by Katrina Chapman

Created on: July 02, 2008

The first thing you need to know about knitting socks is that they're not as hard as they look. You might look at a sock pattern and decide to put it down because all of those crazy instructions about turning the heel and instep stitches and grafting the toe. If you've never made a sock before and you don't have an experienced sock knitter around you would probably be very intimidated by those phrases.

The good thing about knitting socks, other than the perfect fit, is the fact that 99% of the patterns out there tell you how to do all those things and more. I have found as long as you follow the directions in any given pattern you'll have no problem making a pair of socks.

I would suggest learning how to knit in the round before you try to tackle socks. Try a simple hat to learn. There are tons of hat patterns out there. This will get you used to knitting in the round. Also, when you get to the top of the hat and start your decreases it will get you used to using double pointed needles (dpns).

Start with a heavier yarn, like worsted weight, and larger needles to make a pair of house socks. This will help you get used to the directions and the idea of what you have to do to make a pair of socks. If you need a pattern just Google "free knit sock pattern". You'll find tons of patterns. Try a simple pattern with ribbing for the leg and a simple stockinette stitch for the foot, remember you're knitting in the round so it's just knit every row.

Start with a top down pattern and use a stretchy cast on. I use the two tail cast on over two needles just to make sure there's enough stretch to hold the sock up on your leg. Knit your rib pattern for however long you want the cuff to be and then turn your heel.

Here is where most people get scared and stop. Turning the heel is not difficult. It can be confusing however. I remember tinking my first heel turn about 20 times before I got it right. The reason I had to do that was because I didn't follow the directions. If you find a quiet well lit spot where you can sit undisturbed for a while you can turn the heel successfully the first time. The most difficult part of turning a heel is picking up the stitches to rejoin to the instep stitches. The instep stitches by the way are the ones that go across the top of your foot.

Once you've picked up the stitches and done your knitting down to the toes you start your toe decreases. These are not that hard either usually just a knit two together or a slip slip knit combo. You do need to make sure that you're doing them in the right place however. You want the decreases to go down the sides of your feet not the top and bottom. So it is important you know which needles contain your instep stitches and which contain the bottom of the foot stitches.

Once you have done your toe decreases you have to graft the toe closed. Usually done on a total of 16 stitches. This is again not difficult to do. Just like turning the heel you need to make sure you have a quiet well lit spot where you can be undisturbed for a while to graft your toe. Grafting the toe is also more commonly referred to as Kitchner stitch. The best directions I have found for this are on Knitty.com.

If find a simple pattern and follow the directions you'll be knitting socks in no time. After you have mastered the basics you can become more adventurous and start making two socks at once, using two circulars instead of dpns, knitting from the toe up, and making different patterns in the knitting. The only limit you have is your imagination. So go find a pattern, some yarn, and some needles and get knitting.

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