Note to my cheerleaders, I finished both socks!!!! (Pic)

[goodie2shoes]

From this first post to now I frogged the socks reworked them even down to the way I knit them these were done toe up on 2 circs and would have easily been done weeks ago except for interruptions, I will for sure do more socks and toe up is the way to go love the 2 at once also. You can't tell from the pics but I love love love this toe it is so smooth no indication how it was cast on no line .. just like but better than my attempt at kitchener

 

Thanks to all my Cheerleaders:cheer If not for you I might not have kept going and figured my way thru this.

 

 

[DesertCrocheter]

Congrats!!! They look great! I am in awe, scared to death of sock as I am. Good on you! Patty

[Creations248]

Good looking socks. Excellent.

 

I don't like to kitchener the toes either. I use the round toe out of Nancy Bush's Folk Socks book.

[classic crochet]

:cheer:cheer:cheer:cheer:cheer:cheer:cheer

:clap:clap:clap:clap:clap:clap:clap:clap:clap:clap:clap:clap

 

Beautiful! Congratulations on finishing them!

 

:clap:clap:clap:clap:clap:clap:clap:clap:clap:clap:clap:clap

:cheer:cheer:cheer:cheer:cheer:cheer:cheer

[alibra]

They came out great, congrats to you!!

[Knit Happens]

lovely, and congrats!!!

[angieInCA]

YOU ROCK

[shelbyolivia]

They look great! Congrats on the finish!

[CDBear]

Congratulations on finishing your socks!!! Great job!!

[crochettreasures]

These are fabulous - I am jealous - I have sock yarn (lots of it), needles and a pattern a friend of mine swears by - it uses 3 needles and works from the top down (I have tried and have frogged and frogged and retried).

 

I have asked friend for help but she is right handed and I'm left and she is SOOOO fast that I couldn't even figure out what she was doing when she showed me on her socks that she was working on.

 

Can you tell me what pattern you used? Maybe if I work from the toe up I could have some success. I wanted to make socks for xmas presents for 3 years now - with no luck

[Adreeyen]

I love your socks! especially how the stripe pattern is different on both, I think that's the coolest. "The same, but different!" as my Grandma says.

[goodie2shoes]

These are fabulous - I am jealous - I have sock yarn (lots of it), needles and a pattern a friend of mine swears by - it uses 3 needles and works from the top down (I have tried and have frogged and frogged and retried).

 

I have asked friend for help but she is right handed and I'm left and she is SOOOO fast that I couldn't even figure out what she was doing when she showed me on her socks that she was working on.

 

Can you tell me what pattern you used? Maybe if I work from the toe up I could have some success. I wanted to make socks for xmas presents for 3 years now - with no luck

ok deep breath........ I read and experimented with several on the internet..to get an idea make a large baby sock with worsted weight yarn don't worrry about exact stitch count just get the idea of construction that way or make some footies which will give you the basics..I can point you to several websites I used then I ripped out stuff.............alot!!! til I could make it work..

I used the heel pattern of one tutorial and the toe from another and the cast on from another, experiment and find out which works for you.

If you can knit ,purl, increase, and decrease you have it made.

There is a tutorial for magic cast on ....... grab some spare yarn large needles and practice this it is great and I can see applications like starting a hat from top town etc. good skill to learn also called a figure 8 cast on, doesn't matter what handed you are works the same either way.

Then I learned how to knit with two circular needles trust me not as hard as it seems tutorial here........practice practice practice. As long as you get the two cardinal rules of two socks two circs.

#1 Each ball of yarn has it's own sock... #2 the same circ knits to the same circ, knit only to the same circ to be sure I put a dap of fingernail polish on one set. The one with polish is used with the one with polish the plain needle is only used with the plain needle.

One needle holds the bottom (sole and heel side)of your sock and one holds the topside.

 

Silvers sock class is great Iearned alot there.

 

 

 

A short tutorial on short rows I didn't see the need for these but your knitting has to form like a cup shape, to do this you work a partial row turn before you are to the end of the row and then knit back to the point indicated in the pattern a series of thes makes that cup shape.

 

When you get to picking up stitches this one can't be beat

 

Once your have all your stitches picked up and back on the needles.......you are home free because once you turn the heel all you have is decreasing stitches and plain ole knitting til you cast off........

and if you do two at a time ( working across the bottom of one sock then the bottom of the other sock, then the top of one sock, top of the other sock. and keep doing that you put them on prance around cause you are done done done. We are going on a short vacation but I would be glad to help and I am sure there are some lefties here who will help you get started.. just be persistent..........LOL and ask questions I bet to make 1 pair of socks I must have knit and then ripped at least 4 or 5 socks in various stages of doneness!

 

Oh I am taking my second pair of socks on the road with me.........and if they weren't on two circs I wouldn't attempt it, I tried magic loop and I tried DPNs, for me socks go on two circs period!! I understand the other ways and can do them but this not only makes sense to me it is much more portable.

[goodie2shoes]

I love your socks! especially how the stripe pattern is different on both, I think that's the coolest. "The same, but different!" as my Grandma says.

OMG:eek eeeeeek if I understood how I was supposed to do it the stripes would have matched but since I don't and can't be bothered with it right now all my socks will have thier own identity. I even purposely wound the yarn I am using right now to match pattern, thought it did,,,,,,,,,,well it didn't but am I ripping out a inch or so of sock after I got them cast on farily easily ?????????............No Way...!!!. No How!!!!....

[lisalu]

They look great. I love to knit socks (the regular way) but I've never tried it from the toe down. Hmmmm, interesting idea, I'll have to check that out sometime. Kitchener stitch is not a big deal to me, but I'm always interested in different ways of doing things.

 

Thanks for sharing.

[crochettreasures]

Goodie - Thank you so much for all the suggestions. I can cast on, knit, increase and decrease - its that darn turning the heel that gets me everytime. I have frogged and restarted I can't count how many times now.

 

I'm using the standard - 3 DPNs pattern that I got from a LYS - they swore by this pattern (so did my friend). So I was a bit amazed and intriqued when I saw that you could knit the socks from the top down, on 2 circulars and not 3 DPNs, and 2 at once?

 

I'm going to get back into the socks as the coler weather approaches. And will definately be seeking help as I move along.

 

Thanks again!

[morehotcoffee]

You go girl! I have never tried from the toe first and since you seem to really like it, maybe I will have to give it a try. Great job! Socks are fun to make.

[Knit Happens]

Oh my GOODIE!!!! Thanks for all of the wonderful tips, info and links! I was doing kitchener for the past few days, to learn the technique, and I ripped it out several times....believe it or not, TWICE was because I started with the garter side facing out. Duh. What I finished up tonight isn't awful for a completed finished attempt, but I used a peach colored yarn and the darning needle left a darkish/silver-y cast on the peach yarn. Weird. I am going to do it again, from scratch, with a plastic darning needle. Anyhow, your post was really informative and your socks look great. I'm definitely gonna surf some of the links you posted!!! Hugs, D

[Creations248]

Another great pattern for toe up socks is the one by Wendy Johnson in the Wendy Knits book. I was always hesitant to do toe up - but I used her pattern and flew through the socks first time. And I am a confirmed double pointed top down sock knitter - but I liked this particular pattern for toe up. I should take pictures!! What a concept. lol