Booties in the round

Pattern for baby booties knit in the round



I couldn't find a pattern I liked for booties in bulky yarn. Most of the patterns I found had boxy heels, which simply don't work. For the same reason we make shaped heels in adult socks I believe in shaped heels for booties. If I was going to have to reinvent the wheel I figured I might as well do it in the round and save myself a seam.

Size
3-9 months (this is a guess, they fit my 6 month old daughter very well but still have some stretch)
4 1/4" long, 4 1/2" foot circumference

Materials
Bulky weight yarn
Size 9 double pointed needles or circular needle
tapestry needle for weaving in ends
Crochet hook for making tie cord (optional)

Pattern
CO 22 stitches using Judy's Magic Cast On, you should have 11 stitches on each needle.

Row 1 Knit 1st needle, knit second needle through the back leg of the stitch (per magic cast on directions)
Row 2 *p1, m1, p to last stitch on needle, m1, p1* repeat on second needle
Row 3 *k1, m1, k to last stitch on needle, m1, k1* repeat on second needle
Row 4 *p1, m1, p to last stitch on needle, m1, p1* repeat on second needle, 34 stitches
Row 5 k 1 round
Row 6 p 1 round
Row 7 k20 k2tog, turn
Row 8 slip a stitch with yarn in front, p6 p2tog, turn
Row 9 slip a stitch with yarn in back, k6, k2tog, turn
Row 10 slip a stitch with yarn in front, p6 p2tog, turn
Repeat rows 9 and 10 3 more times, 24 stitches
K to end of row
p 1 round

Optional eyelet rows:
k1, *yo, p2tog* repeat to last stitch in round, k1
k1 round until last stitch, k2tog (joining last stitch in this row and first stitch in next) 24 stitches

k1 p1 ribbing for approximately 3 inches
Bind off using Jeny's Surprisingly Stretchy Bind Off

Weave in ends
Make a 16" crochet chain to use as a tie and weave it through the eyelets.

Ravelry link

Here's a modification for newborn size as worked out by the talented Naolhug on Ravelry:

With size 8 needles, CO 16 stitches.
Rows 1-4: same as original pattern, with 28 stitches total at the end of round four.
Rows 5-6: Same as original pattern.
Row 7: K16, k2tog, turn
Row 8: Slip a stitch with yarn in front, p4, p2tog, turn
Row 9: Slip a stitch with yarn in back, k4, k2tog, turn
Row 10: Slip a stitch with yarn in front, p4, p2tog, turn
Repeat rows 9 and 10 two more times, 20 stitches

The last purl turning row (the final repetition of row 10) should be like this: Slip a stitch with yarn in front, p4, p2tog, turn, then…
Next row: s1k, then knit to end of row
(I s1k instead of just knitting that first stitch because it seemed like if I knit it, it would cause a bigger gap between that stitch and the ones the had just been turned… if that makes any sense)
P 1 round (same as original pattern)

Rest of pattern (k1/p1 ribbing and optional eyelet rows) are the same as original pattern.

Another note: I made a two-stitch eye cord instead of a crochet chain, because a) I’m a terrible crocheter, and b) I-cords seemed like they would hold up and be a little stronger, which may in fact be due to… me being a terrible crocheter. :)