If you look at commercial running socks, you’ll notice that they often have more fabric around the heel, particularly at the back. These shortie socks are my effort to recreate the extra cushion of those socks in hand-knit form. A doubled cuff and a tab at the back of the heel add extra comfort, whether you’re running in your socks or just relaxing.

To knit these socks, you need to know how to:

• knit and purl, working flat and in the round;
• pick up stitches along an edge;
• pick up stitches from a cast-on edge;
• work standard decreases (k2tog and ssk)
• work short rows, using any method; and
• graft live stitches.

The actual amount of yarn needed for a pair will depend on the size made and the length of the foot, but most people will be able to knit a pair using between 50 and 100 g of a standard fingering-weight sock yarn.

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