The Helix Remix Socks use four-colour helical stripes combined with slipped elongated stitches and cables to make a graphic, no-repeats triangular pattern that continues from the top of the leg all the way to the end of the toe. Why use four colours for helical stripes instead of two? Well, why not! This way you can have twice as much fun as you would have if you were alternating just two yarns… right?

This was the Round 6 sock for Sock Madness 18! You can find tips from me, answers to questions, chat, and FOs in the group forums. (Note that any errata mentioned during the event were corrected prior to the pattern’s release to the public.)

Pattern Description

These cuff-down socks alternate between four strands of yarn, allowing for unique, standout colour patterning while still only working with one yarn at a time in any given round. They have an afterthought heel and a twisted-rib cuff, both of which are worked in two-colour helical stripes. Mini-gusset shaping is worked in the body of the sock for a flexible heel fit.

The patterning is provided both as charts and as written instructions; note that there is a separate document for each of these options, and both produce the same finished product.

Techniques required for this pattern include:

• Basic knitting stitches (knit, purl, slip, M1L/M1R, ssk, K2tog),
• Tillybuddy’s Very Stretchy Cast On (video link provided),
• helical stripes (video link provided for two colours; see my project page for photos of how strands move using four colours),
• elongated stitches (video link provided),
• cables without a cable needle (video link for general concept provided; the cables in this pattern work exactly the same way, but are not specifically shown in the video),
• grafting/Kitchener stitch (video link provided), and
• picking up an afterthought heel from a scrap yarn placeholder (video link provided).

This pattern is written in a method-neutral manner to suit any sock-knitting technique, using either double-pointed or circular needles. However, when choosing a technique, note that on the leg there are cables around the entire circumference and the beginning of the round moves frequently. This may make some techniques more practical than others in that section. (On the foot, on the other hand, the location of the divisions between instep and sole are stable.)

Yarn Requirements and Sizing

Sizes available: Adult Small (Medium, Large), with measurements as follows:

• Small: to fit foot circumference of 18 cm / 7 inches with a finished foot length of 21.5 cm / 8.5 inches;
• Medium: to fit foot circumference of 20.5 cm / 8 inches with a finished foot length of 23.5 cm / 9.25 inches; and
• Large: to fit foot circumference of 23 cm / 9 inches with a finished foot length of 25.5 cm / 10 inches.

All sizing above assumes a gauge for the slipped-stitch patterning on the sole of the foot of 36 stitches and 48 rounds in 10 cm / 4 inches (this is slightly tighter than the recommended stockinette-stitch gauge listed above). If you work at a different gauge than this, your foot sizing will vary accordingly from the measurements provided above; this is the easiest way to make a longer or shorter foot, if needed. This pattern does not have any repeated rounds, so adjusting foot length via working a different number of rounds requires some advance planning and cannot easily be done “on the fly”.

Needle sizes provided above are only suggestions; be sure to use whatever needle size (or combination of needle sizes) that works well for your individual tension, yarn choice, and desired gauge/size.

This pattern requires fingering weight yarn appropriate for socks in four clearly-contrasting colours; each colour requires approximately 80 (90, 100) m / 85 (95, 110) yards. For photo assistance with yarn management, see my project page here.

These socks are rated 5/5 — Challenging — on my sock pattern difficulty scale. This is because they require an unusual colourwork technique with complex yarn management requirements, and the patterning is detailed with no repeated rounds.