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.

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.

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.

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).

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.

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:

• 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

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.

• K = knit
• P = purl
• SL = slip one stitch
• SSK = slip, slip knit
• k2tog = knit two together
• P2tog = purl two together
• The Kitchener Stitch
• A variation of the three-needles bind off
• ….And a provisional cast on of your choice

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.

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

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.