Welcome to week 3 of our Cobblestone Road Socks knit-along! Ready to start knitting up the heels of your socks? Read on to find out how it’s done in this week’s tutorial from Chris of FuzzySheep Crafts! If you’re just finding out about the knit-along, it’s not too late to join! Keep up on all our free tutorials, week by week, on the blog.

Week 3: What to Do this Week

Hey knitters! I hope you all had a great week and got the instep knit.

I have gotten a few questions about the next part (the heel) already, so I know you’re all plugging right along and trying to beat me!

In fact, I haven’t finished the toe in this picture, but I want to show the general shape you should be achieving and use this to help answer some good questions we’ve been receiving.

Here’s an example of our most ask question:

When you pick up the stitches you put on holders. Do you knit them as one row? (You wouldn’t be able to get your foot through there?) It reads like that’s what you do, but I’ve done that and it’s not at all sock shaped. The top of the foot and the bottom are nowhere near one another. I’m going to have to frog and do it over, but I need pictures!

I can relate. I’ll be honest and admit that knitting a sock flat for the first time ended in tears, lots of frogging and probably more than a few curse words. I hope that I can shed some light on the process of turning the heel for you. I have had the best results with patterns that include the phrase: “place remaining stitches (those on holders) onto needle, having back seam in the center.”  The video above is much shorter this week and I try to show you this on our sample size sock. Here’s another shot showing how the seam in the back of the cuff becomes the middle of your next row of stitching, the first row of your heel.

Now that we’ve gotten our stitches from the holders back onto the needle, it’s time to work the heel flap.  The flap is the portion that goes down over your achilles tendon and will eventually curve around over the ball of the heel (the heel turn).  This part it very straight forward, but it is important to remember to slip your stitches in the manner described in the pattern.  Right side rows will have the stitches slipped PURLwise, but be sure you hold your yarn to the BACK (that is, don’t bring it forward between the needles like we do in a standard purl stitch).  Wrong side rows will have the stitch slipped PURLwise again, but this time we’re going to have the yarn in front.   These slipped stitches are important, especially on the ends of the row.  These stitches will be picked up and knit for the gusset (or the part of the heel that will help cover the sides of your foot).

Turning the heel isn’t as daunting as it sounds.  It can be a little confusing the first time through, because we aren’t working every stitch on our needles with every row.  We will be working short rows, and these short rows are what will make the flat piece we are knitting curve so there it follows the contours of our feet.  No flat tube socks here!

Don’t be afraid, just do as the pattern instructs.  When it says to turn, leave the remaining stitches on your left hand needle, turn the work and just pretend you’ve already worked those.  You’ll eventually work them, one stitch at a time.  Once you’ve followed the pattern, you will have eventually worked each stitch and you’ll be ready to work the gussett.

I’ve received a few questions about the sock gusset as well.  Where to pick up the stitches mostly.  When you have worked the last row of your turn, you’ll end with a right side row.  From here, pick up the stitches on the slip-stitched edge directly ahead of your needle.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I’m still part way through my heel turn in this shot, but I am indicating where we will be picking up the first set of stitches on the right side row. The “Sl 1 pw wyi(f/b)” makes a nice easy stitch for us to pick up. Pick up the number of stitches required with your RIGHT (empty) needle and then knit across all the stitches already on your LEFT needle. When you have worked all the stitches, they will be on your right hand needle. Pick up the stitches directly ahead of your RH needle with your now empty left needle and knit them. Turn your work and purl across all the stitches.

 

Congrats! You’ve turned a heel and are now of your way to knitting the bottom of the sock foot. Continue on as in the pattern and we’ll be ready to graft those toes together next week and seal up those side seams.  If you have anymore questions this week as you go along, please drop me a line. I can always add more tutorials and work you through your questions. Have fun turning those heels!

 

And don’t forget to upload pictures of your progress to our flickr group for your chance to win a fabulous prize from Galler Yarns!

 

How To Enter the Knit-Along Giveaway

• Post your project, finished or in progress, in the AllFreeKnitting Flickr group to be entered.
• Open to anyone 18+ in the U.S. or Canada.
• Photos must be posted by July 8, 2012, 11:59p EST.

Stay tuned for next week’s portion of the knit-along right here on the Stitch & Unwind blog.

 

Knit-Along Schedule

So are you convinced you should join the knit-along yet? Here’s how it works: the knit-along starts today and runs for six weeks. Every Monday, we will post a new tutorial from Christina Hammond here on the blog so you can complete the next portion of the knit-along. Of course, you can always work at your own pace once the tutorials are posted. There’s no rush here; we are just having fun and learning together!

Week-by-Week Schedule:

Getting Ready, 6/4 – 6/10: Gathering Materials
Week One, 6/11- 6/17: Knitting the Cuff/Leg
Week Two, 6/18 – 6/24: Knitting the Heel/Foot
Week Three, 6/25 – 7/1: Knitting the Toes/Shaping the Heel
Week Four, 7/2 – 7 /8: Finishing the Socks
Week Five, 7/9: Winner Announced!

 

How are your heels coming along? Please post any comments or questions below!

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