How to knit a rounded toe

BOB Socks - with rounded toe

I’m mainly a toe-up sock girl but occasionally I do dabble in cuff down - just for a bit of variety. My husband prefers the fit of a cuff down, traditional heel flap sock, so for him this tends to be my preferred method.

One of the reasons often quoted for preferring a toe-up sock is that it avoids the need for kitchener stitching the toe closed. Personally, I quite like the zen of the process but there are times - particularly when you are in a holiday cottage miles from anywhere and you forgot to pack a needle - that an alternative is needed.

Here’s where the rounded toe comes in very handy.

Much like the crown of a hat, decrease rounds interspersed with plain, knit rounds bring the toe together to  just a few stitches, allowing the yarn to be drawn through them and the end to be woven in.

An added advantage for the more broad footed, or those whose feet don’t particularly taper is that it gives a slightly roomier toe - all the better for wiggling in.

How to knit a rounded toe: For a sock with 64 stitches:

*k6, k2tog, rep from * to end (8 sts dec). K6 rnds

*k5, k2tog, rep from * to end. K5 rnds

*k4, k2tog, rep from * to end. K4 rnds

*k3, k2tog, rep from * to end. K3 rnds

*k2, k2tog, rep from * to end. K2 rnds

*k1, k2tog, rep from * to end. K1 rnds

*k2tog, rep from * to end.

Break yarn. Thread through a tapestry needle and draw through the remaining 8sts. Pull tight, through to the wrong side and weave in end.

If you’d like to knit the socks shown above these are my BOB Socks - stands for Build On the Basics. They are cuff down with a rounded toe and you can find the pattern on my Ravelry page below.

PIN FOR LATER

Introverts Party Socks KAL Part 1

Introverts Party Sock KAL Part 1

This is a free KAL for a toe-up sock with a plain foot, pattern leg and a short row heel. Contrast yarn is used for the heel to keep the stripes uninterrupted. Alternative heels: fish lips kiss and afterthought would also work. If doing contrast heel/toe/cuff allow 15g contrast yarn.

Yarn: 100g (400)m self stripe sock yarn.

Gauge: 32 stitches x 44 rows = 10cm/4” in stocking stitch, blocked

Size: M (L): 20 (22.5)cm/8 (8.75”) circumference,
The pattern is written for the magic loop technique but feel free to substitute your preferred method.

CAST ON
Using Judy’s Magic Cast-On, and the magic loop technique, cast on 24 (32) sts; you will have 12 (16) sts on N1, and the same on N2.
Set-up rnd: K to end, and pm for start of round if desired.

INCREASES
Rnd 1: N1: K1, yo, k to last st, yo, k1. 14(16) sts
N2: As N1.

Rnd 2: N1: K1, k1 tbl, k to last yo, k1 tbl, k1.
N2: As N1.
Work rnds 1 & 2 until you have 64 (72) sts - 32(36) sts on each needle

FOOT
Knit foot plain until slightly stretched foot measures 5cm/2” from back of heel.

Have fun and I'll be back soon with Part 2. Don’t forget to use the hashtag #IntrovertsPartySocks and do feel free to share this or my instagram post with friends who might be interested.

Plain feet and party legs

The phrase ‘plain feet and party legs’ has been going around in my head for weeks now, for some reason. And as I cast on for a nice soothing pair of self stripe socks I found myself thinking about jazzing them up a little. Not too much mind - we don’t want to go wild- but just a little something to make them a little more party-like.

And so I came up with the Introverts Party Socks - a nice plain foot to cruise along and then a slightly jazzier cuff with a single chevron front and back to help show off those colourful stripes. Slightly bolder introverts could always run the chevron along the length of the foot as well if feeling sufficiently brave.

Like all the best ideas this was spontaneous and totally unplanned. So many folk have asked about a pattern though that I thought I could run this as an informal (and free KAL) over on my Instagram and of course, here. Please bear in mind though that this has not yet been through my usual testing/editing process so a few errors may linger here and there.

I will be making this available as a paid for pattern on Ravelry in due course, but for now if you’d like to join in our quietly festive, Introverts Party Socks KAL then please watch this space for updates or follow me over on Instagram.

The season of giving

I’m doing an advent sale this year but a little differently. I’m aiming to keep it as relaxed and fuss free as possible. I’ve created a sale bundle on Ravelry and each day until Dec 12th I’ll be adding a new design of mine into the bundle.

Each design in the bundle will be half price and they will stay there until Dec 13th - so you can buy as many as you wish, all at 50% off.

I know that at this time of year a lot of people like to do little random acts of kindness - often by gifting Ravelry patterns, but at the minute there is no way to apply a coupon code to a gift purchase.

With that in mind I decided to make anything in my advent sale bundle automatically half price - with no need for faffing.

So please do take a look, and pop back during the next few days to see what other treats are added. There’s no limit to how many purchases you can make so you could buy something for yourself and for a friend.

It's Indie GAL time again

Louise Tilbrook Designs

I’m not entirely sure but I think this is my 4th time, taking part in the chaos, the fun and the sheer exuberance that is the Ravelry Indie Giftalong. Almost 300 knitters have come together to offer a 25% discount on a selected range of their patterns in a week long sale, designed to give your holiday knitting a boost.

The sale starts on 26th Nov, 3pm UK time and ends on Dec 2nd but the fun continues long after that in the Ravelry group. There are competitions, chances to win prizes, and more chatter than you can possibly keep up with. To me, it sums up the fantastic, woolly knitting community that we are lucky enough to be a part of. This year there is also an Instagram challenge running - look for @indiegiftalong and also follow the hashtags #indiegiftalong and #gal2019 for more details.

You can find all the participating designers and chat on the GAL Group

You can find my sale bundle here

Hope to see you there? Once all the chat kicks off it’s a busy group but you can usually find me somewhere plodding along in the slow lane thread and making plans to knit All The Things.

Boundaries and putting yourself first

It’s been a busy and exciting week as I launched my new knit-along - the Boundaries Blanket KAL and the dedicated facebook group has been humming as we have all been discussing yarn choices, colours and of course, a few personal boundaries.

Week 1 went out on Wednesday (20th Nov) and as it’s going to be a relaxed bi-weekly KAL there’s still plenty of time to join in if you wanted to (you can find the pattern here). I know that some people have signed up but intend to save the patterns and make a start on them in that lovely relaxed Twixtmas period between Christmas and New Year, which seems like a fine plan to me.

I’ve been really encouraged by the positive response to the KAL and so many people have taken the trouble to get in touch and say how much it has resonated with them. One theme that has struck me throughout these comments is the number of people saying that either they don’t usually do KALs, or that once joined they rarely stick to them.

And it dawned on me - as indeed it had dawned on some of those who contacted me that this is just another example of where boundaries can be drawn. All too often we allow ourselves to put aside what we really want to work on, in favour of something for someone else. Whether it’s a birthday gift for a friend that we think we ‘have to’ knit, or a pair of socks for that relative that we just can’t say no to. 

Even though we might be happy to oblige, there’s often a small part us, tucked away that feels secretly resentful or, at the very least it feels neglected and not listened too.

By doing the opposite, picking a project that we really want to work on. Picking something that really speaks to us - whether it’s the yarn, the colour or the rhythmic pattern what we are really doing is putting ourselves first. Telling that small part of us that we really do matter - as much as, if not more than the cold footed uncle who would really like some socks. 

Of course, it’s nice to knit for others but it’s so easy to fall into the guilt trap of only knitting for others, or somehow feeling guilty for knitting for ourselves - but that’s a topic for a whole other blog post.

For now, why not just grab a favourite beverage, your yarn and needles and relax - making something just for you. At the risk of sounding like a cliched cosmetic advert - you really are worth it.