Finished #knitting these #toeUp #TAATsocks last night. I knit the cuff in a 1x1 rib instead of my usual 2x2 rib, so that I wouldn’t have to do any switch stitching or fancy prep ahead of the tubular bind off. Despite that, the bind off is still not particularly stretchy and it’s a struggle to get the cuff past my heel. I’m still doing something wrong in the bind off. Boo.

@monstreline I did tubular bind off on my earlier socks and it's so beautiful, but getting the tension right (and having a reasonable amount of yarn to finish the grafting step) was too much trouble for me, and I've switched to https://knitty.com/ISSUEfall09/FEATjssbo.php

But also, having just taken Kate Atherley's custom socks class, I've confirmed that I have an unusual fit issue and maybe you do too: the diagonal measurement around my heel and instep is thicker than a lot of people's, so I have to have a larger cuff and bind off than what my leg needs in order to get my foot into the sock. When knitting in sock yarn, I need to have between 4-8 extra stitches in the ankle compared to the foot (depending on the pattern). (My sport weight socks usually don't have this problem, I think my tension isn't as tight compared to the diameter of the yarn- the fabric is slightly less bulletproof.)

I've also been thinking lately about maybe increasing 2-4 sts in the last rounds of the cuff (at the end of the cuff ribbing, just before the bindoff) so that I'm casting off more stitches, because sometimes my feet swell quite a lot and then socks that are normally fine become difficult to put on.

Jeny's surprisingly stretchy bind off, Fall 2009

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@freerangefatty @monstreline

I do Jssbo as my normal cast-off for toe-up socks, now. And I too have a high instep, so need more space from the heel up; I like the Fleegle heel, it can be 'shoehorned' (ha ha!) into almost any toe-up pattern, and fits my foot shape better. But also, when doing Fleegle, you end up with 2 more stitches on the 'back' needle than you started with; I've found that for me, casting on 30 stitches for the sole and 32 for the top of the foot works nicely, I can do a pattern based on a multiple of 4; & then I simply DON'T decrease the 2 extra stitches away, so I end up with 32 on the back as well ... ready for that pattern if I need it, I have a little extra space, & can do a 2x2 rib at the top.

@Knitronomicon @freerangefatty JSSBO seems to be the popular solution and I’m definitely trying it next!

Thank you for solving my fleegle heel mystery…I always wondered what I’d done wrong to have two extra stitches…apparently nothing!

Sadly after many a fleegle heel, I’ve given up on them. They are the socks that always slide off my foot and bunch up in the toe of my shoe or boot no matter how I adjust them.

My instep is really quite low actually but what I’m realizing is that my heel projects quite far out from the back of my ankle which seems to equate to needing a roomier heel as one would for a high instep, but I’m a different shape.

I really never thought I would ever spend this much energy analyzing the shape of my feet!

@monstreline @freerangefatty Sounds like you would get on better with an afterthought heel or just an ordinary short-row heel, maybe?

@Knitronomicon @freerangefatty a traditional short row heel is usually too shallow for me but the next pair I’m making use a nifty adapted short row heel that can be made deeper if needed and I’m excited to give it a try!

https://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/morning-socks-2

Morning Socks pattern by Amanda Schwabe

The Morning Socks are the March 2026 installment of The Heels for Days Sock Club.

Ravelry
@monstreline @freerangefatty Ah, well, you don't have to do short-row heels over ONLY half the stitches...! (I've also done Cat Bordhi's Sweet Tomato Heel, which uses 60% of the stitches instead of 50%.)
@Knitronomicon @monstreline I'm aware! But for plenty of people, you just need to increase to accommodate that portion of our feet.