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Perfect Sock Cuffs

Do you ever have trouble with the cuffs of your socks being too tight? I have a trick here for toe-up and cuff-down socks that will give the nice elastic edge that you want.

Toe-up

The trick I learned with binding off toe up socks works like this:

In your last row of ribbing, work a make-one increase in between every other stitch. (If you are doing K2, P2 ribbing, then K2, M1, P2, M1 around. In K1, P1, do K1, P1, M1 around.) I always do the M1 knitwise.

On your bind off row, knit your knits and purl your purls but slip the M1's. This will give you a surprisingly elastic bind off.

Cuff Down: The Channel Island Cast-on

This comes from Kimberly and, though fairly involved, works really, really well.

Provisionally cast on half the number of stitches you need.

Row 1: Join and work as follows: Knit 1, YO. Work in this manner around to the last stitch. Do not YO at the end.

Row 2: Yarn forward, slip 1 purlwise, P1. Repeat to last st. M1.

*Row 3: Knit 1, Yarn back, slip 1 purlwise. Repeat to end.

Row 4: Yarn forward, slip 1 purlwise, P1. Repeat to end.*

Work * to * once.

Start your cuff pattern. After a few rows, remove the provisional cast on.

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