Cotton Socks

Size: Woman or Large Youth/Big Guy*
Materials: Yarn: 8/2 cotton (unmercerized), held double**
Needles: Size 1 US set of double pointed needles (or size to obtain gauge).
Gauge: 8 sts/inch in stockinette stitch/12 sts/inch in K2, P2 ribbing***

Pattern
Cast on 68/80 stitches. Distribute evenly over 4 needles and join, being careful not to twist. Mark/note beginning of round. Knit 1 *Purl 2, Knit 2 repeat from * around, ending Knit 1 (K2, P2 ribbing). Continue in ribbing until sock is approximately 6" from beginning.
Begin heel flap: At beginning of round, knit across 16/20 stitches (move remaining stitches if any to next needle). Turn. Slip first stitch, purl across 32/40 stitches (move remaining stitches, if any to next needle). Turn. You will work the heel on these 32/40 stitches. Hold remaining stitches for the instep.
Row 1: Slip (sl) first stitch, (K 1, sl 1) across.
Row 2: Slip 1st stitch, purl across.
Repeat rows 1 & 2 until heel flap is approximately square or 15/17 more times if you're counting. Work Row 1 once.
Turn heel: Sl 1, purl 16/20, purl 2 together (P2 Tog), purl 1, turn.
Row 1: Sl 1, knit 3, ssk (slip one stitch as if to knit, slip another stitch as if to knit, move both stitches back to the left needle and knit them together through the back loops), knit 1, turn.
Row 2: Sl 1, purl 4, P2 Tog, purl 1, turn.
Continue to work rows 1 & 2, working one more stitch before the SSK or P2 Tog (these will be the stitches on either side of the turning gap "Mind the Gap" hee hee) until you have worked all the stitches. End with a knit row. Do not turn!
Pick up 16/18 stitches along the side of the heel flap. (Don't worry if you're off a stitch or two either way. Just remember the number and be sure to pick up the same number on the other side of the heel flap.) Pick up one stitch between the heel stitches and the instep stitches, then work the instep stitches in the established ribbing pattern.**** Pick up a second stitch between the instep stitches and the other side of the heel. Then pick up and knit 16/18 stitches along the side of the heel. Work 1/2 the stitches remaining from the heel. Your beginning of round should be back where it was before you started your heel. You will have 38/42 stitches for your instep (needles 2 and 3, or just 2 if you're working with 4 needles) and the same number of stitches on each of the other two needles. Knit the stitches on needle one, K2 Tog on the next needle (beginning of instep), work to the last two instep stitches, SSK. (You have 36/40 instep stiches. These extra picked up stitches at the heel/instep juncture neaten up the join so there're no gappy holes there.)
Decrease Gusset Stitches: Round 1: Knit to last 3 stitches on Needle 1, K2 Tog, K 1. Work across instep stitches in established pattern, on Last Needle K1, SSK, knit to end.
Round 2: Knit all stitches Needle 1, work instep stitches in established pattern, knit all stitches on Last Needle.
Repeat these two rows until there are the same number of stitches you started with -- 68/80. Continue working even until sock is about 2" shorter than desired length.
Toe Shaping Note: I'm kind of picky about my toe shaping. If you can do something nifty fairly easily, why not? I shape my toes for the right/left foot. You can certainly ignore this and choose one or the other to work on both feet if you like. Knitter's choice.
Right Foot Toe Shaping: Work to the last 2 sts on Needle 1, K2 Tog. Knit to 2 stitches less than 1/2 of instep stitches (this is where working with 5 needles is handy) K2 Tog, work to last 2 sts on needle, K2 Tog, work to last 2 sts on Last Needle, K2 Tog.
Next round: Knit around even.
Repeat these two rounds until 10/12 stitches remain in each quadrant (40/48 stitches total), then work decrease (first) round every round until 8 sts total remain. Cut yarn, and thread through these 8 stitches, pull tight and secure to finish off.
Left Foot Toe Shaping: SSK, knit to end of Needle 1, SSK, work remaining half of instep stitches, SSK, knit to end of instep stitches, on Last needle SSK, knit to end of round.
Next Round: Knit around.
Repeat these two rounds until 10/12 stitches remain in each quadrant (40/48 stitches total), then work decrease (first) round every round until 8 sts total remain. Cut yarn, and thread through these 8 stitches, pull tight and secure to finish off.

*You can size these up or down by increasing/decreasing by a multiple of 4. Use the closest multiple of 4 to half your stitch count for the heel flap -- round down to get it if you need to. The stockinette for the flap and bottom of the foot will pull in less, and the fit won't be compromised. That's why the smaller size above uses 32 sts for the heel instead of 34 (half).

**This is a weaving yarn and is available through weaving supply retailers. Try Here or Here. You can substitute any other 8/2 yarn (Bamboo! Cotton/linen! Tencel! Silk!) but they'll be more expensive. You can also use a 5/2 mercerized cotton by itself, but this is also more expensive, and you will need to swatch for gauge. See first note for re-sizing. The 8/2 cotton is pretty inexpensive, ranging from $6 to $14 a pound which is alot of yarn. (Some places will sell you a half pound, but I've not really seen it sold less than that.) That's why I don't list an amount. You'll have more than enough for a pair. And it comes in like a million colors. See if you can get a friend or two to split it with you. If all else fails you can always e-mail me, I love the socks I knit.

***My test socks shrank about 10% both length and width-wise when put through the washer and dryer. But when tried on, they stretched easily back to their original size. Make your socks to fit exactly (no ease) and they should be fine. Oh yeah, did I mention washer and dryer? With your jeans? Easy care.

****This is why you started the ribbing with a single knit stitch. It ends up centering the ribbing on the instep. Cool, huh? It's not crucial, but purls at the ends of needles tend to be looser than otherwise. (Even if you pull tight, it's a spatial thing.) This eliminates that.