Getting Started Knitting Socks - Part 1 - Cast-On

Since finishing the Class Sock from the sock class at the LYS, I've felt confident that I can knit a basic pair of cuff-down socks.

The first thing I did was measure my feet. They were 9.875 inches in circumference around the ball of each foot, and 10.75 inches long.

The next thing I did was to knit a gauge swatch in-the-round, using the yarn I purchased, and the US 9 bamboo dpns I made. I cast-on (CO) 30 stitches, then started knitting in Stockinette Stitch (St st).

When knitting St st in-the-round, knit every row. I knit the swatch 4 inches long. Then I threaded some scrap yarn through the loops, and removed the dpns. In most places, the swatch had 5 stitches per inch. Some places had 4.5 stitches per inch. Anyway, I decided to go with the 5 Stitches Per Inch Basic Sock pattern in Ann Budd's book, Getting Started Knitting Socks (GSKS).



Next, I transcribed the pattern, using just the numbers for an Adult Large size sock. I typed the pattern as a plain text file, using just the knitting abbreviations and the numbers for the Adult Large sock size. Then I copy-pasted the text file into OpenOffice.org Writer, and formatted it with Bold and Italics to make it easy for me to read. Finally I exported it as a PDF file and printed it out. It printed to two pages. I can mark-up the printed pages, and not have any marks in the book.

The first instruction is to CO 48 stitches (sts), join, and work 8.75 inches in the pattern of your choice.

I used the Long Tail CO, then slipped 16 sts onto three bamboo dpns. Then I did the Cross Over Join (as described in GSKS), and proceeded to do a couple of rows of k2, p2 ribbing to hold it all together. I did this for both socks. My plan is to do each step of making a sock, to both socks. CO-CO, cuff-cuff, leg-leg, heel-heel, gusset-gusset, foot-foot, and toe-toe. Hopefully I will not experience Second Sock Syndrome, which I understand leaves many socks without a partner.


The ball of yarn on the left was the one I used to do the gauge swatch. After measuring the sts/inch on the gauge swatch, I ripped it out to use in the socks. That's why there is a small ball of yarn beside the big ball.

Notice the difference in the shape of the balls of yarn? I purchased two hanks of yarn, and the owner of the LYS wound one hank into a cake for me. Later, when I went back to the LYS to get the other hank wound into a cake, a different person wound it for me. Each person used a different tension on the yarn when they were winding it on the wool winder, and as a result, the cakes of yarn look slightly different.

At the time of this writing, I have about 3 inches of cuff knitted for one sock. I will be posting pictures when I have the same amount of work on both socks finished.