The leg section starts after the cuff and ends at the ankle. Knit according to the chart for however many argyle sections you have calculated for the length. If you need help determining the number of argyle refer to the Measuring Post.
Shaping
When you designed your tartan hose, before you started knitting, you will have decided on shaped or non-shaped hose based on the measurements.
Non-shaped hose are usually made for younger dancers whose calf muscles haven't quite developed, yet.
If you are shaping the hose the method and math is fairly simple:
- Start reducing where the calf muscle starts to taper. Half way through the first argyle after the cuff is a good place to start.
- Reduce the number of stitches gradually. I like to knit-two-together at the start and the end of every fourth row.
- Follow the chart, carefully counting in from the edge. Maybe try drawing a line on your chart if you find it less confusing.
- You want to end up with two argyles when you've completed the stitch reductions.
Example
My latest pair of hose are 2.5 - 33 stitch argyles wide. There are 83 stitches in the row.
I want to reduce down to 67 stitches. I start at row 18 of the first argyle after the cuff and reduce two stitches every fourth row: rows 18, 22, 26 and 30. That gets me down to 75 stitches.
For the next argyle I reduce on rows 1, 5, 9 and 13. Now I'm at 67 stitches, where I'll continue for the rest of the argyle sections down to ankle.
Here's how I marked my chart:
Blocking
After you finish knitting all of the argyle sections it's time to block the sock. The finishing steps will be easier if the edges aren't all curled up.
If I haven't been weaving in the loose ends after each section, I do this before blocking. I leave some of the longer ends on the sides for sewing up the back seam.
For more details on blocking refer to the Blocking Post.
Once this step is complete you will be ready to knit the heel. This will be described in a future post.
