Faded Princess Socks - KNITTING PATTERN

The Faded Princess Socks pattern is a basic ribbed sock pattern with a couple unique elements. The socks are knit cuff down, with a heel flap and gusset, and a wedge toe. It is knit in 2 x 2 ribbing, with a princess sole which makes these socks super comfy for anyone with sensitive feet! The ribbing allows for a fitted but not tight fit, and the princess sole is a reverse stockinette sole so the knit side is what is touching your feet (nice and smooth!). These are knit in a fade down the leg using two colours of fingering weight yarn. I used the soft, squishy Knitpicks Muse fingering yarn in two similar speckled colours for a subtler fade. You can use any other fingering weight yarn you can achieve gauge with though!

SIZES OFFERED:
-measurement is the circumference around the ball of the foot
X-Small: ~6.5 inch circumference (unstretched), can stretch to fit up to about 8 inches
Small: ~7 inch circumference (unstretched), can stretch to fit up to about 8.5 inches
Medium: ~7.5 inch circumference (unstretched), can stretch to fit up to about 9/9.5 inches
Large: ~8 inch circumference (unstretched), can stretch to fit up to about 9.5/10 inches
X-Large: ~9 inch circumference (unstretched), can stretch to fit up to about 11/11.5 inches

These measurements are based off of my sample piece, yours may vary slightly depending on gauge and tension. Please choose a size where the measurement of the circumference of the ball of your foot falls within the unstretched-stretched range. A rule of thumb that I have seen is that a sock should be made with about 10% negative ease (eg. my foot circumference is 8.5 inches, I would want a sock that has about 7.65 inch circumference), but you don’t need to follow that exactly. The length of the socks is customizable based on your foot length so only base your size on the foot circumference.

NEEDLES REQUIRED:
US2/2.75 mm 32+ inch circulars for magic loops method (you can also use 9 inch circulars or DPNs if you prefer, though pattern is written for magic loop method)
may need other size needles to meet gauge

GAUGE:
32 sts x 46 rows equals a 4x4 inch square/10x10 cm in 2 x 2 ribbing after blocking
8 sts x 11.5 rows equals a 1x1 inch square/2.5x2.5 cm

YARN REQUIRED:
Two colours of any fingering weight yarn that you can get gauge with. I recommend using two yarns with some similar colour tones and speckles for a more subtle fade. Contrasting yarn will create more of a stripey look rather than a fade, but either way is fine for the test!

I used Knitpicks Muse Fingering (423 yds per 100 g ball) in Delight (Colour A) and Enthusiasm (Colour B).

YARDAGE REQUIRED:
note the yardage/weight varies between different fingering weight yarn, so if you are using alternative yarns, make sure to calculate based on the yardage not the weight.

X-Small: ~13 grams/56 yards of Colour A, ~36 grams/150 yards of Colour B
Small: ~14 grams/60 yards of Colour A, ~41 grams/172 yards of Colour B
Medium: ~15 grams/65 yards of Colour A, ~46 grams/195 yards of Colour B
Large: ~16 grams/69 yards of Colour A, ~52 grams/220 yards of Colour B
X-Large: ~18 grams/78 yards of Colour A, ~64 grams/268 yards of Colour B

Yardage is an approximation. I have included a fair bit of foot length for each size so this should accommodate all foot lengths. If you have extremely long feet, I would go with a little extra yardage just to be safe!