re-knit heels

Nancy@4 wrote

on Mar 20, 2009 2:30 PM

 Help, I've knit a pair of heavier cotton socks for my daughter and guess what, she's worn the heels through.  There must be a way to reknit the heels but I haven't got a clue what to do.  Can you help.  I love knitting socks, two at a time on circular needles and as a new knitter am thrilled that I can create something useful.

JoeR wrote

on Mar 20, 2009 3:10 PM

 There's a a blogger named "Yarmando" who talks about reknitting heels in a recent post.  If you search for him on Google, etc. you should be able to find it.  There is fairly clear guidelines, although his talks about toe-up socks.  Top-down should be fairly similar.  I do have an old German, English-language, knitting book that talks of reheeling in a similar fashion, picking up the various stitches after cutting out the side parts, knitting the heel and grafting it into place.  Another section also says to do the heel removal, pick up the stitches in the area and make a "peasant heel" by knitting a toe on those stitches.  (The same premise as the "Afterthought Heel" EZ talks about.)  Sounds like a challenge but probably not too bad.  Lots of luck. - Joe 

AndreaW wrote

on Mar 20, 2009 9:23 PM

 Hi...

I was hoping that Patons might have an example of their "Aladdin heel" fr the 1950's (?) on their website...but I can't find it if so!   I know I have it somewhere in an old book???

I did find this blog w/ some pics + description. The bottom 2 pics seem to illustrate it best. This is assuming you are talking about replacing heels that have a flap down the back, then a bit of shaping @ the bottom, pick up sts along side of flap + decrease back down to orig # of sts?

http://aknittersnatter.blogspot.com/2008/07/my-socks.html     an example of an Aladdin heel being replaced

I regularly replace heels...but mine are usually short row heels. I have done the peasant heel that Joe mentions on a new pr of "Jaywalkers" to try it...I liked it but used extra sts than normal around the opening. I intend to try it as a replacement next time I have to replace a heel. The advantage to this style....fewer sts to graft + you can try it on as you go. Have replaced a few "heel flap" heels too. I always make top-down socks.

If you think this may become a reg "habit"...think about knitting 1 row across the bottom of future heels w/ a contrast color to make it easier to rip out later. Then just go back + reknit those same sts w/ the main yarn + keep going.  Darn in the ends of the CC loosely on the inside. It will look a bit like the grafting in the final pic fr the blog above.

When I first knit socks w/ short row heels...I always use a separate ball of yarn. That way if I pick out the extra tails on the inside @ replacement time...I can tell where the heel stops + starts.

You might want to consider adding in an extra strand of some thin reinforcement in the area prone to wear. My husband I + are really hard on the spot right under the heel...I pivot all the time in sock feet.

   Good luck w/ the replacement.... Andrea