Sock Knit-a-Long #7

Time for the instep!

Using another needle, pick up stitches along the left side of your heel flap. Pick up half as many stitches as rows worked on the heel flap, or pick up one stitch into each of your slipped stitches.

I had 32 heel stitches and 32 rows in my heel flap, so I should pick up 16 stitches along the side.




There, by picking up a
 couple more stitches
  I am right next to the stitch
 on the next needle.

See the gap? I would
have a hole in my sock!

Use this number as a guide . . . when I picked up 16 stitches I found a gap between the last picked up stitch and the stitches being held on the other needle. . . . so I picked up another two. (Just make sure you make it even and pick up the same number on the other side of the heel flap).











Next knit across the stitches that were being held on the other needle.
Then pick up stitches along the right side of the heel flap, again make sure you pick up the same amount as you did on the left side.










You now have stitches on 4 needles, but we'll go back down to three . . . just knit half of the stiches off the needle holding the heel flap stitches.

If that sounds confusing - using needle #2 ,knit half of the stitches on needle #1.

Here's the K2tog
 slanting to the right. 

It's time to shape the instep!!
Knit across the remaining heel stitches and then knit to the last 3 stitches on needle #4, K2tog, K1.

Knit across the next needle.
On the last needle, K1, SSK, knit to the end.

Next row, Knit across.

(Remember my post about decreasing? Using the K2tog and the SSK in the same row will make a nice line on your sock instep).




Keep repeating these two rows until you have decreased back down to your original amount of stitches that were cast on.

I had 64 stitches, I still have 1/2 of my stitches on the middle needle (the ones held there while I did my heel flap), so I want to decrease on each of the other needles until I have 16 stitches left on each.





Phew!! That was a lot to do  . . . make sure you have your coffee before you attempt it! Once you have the instep done, continue working evenly until the length of the foot is about 2 1/2 inches less than the desired length of the sock.

Oh . . . don't forget to tell your friends you made a gusset . . . . they'll be so impressed with you.

Tomorrow we'll make room for our piggy toes.

Until next time, keep your nose in a book or your fingers in fiber.