 stitches on each needle).
Round 1:
Knit all stitches on both needles.
Round 2:
On each needle: K1, KFB, knit to last 2 stitches, KFB, K1 (increased a total of 4 stitches).
Repeat rounds 1 and 2 until you have a total of 20 stitches on each needle (total of 40 stitches).
Knit one more round.
Continue to Foot.
Foot:
Repeat the following two rounds until your work measures 2 inches less than the length of the foot (length of foot is from top of toes to end of heel). The remaining 2 inches will be made up when you work the heel. For example, my feet measure 9.5 inches, so I work the foot until the total length is 7.5 inches long (including the toe part). Continue to Heel Placement.
Round 1:
Knit all stitches on both needles.
Round 2:
First needle (holds stitches for the top of the foot): *K1, SL1 purlwise, K1, YF, PSSO both knitted and increased stitch, K1; repeat from * until end.
Second Needle (holds stitches for the bottom of the foot): Knit all stitches.
Heel Placement:
This pattern uses the afterthought heel technique. This requires using some waste yarn to hold the placement of the heel so that the rest of the sock can be completed before coming back to finish the heel.
To place the afterthought heel, continue to knit across Needle 1 (top of the foot).
The stitches on Needle 2 are for the bottom of the foot. This is where we use the waste yarn to hold the heel stitches until we can come back to work the heel. Let go of your working yarn (leave it attached – do not cut) and knit with the waste yarn across Needle 2. Turn your work and purl back to create another row, and then turn and knit one more row so that you have 3 rows with the waste yarn to hold the stitches for the heel. Cut your waste yarn, leaving a bit of a tail.
The stitches must now be transferred back to the left needle so that you can continue to work in the round. Slip each stitch back onto left needle and pick up the working yarn. Knit across Needle 2 to complete the round. You now have one round complete that holds the stitches for the heel and can continue on to work the Leg of the sock.
Leg:
Complete one round as follows (this will make it easier to pick up the stitches for the heel later):
First needle: *K1, SL1 purlwise, K1, YF, PSSO both knitted and increased stitch, K1; repeat from * until end.
Second Needle: Knit all stitches.
Repeat the following two rounds 15 times (you can do more if you would like a longer sock).
Round 1:
Knit all stitches.
Round 2:
On each needle: *K1, SL1 purlwise, K1, YF, PSSO both knitted and increased stitch, K1; repeat from * until end.
Knit one more round and continue to Cuff.
Cuff:
Complete 5 rounds as follows:
On each needle: K1, *P2, K2, repeat from * to last three stitches, P2, K1.
Cast off with your favourite stretchy bind off technique. Continue to Picking up the Heel Stitches.
Picking up the Heel Stitches:
Hold the sock so that the toe end is facing you, and the cuff is facing away from you.
Pick up the stitches back onto your needle by inserting the needle under the front leg of each stitch directly under/over the waste yarn stitches. Carefully remove the waste yarn.
Knit one round, adding two extra stitches on each end to close the gaps (choose the inside part of the stitches so that you will have a snug knit. If you knit too close to the outer edge, the stitches will be loose and there will be small holes in the heel). There are now 22 stitches on each needle, so we need to decrease back to the original 20 stitches on each needle.
Decrease the extra two stitches on each needle in the next round.
Needle 1: K2Tog, K2Tog, Knit the remaining stitches (20 stitches).
Needle 2: K2Tog, K2Tog, Knit the remaining stitches (20 stitches).
Knit one more round and continue to Shaping the Heel.
Shaping the Heel:
Round 1:
On each needle: K1, SSK, knit to last 3 stitches, K2Tog, K1 (decreased a total of 4 stitches).
Round 2:
Knit each stitch.
Repeat rounds 1 and 2 until there are 10 stitches remaining on each needle (total of 20 stitches).
Cut the yarn leaving an 8 to 10 inch tail, and graft the stitches together using the Kitchener Stitch.
Secure and weave in all loose ends. Repeat all of the above steps for your second sock!
I hope you enjoyed the free pattern for these cozy knit socks.
If you’d like your own copy, the ad-free PDF file can be purchased for $5 USD through Ravelry, or by clicking the button below.
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I have a question. My family runs to *very* wide feet and large calves; most socks won’t even go over our calves. What can I do when making socks to accommodate these two family features?
My husband also has wide feet! I would suggest going up a needle size to make them a little bit looser if you are new to sock knitting and looking for an easy way to increase the width. If you can figure out the stitch repeat for the pattern, you could also add that number to how many stitches you cast on. Just remember that this will effect the heel stitches and gusset (if you are knitting top down), so you will have to remember the additional stitches when you work the heel and gusset.