Third Finger, Left Hand

While I'm not avoiding advances, I have been avoiding the last of the knitting on Cigar. I just don't like the tedium of making each finger. But then, I like the reduced manual dexterity of mittens even less. There may be hope yet!

While blog crawling, I can across mention of an i-cord finger. I-cord finger you say? Tell me more! Google soon showed me several places where I could learn more about this technique that was apparently developed by Meg Swansen and fully explained in one of her books. Basically, you create an i-cord, then use a crochet hook to "pick-up" the "dropped" stitch created on one side of the cord. Voila! One finger! Place it on a holder and complete the other nine! Well, I've already knit the body of the (cuff-up) Cigar gloves, and the i-cord finger is meant for finger-down gloves. I think I'll try it anyway and see if I can kitchner the finger to the glove. The very thought! So cool!

You can see the gears turning here, can't you? Yes, it has to do with socks. I've got two patterns developed and written, but I need to finish my Christmas knitting before I sit down and knit blind from the patterns. I promise, as soon as I've had a chance to proof them, the patterns will be available (how's that for a tease? =P)

Until then, happy knitting!

Memoirs of a Geisha

Is there a theme on this blog? Nope, not at all.

We now return you to our regularly scheduled program.

I promised answers to some frequently asked questions, beginning with how I created the Japanese or "tabi" toe on my blue socks. I spent a long time looking for information on just creating the toe style, as I didn't really care for any of the patterns I found that used them. One afternoon while I was furiously knitting away on a pair of gloves I realized that creating a "tabi" really shouldn't be that technically different from creating a finger on a glove. So, I started experimenting and jumped in!

For the moment, I only know how to make these cuff-down. In the very near future, I plan to experiment with several different cast-ons to see if I can identify the secrets of not just toe-up socks, but toe-up tabi socks. In case you haven't guessed, tabi toes are my very most favorite-est socks ever. They're so versatile! You can wear them with sandals or you can wear them with shoes! Brilliant!

Back to the tutorial:

Here are the steps, quick and dirty. (I've gotten into the habit of knitting two at once via "magic loop", so my directions are written that way. I don't have the first clue how one would change the instructions for dpns, but if anyone else out there does and is willing, perhaps they will and I can post them or the link to them.)

Click on any image for a larger copy.

Step One: Select a pattern and yarn for the cuff-down sock of your choice. The pattern used for the socks pictured is Lion Brand's free pattern: Magic Stripe Basic Socks. The yarn is KnitPicks' Simply Stripes in Sunset. (No, I am not Sandi Rosner and I did not learn to knit tabi toes from her book. In fact, it was because I couldn't find a local copy of the book that I sat down and figured it out for myself.)

Step Two: Knit said sock[s] (assuming that one is knitting two at once) to the base of the big toe. This may cause part of the smaller toes to be covered, which is okay. If your smaller toes are much smaller, you may want to start decreasing on the pinky edge before reaching the big toe.


Step Three: Divide stitches for big toe and the remaining toe cap (theoretically, you could, if you were so inclined, divide your stitches for each individual toe, if you were that sort of patient, which I'm not). For my socks, I had fifty four stitches total (twenty eight for the instep and twenty eight for the sole) and I used ten from each side (ten from the sole and ten from the instep) for a total of twenty stitches for the big toe and thirty four stitches placed on a holder for the remaining toes. On your right foot, these would be the stitches to the right of your big toe.

Note: *Knit each section of the toe individually.*


Step Four: Cast on two stitches on the "open" side of the cap. This would be the side that will rest between the big toe and the rest of the toes. For my pattern, this made twenty two total stitches for my big toe cap. Knit the big toe cap round and round until just before the end of the toe. Work 2 sets of decrease rows if youd like a shaped toe (instep stitches: ssk, knit across to last 2 stitches, k2tog; repeat for sole stitches; knit one round plain); simply knit to the end of the toe if a square end suits you. Break the yarn and graft the toe together.
*my SSKs are done as follows: slip the first stitch purl-wise, slip stitch back onto the left needle, knit it and the next stitch together through the back loops*

Step Five: Re-join the ball of yarn, pick up four stitches in the cast on edge from the big toe cap and knit the remaining toe cap, decreasing on the first two rounds after the pick-up, every other round after that on the pinky edge only (instep stitches: ssk, knit across; sole stitches: knit across to last two stitches, k2tog; knit one round plain), until 10 stitches remain or cap is long enough to cover the remaining toes. Break the yarn and graft the toe together.

Note: Step Five is more of a guideline than a hard-n-fast rule. Try your sock on and decrease more often if your cap is too big. In the same fashion, decrease less often if your toe cap is coming out a little tight. The important thing is to simply decrease *evenly* across the cap.

Step Six: Bring sexy back with your stylish new socks!