So You Want To Knit Socks, Part Two: Casting On (Toe Up)

Now that you've figured out your yarn and needle situation (or, if you haven't, check out Part One: Equipment) and settled down with your chosen pattern or guide (such as my fitted formula method for designing socks to fit your specific measurements) - what next? It's time to cast on! There are a lot of ways to do this, and until you try them it's hard to say which will work for you.

There's a divide in sock knitters between those who knit from the toe up and those who go from the cuff down. Both sides say their way gives the better fit, is easiest to try on, and gets the best result... so I'm guessing that neither is actually superior to the other. Personally I'm a toe-up gal but I'm going to include information for cuff-down knitting as well for those who prefer to try it that way. Both directions have their pros and cons so, if you aren't sure what will work for you, I recommend you give both styles a try before settling on a favourite. In this post I'm going to talk about types of toe-up cast on - if you'd like to try from the cuff down, jump ahead to the next post.

(Warning - this post will be very image heavy!)