Ribbed sock knitting pattern: Socke 2

A free knitting pattern for a basic ribbed sock for men and women in two colors with an inverted cuff

Are you like me? When it comes to socks I want to wear at home, I’m actually most content with basic ribbed socks. They combine a lovely fit with a classic design and are easy & fast to knit on top of that.

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I already published a simple cable sock pattern called “Socke 1”. So, I figured it’s about high time I also add something in pure rib stitch. Now, if you look around my blog, you will soon notice that I love to knit everything with a little twist.

ribbed socks modeled on feet so you can see the way they look when worn

When I saw the beautiful hand-dyed yarn by Samelin Dyeworks in her shop, it reminded me so much of a lime – green on the outside and yellow inside. And I instantly wanted to do something with an inverted cuff to show off two colors in a very subtle way reminiscent of the citrus fruit.

hand-dyed yarn by samelin dyeworks in yellow and green for this sock pattern

Now obviously, I am a man and I knit these socks for me. But as this sock knitting pattern is so basic you can adjust it to more or less every size you want. I’ll talk you through all the important steps and it’s pure written instructions. But you will have to adjust them to your size yourself. So, it’s more of a recipe (here’s how to find out how many stitches you need to cast on for socks).

ribbed socks in two contrasting colors showcasing the inverted hem

That being said, I‘m reasonably sure that every intermediate knitter will be able to finish them. You will have to know how to knit in the round, though. If you are using double-pointed needles (like I do) then here’s a nice article with 10 ways to improve knitting with dpns, but magic loop should be fine as well.

You will find detailed step-by-step tutorials for all techniques used in this pattern including video instructions. So, even if this is your first pair of socks, I’m sure you will manage with a bit of perseverance.

ribbing socks with inverted hem decorated with some limes and cute scissors

Also, I’m knitting with fingering weight yarn and 2.00mm needles. That’s very small and it will take a long time. The resulting fabric will be very drapey and not too hot and that’s the reason why I picked such a yarn. But you could adjust the pattern to 3.00mm needles. It will look slightly different but it will be much faster to knit. I wouldn’t go higher, though. Because the inverted cuff adds a thickness to the fabric that will look clumsy if it’s too mighty.

Note: Make sure to check out my tutorial on how to knit socks for beginners. And check out my cable knit socks for an interesting variation of this pattern.

Materials you will need for these ribbed socks:

the materials used for the ribbed sock knitting pattern
  • Around 120 grams of the fingering sock yarn; I used the very soft and looovvely yarn by SamelinDyeworks (you can buy it here); Needed almost a full skein in green and only around 25 grams of the yellow for EU size 42 (but these numbers will vary depending on your size)
  • Double-Pointed Knitting needles 2.0 mm. Frequent readers probably already know that I am a huge fan of the Knitter’s Pride Karbonz because they are the only ones that don’t end up crooked after 5 minutes.
  • A tapestry needle and scissors.
  • A crochet hook 2.00 mm(optional) for picking up the stitches for the heel. I used the Knitter’s Pride Waves here.
  • Stitch markers (optional)
  • Measuring tape

Note: I earn a small commission from purchases through links in this article

Knitting Techniques

shaping the toe box of the ribbed sock with a kitchener stitch

Most of this sock is knit in a 4×2 rib with sections of pure stockinette stitch in between. So, there are hardly any challenging techniques needed for the most part and are perfectly suitable for intermediate knitters. Possibly the only tricky part is the provisional cast on and the three-needles bind-off. But that’s just two rows.

Also, the socks are finished with a Kitchener Stitch. While there is a tutorial available, you can also just decrease two more rounds and then weave in the ends from there. This would result in a more pointed toe box.

ribbing socks in two colors with inverted hem on a wooden board

Either way. Download the pattern now and you’ll see how I talk about all these possible adjustments there in greater detail.

Download this sock knitting pattern
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As a courtesy to others, please ask your questions here under this blog post and not via email or on social media. That way, other knitters can see my answers as well and I don’t need to reply to the same questions over and over again.

So, that’s my ribbed sock knitting pattern. Feel free to share this post on social media or pin to your Pinterest board.

a free ribbing sock knitting pattern3

13 thoughts on “Ribbed sock knitting pattern: Socke 2”

    • Hey Tricia,
      while I would love to help you i think this question is a bit too generic. What sorts of tips? what kind of problems are you facing?

      Reply
  1. I note that this pattern states to work the rib into the provisional cast on. I did this and found it extremely difficult when it came to undoing the provisional cast on. As in your provisional cast on video you suggest doing one row of knit I tried this and it works so well. With this very fine yarn 1 row of knit has no effect on the look of the cuff but makes it so much easier to do. 😊

    Reply
  2. Hi Tricia,

    I’m not an expert but here I share what I do:

    I use a similar type of yarn to the wool used for main body of the sock, just with some (apprx 20%) acrylic specifically for heels and toes. 100% wool on those areas doesn’t work well.
    and for and extra reinforcement on heel flap:

    Row1: slip 1, purl across
    Row2: *slip 1, knit 1* repeat** across

    hope it helps,

    happy knitting.

    Reply
  3. I can’t seem to download the sock pattern. Is there something I’m missing? I’ve subscribed but it still won’t let me download? Thanks

    Reply
      • I am also facing the same problem with all the patterns I selected. Link is taking me back to subscribe page instead of the pattern. I think wrong link is being sent each time. Could you please check, Norman?

        Reply
        • No, definitely not. But some people subscribe to more than just one pattern at once and that typically doesn’T lead to the results you may have intended.

          Reply
  4. Hi Norman, thanks for sharing the pattern, you’ve given very nice guidance for first time sock makers especially for how to get the size right.

    I find it quite difficult to understand when I was doing the inverted cuff so that I need to frog like 3 or 4 times for my first sock, and now after a few wear and a wash it has a hole there!

    The photo is a lifesaver but it’s after a few times I realised how important is to study the photo.

    Just in case next time:

    The back needle as in the example is yellow, the front needle is green

    It needs to be green-yellow pairs (except the extra greens) on the left needle when it’s ready to knit next row, so the green stitch can cover the yellow stitch after the k2tog

    Reply
    • i “only” have a sock tutorial with dpns on my blog. But I do have a very comprehensive tutorial on magic loop. between the two you should be able to manage things!

      Reply
  5. I would really love a Youtube video tutorial helping with this project, as I am struggling to fully understand the process of changing colours and knitting together on the cuff.

    Reply

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