# Different colored toes and heels on socks?



## Marchwind

Now my sister tells me she has two balls of this yarn in gray, Zealana Kia Ora Kiwi Laceweight Yarn It is a Merino, Cotton, Opossum. It is supposed to be deliciously soft and machine washable. She wants me to knit basic socks for my BIL. But she also has a ball of purple and wants the heels and toes purple. So how difficult is this. I can imagine the toes is easy, the heel flap no problem. Would you then turn the heel and call that done? Or, would you also pick up some of the instep stitches?


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## rootsandwings

keep knitting with purple until the first full round of the ankle - you don't want the purple to go over the top of the foot, but use it for the whole heel.


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## Callieslamb

Opossum??? Opossum???? What will that smell like combined with someone's foot? LOL!!!


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## gone-a-milkin

You can do contrasting heels with the flap and gusset, but they dont look quite the same as the wedge-shaped heels on commercial socks.

On these ones I did them that way.
Ravelry: Odinsneedles' Fancy Boot Socks
If someone could tell me how to get a pic here from flickr, I would appreciate it.
I know it was explained recently but I wasnt paying attention. :teehee:

Then later I learned the afterthought heel (which is basically another toe) and I really liked the look of that better with a contrasting color.










You could do shortrows too, like on a lot of those toes-up patterns.

Just somne different ideas.


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## MullersLaneFarm

The after thought heel is now my favorite!!! Easy, easy, easy to do! AND if your knitting a pattern on the instep, you can just keep going with the pattern and not have to worry about the heel gusset!

Nice Mojo socks, GAM!


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## gone-a-milkin

Callieslamb said:


> Opossum??? Opossum???? What will that smell like combined with someone's foot? LOL!!!


This is a different critter althogether, the Australian possum.

They are a LOT cuter than the ones we have here and they have very fine pelts.


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## Callieslamb

Whew!! I was worried. The ones here are pretty disgusting.


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## Marchwind

Okay I like the idea of the after thought heel. Does anyone have a like as to how they are done or how you would incorporate them into a sock? Or, better yet a very basic sock with an after thought heel? I'm thinking ribbed, just a plain men's sock. This is a fingering weight and there is about 434 yds.


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## Marchwind

:bow:Thank you WIHH!


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## Maura

when I make a "toe" heel I use a contrasting color. Remember the old cartoons where laundry was on the line and the heel and toe would be red on a white sock? This is because the sock was knit from the top, a toe heel made, and a regular toe finished it off. When the heel wore out and the toe wore out (or the foot got longer), mama unraveled the heel and reknit it using whatever yarn she had, hence a red heel, and a red toe. This was a comment on poverty, I believe.

when you make a toe heel (afterthought heel) you can still k1, slip 1 on the heel part.


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## gone-a-milkin

Maura said:


> when you make a toe heel (afterthought heel) you can still k1, slip 1 on the heel part.


Yes, you can. You can also use 2 strands or a heavier stronger yarn for those areas.
On my ones above I used Pakalana's very finely spun sock yarn :bow: 
for the foot and some of my own heavier gauge handspun for the contrast.

Those socks are wearing wonderfully still, btw.


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## Marchwind

Okay I have a question or two. How would you do the heel stitch? Just in that area of the heel do the heel stitch and knit the rest of them? If you are knitting in a pattern, say ribbed all the way. When you put in your provisional yarn and continue with the foot, what would you do about the ribs? Would you carry them only on the top of the foot or throughout the whole foot (except the toe and heel of course.)?


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## gone-a-milkin

You could do either way. It is totally up to you.
I usually only carry the pattern on the top of the foot because it is faster to knit,
But as you know there are NO RULES!

On the Mojo pattern she has you work the bands of ribbing and purl stitch rows through the whole pattern, even the bottom of the feet.
For once I followed a pattern on those.
They fit really well too.


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