Treat your feet to these cheerful socks, with stranded colourwork in three bright shades
CAROL MELDRUM
STRANDED COLOURWORK socks always feel delightfully snuggly on your feet, thanks to their double-thickness fabric. This pair from Carol Meldrum will certainly lift your spirits, with their cheerful combination of red, teal and purple. They’re knitted top-down, using red for the cast-on before moving to purple for the ribbing. Carol has used an afterthought heel to make knitting the colourwork easier. Her design is worked in West Yorkshire Spinners Signature 4ply, a classic sock yarn which is available in an extensive choice of solid, striping and self-patterning colourways.
SOCKS
(both alike)
CUFF RIB
Using 2.25mm DPNs (or circular needles, 80cm long, if using the Magic Loop method), and yarn A, and the long-tail or thumb cast-on method, cast on 64 sts. Pm and join to work in the round, taking care not to twist sts.
Fasten off yarn A and join in yarn B.
Round 1: *K1, P1; rep from * to end. Rounds 2-5: Rep round 1. Round 6: Knit to end.
MAIN SOCK
Change to 3mm needles.
Using the Fair Isle technique (stranding colour not in use loosely across the back of the work), work Chart A, repeating the 16-st rep 4 times across the round and changing colours as required.
Work rounds 1-30 of Chart A twice.
Work should measure approx 14cm from cast-on edge. The heel will be placed here, and will measure 5cm from this point to base of heel. If you would like a longer leg, work rounds 1-15 of Chart A once more.
PLACE AFTERTHOUGHT HEEL - RIGHT FOOT ONLY
Using waste yarn knit the next 31 sts, then slip the sts just worked back onto the RH needle.
Pattern note: the first round of Chart B is worked in knit for the afterthought heel, every following time this is repeated it is worked in 1x1 rib.
Using the Fair Isle technique, work 31-st Chart B, work 16-st Chart A twice, then work the first st from Chart B again, changing colours as required.
*Continue working as set, work Chart B rounds 1-15 twice, and rounds 1-30 from Chart A once.
Work 25 more rounds in Charts A and B as set.
Foot should measure approx 11.5cm from waste yarn. Toe will measure 5.5cm, and heel will measure 5cm to back of foot. If you would like a longer foot, work more rounds of Charts A and B at this point.
Fasten off yarn C.**
PLACE AFTERTHOUGHT HEEL - LEFT FOOT ONLY
Slip 33 sts onto LH needle, using waste yarn knit across 31 sts. Pattern
