B4 Basic Toe-Up Socks - Knitting Pattern for Women in Valley Yarns Huntington

B4 Basic Toe-Up Socks – Knitting Pattern for Women in Valley Yarns Huntington by Kirsten Hipsky

The B4 Basic Toe-Up Socks is a knitting pattern designed by Kirsten Hipsky for Valley Yarns. It produces a pair of classic, well-fitted women's socks worked entirely from the toe upward, finishing at the cuff — the opposite direction from traditional top-down sock construction. This approach allows knitters to try on the sock as they go and adjust the foot length before committing to the heel and leg, making it a practical and satisfying method for achieving a custom fit.

Sizes and Finished Measurements

The pattern is offered in three women's sizes: Small, Medium, and Large. The finished foot circumference measures 7 (8, 9) inches, and the foot length is 9 (9.5, 10) inches, though the pattern encourages knitters to adjust the foot and leg length to their personal preference. This flexibility makes the pattern highly adaptable for a wide range of foot shapes and sizes.

What Is Being Made

This pattern produces a pair of seamless, fitted ankle and leg socks suitable for everyday wear. The construction moves from the toe, through the foot, over a shaped heel, up the leg, and finishes with a ribbed cuff. The result is a smooth, comfortable sock with no seams to irritate the foot, thanks to the fully worked-in-the-round method throughout.

Techniques Used

• Toe-up construction: The sock begins at the toe rather than the cuff, a technique that gives knitters full control over foot length and allows easy adjustment before the heel is worked.
• Seamless, worked-in-the-round: The entire sock is knitted in the round, eliminating any need for seaming and producing a smooth interior surface.
• Turkish Wrap or Judy's Magic Cast On: The pattern recommends one of these two cast-on methods for starting at the toe, both of which create a neat, closed beginning with stitches distributed across two needles ready to work in the round.
• Short-row heel with wrap and turn (W&T): The heel is shaped using a classic short-row technique. Stitches are wrapped and turned progressively to create the curved heel cup, and wraps are later picked up and worked together with their stitches to eliminate holes and create a tidy finish. Double wraps are formed during the return rows, adding structure to the heel shaping.
• Toe shaping with kfb increases: The toe is shaped by working knit front and back (kfb) increases at the beginning and end of each needle on increase rounds, gradually building the full stitch count needed for the foot.

Stitches Used

• Stockinette stitch: The foot and leg are worked in straightforward stockinette stitch in the round, which appears as smooth knit fabric on the right side.
• 1x1 Ribbing (K1, P1): The cuff is worked in a simple knit one, purl one rib for approximately 2 inches or the knitter's desired length. Ribbing provides elasticity at the cuff to keep the sock securely in place on the leg.
• kfb (knit front and back): Used during toe shaping to increase the stitch count evenly across both needles.
• k2tog (knit two together): A right-leaning decrease referenced in the abbreviations and used in shaping.
• skp (slip, knit, pass slipped stitch over): A left-leaning decrease also included in the pattern's abbreviation list for shaping purposes.
• W&T (wrap and turn): The core short-row technique used throughout the heel section to shape the sock without leaving holes.

Construction Sequence

The sock is built in a logical, clearly sequenced order that is well-suited to advanced beginner knitters who are comfortable with basic knitting in the round and ready to tackle their first short-row heel. The construction proceeds as follows:

• Toe: Cast on 8 (10, 12) stitches per needle — 16 (20, 24) total — using Turkish Wrap or Judy's Magic