Shapely Toes: A Revolutionary Approach to Foot-Specific Toe Shaping in Knitted Socks

Shapely Toes

by Teresa Seasons

Ever since l started knitting socks there was a little detail that bugged me. Toe shaping is traditionally worked by decreasing evenly along both edges of the sock and coming to a point in the middle. The problem is that my big toe is not centred over my foot; it's at one edge. The socks always feel fine once they're on my feet but I don't like the way they kind of twist to get there. For designs (such as my own Riverbed Socks) which incorporate shaped patterning on the instep, this twisting distorts the pattern and affects the look of the socks.

1 finally got fed up one day and decided it was time to try something new: foot specific toe shaping. 1 wound up with the best fitting, most comfortable, socks I've ever worn in my life! This shaping can be substituted for the toe decreases in nearly any top-down sock pattern.

Abbreviations

Special Stitches

K Knit Sl Slip K2tog Knit two together Ssk Slip slip knit Psso Pass slipped stitch over Sts Stitches

Shapely Toe Shaping Instructions

Work socks until they are about 1 3/4" (4.5 cm) shorter than desired length. Notice that I'm recommending you work the socks a little longer than normal before starting the toe decreases. This is because I find that with this shaping I prefer my toe to be slightly wider at the end than with the standard toe shaping. As with any new technique, you may need to experiment a bit to find the fit that is perfect for you. You will be working the toe decreases differently for the right and left socks, so you may find it helpful to place a locking stitch marker on each sock at the edge where your little toe will go. The stitch marker will designate which side you'll be doing the decreases on. Note: Since you will be substituting these instructions into an existing pattern, they are written with respect to parts of the sock rather than end of round.

Repeat rounds I and 2 until 24 sts remain. Divide sts evenly over two needles and cut yarn, leaving an 8" tail. Thread yarn onto a tapestry needle and use Kitchener stitch to graft the toe sts closed.