How to Knit Socks on Two Circular Needles
Seasoned knitters (or ones who frequently fly on airplanes) already know that circular needles make large, flat knitting projects much easier. But they can also make some projects traditionally done on double-pointed needles much simpler as well. Socks have such a small diameter that you might normally never expect they'd be prime candidates for circs, but they're really not so difficult---as long as you use two circular needles instead of just one. An added bonus is that you can try on socks you knit like this at any time while you're knitting them and alter any problems on the fly. These directions will help you to knit a pair of basic ribbed adult medium socks.
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Things You'll Need
- Two 16-inch to 24-inch circular needles, U.S. size 2 (2.75 mm) or 3 (3.25 mm); whichever gets you a gauge where 4 inches of knitting equals 28 stitches
- 450 m sock-weight yarn of your choice, plus a little more for error-proofing
- Stitch marker or safety pin
- Yarn needle
Instructions
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Cast on 76 stitches across your two needles. Make sure all stitches are facing the same way, and that none of them are twisted. Join the round across the two needles. Work a pattern of K2, P2 ribbing for 6.5 inches.
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2
Start to knit the heel flap on one of your two needles, using only the 38 stitches on that needle. Continue the ribbing pattern you've already established up to this point and K2, P2 for 18 rows. On row 19, purl your way across the entire row.
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3
Start to turn the heel. You'll be decreasing every other odd round, like this:
R1: Sl 1, K21, Sl 1, K1, PSSO, K1, turn.
R2: Sl 1, P5, P2tog, P1, turn.All even rows will be the same (Sl 1, P5, P2tog, P1, turn), except for the last row, where you won't have anything to purl after you've done the P2tog decrease.
For all odd rows, decrease the first number of K stitches ("K21" will become "K20" for R3; "K19" for R5, and so on); the rest of the row shall remain the same. For the last odd row, you should have nothing to knit after you've done the PSSO.
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4
Start to pick up the gusset of your sock. The gusset is what connects the heel flap to the rest of the sock, after you've shaped the heel by turning it. To do this, you'll need to pick up 11 stitches on each side of the flap. When you get to where the heel flap meets the instep, pick up a stitch and place a stitch marker or safety pin.
Knit the whole way round until you get to your stitch marker. K2tog through the back loop (it will look twisted and wrong, which is how you'll know you've done it right) to avoid leaving a large hole in your sock. Continue knitting your way around for two more rows, always knitting the stitch where you placed your marker through the back loop.
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Start to work the gusset of your sock in K2, P2 ribbing as on the leg. You'll decrease on every odd round until you have 38 stitches left on each needle, like this:
R1: K27, k2tog, k1, continue K2, P2 ribbing the rest of the way around.
R2: K2, P2 ribbing all the way around.Continue in this manner, decreasing one more stitch with a k2tog for every odd round, until you have 38 stitches left on each needle.
When you get to this point, continue rounds in K2, P2 ribbing until you've got just two inches before the ends of your toes. You may want to try the sock on at this point to make sure it fits the way you intended.
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6
Start to form the toe. Abandon your ribbing pattern and knit all stitches from this point forward; you'll decrease every other round, like this:
R1: K16, K2tog, k2, ssk, k16 for each needle.
R2: Knit all the way around, no decreases.Continue in this manner, knitting one less stitch before the decrease during every decrease round. Stop when you've got 13 stitches left on each needle and knit one round.
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7
Start to graft your toe. I like Cat Bordhi's trick of slipping the stitches you've got closest to your needle ends over their adjacent neighbors on the opposite needle; it helps make the toe graft much neater. Thread some waste yarn through your yarn needle and graft the toe shut neatly, making sure to tidy up and weave in any loose ends. You're now ready to start sock No. 2.
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Tips & Warnings
If this is your first time attempting to knit socks on circular needles (or to knit socks at all), make sure to try this when you've got enough time and mental energy to give ALL your attention to your knitting. You'll be much less frustrated that way.
Always knit a gauge swatch before starting. Every knitter knits differently, and it will help you avoid the unnecessary heartbreak of either knitting something in the wrong size or running out of yarn in the middle of your project.
Always have slightly more yarn available than a pattern calls for. Better to have too much yarn than too little; you'll find another use for any that's left over.
References
Resources
- Photo Credit Janaki Jitchotvisut
