Workshop: MUMTU Socks Pt10: Leg & Cuff, Bind Off

1. Intro, Items Needed, Stitches Used
2. Gauge, Measurements, Primary Stitch Count
3. Orientation, Glossary, Visualizing Magic Loop
4. Pack Kit, Cast On
5. Round 1
6. Toes
7. Foot, Gusset
8. Heel Extension
9. Heel Flap
10. Leg & Cuff, Bind Off (You are here!)
11. Charts for Customizing Your Fit

STEP 11: Leg & Cuff

Once you arrive at the leg, the possibilities are almost limitless. Here are a few options:

• Continue in stockinette stitch until the socks measure 1-2 inches shorter than the desired length from bottom of foot to top of sock. Then switch to K2 P2 ribbing for the final 1-2 inches of cuff (according to your preference). I used this option, ankle-length, for C's Sleeping Socks:
  
  
  
• Knit a few rounds of stockinette to establish the leg and then switch to a ribbing pattern of your choice all the way up the leg. I went with a 2x2 rib up the leg of my Anti-Pro Natura Socks:
  
  
  
• Knit a few rounds of stockinette and then switch to a special design pattern all the way up the leg. (If you think you might take this option, you will need to have swatched in the special pattern. You may find it necessary to switch needle sizes to make sure your gauge in the special stitch matches the stockinette gauge used on the foot.)
• If you started incorporating a special design stitch on the instep/top of foot, simply continue that design up the leg.
  

STEP 12: Bind Off

There are many ways to bind off. For toe-up socks, I recommend Elizabeth Zimmermann's Sewn Cast off (from Knitting Without Tears), which provides all the elasticity you will want for the top of your sock and can be used on any stitch edge.

Draw out your working yarn to a length of about 4 times the circumference of the sock. Break it off and thread it onto a tapestry needle. Execute the sewn bind-off as follows:

1. Sew forward (right to left, as if to purl) through two stitches.
   
   Do not remove these stitches.
   
   
2. Now sew backward (left to right, as if to knit) through the right-most stitch...
   
   
   ... and remove this stitch.
   
   

Repeat these two steps until you run out of stitches.

Once you have bound off the last stitch, make a simple daisy chain from the last bound-off stitch through the first bound-off stitch and back through the last bound-off stitch to create a seamless edge.

Weave in the tail on the inside of the sock and trim any excess.

You’re done!

Put on your new socks. Dance around the house.

Take pictures.

Celebrate that you won’t be suffering from the dreaded SSS (Second Sock Syndrome)!

As always, feel free to email me if you have questions. I love reading your comments, so please post your feedback. And I'd be thrilled to see pictures of socks you make using this pattern!

Return to Part 9 of the MUMTU Sock Workshop.
Proceed to Part 11 of the MUMTU Sock Workshop (CHARTS).