Once, on my lunch break, I walked past a shop window with the most amazing knee-high gladiator sandals. Their lacing was a little out of the ordinary, and they would have suited Angelina Jolie as Olympias in Alexander. The lacing wouldn’t leave my mind, so when a yarn shop owner asked me to design something for her yarns, I knew right away I wanted to turn those laces into cables on socks.

Antarctica is a pair of toe-up cable socks. The cables begin on the instep and, after the heel, wind around the whole leg like sandal laces.

New in 2026: Version 3.0

• Completely rewritten, with stitch markers instead of needle numbers, so it works with DPNs, magic loop or whatever setup you like
• A new, narrower foot chart
• A new leg chart with a repeat: knit the leg as long as you like, and the smaller sizes get a full leg too
• Written instructions for every chart round
• Now in Finnish too (varpaista varteen)
• The cuff-down version was retired, but has now been restored.

If you already own Antarctica, the new files are waiting in your Ravelry library.

Construction
Knitted in the round from the toe up (or cuff down): Judy’s Magic Cast-On toe, a short-row heel with shadow wraps and a ribbed cuff. Charted and written.

Sizes
Shoe size EU 36 [37, 38, 39, 40, 41, 42] / US 5.5–11.5 / UK 3.5–9.5
Foot length 22 [23, 24, 24.5, 25.5, 26, 27] cm / 8.75–10.75 in
The leg length is adjustable, and the pattern explains how to add width for a wider calf.

You’ll need

• Yarn: 150 g of sport weight sock yarn, about 420 m / 459 yd (280 m / 100 g). Sample knitted in Zwerger Garn Opal Uni Solid 6-ply, colour 5300.
• Needles: 4.5 mm (US 7) DPNs or an 80 cm (32 in) circular for magic loop, or the size needed to obtain gauge
• Notions: a cable needle, 4 stitch markers and a tapestry needle
• Gauge: 22 sts and 30 rows = 10 cm (4 in) in stockinette

Suomeksi
Antarctica-sukat ovat palmikkosukat, jotka neulotaan varpaista varteen. Palmikot alkavat jalkapöydältä ja kiertävät kantapään jälkeen koko varren kuin gladiaattorisandaalien nauhat. Ohje on uudistettu kokonaan vuonna 2026: puikkojen numeroinnin sijaan käytetään silmukkamerkkejä, ja varren kaaviossa on toistoalue, jonka avulla varren pituutta on helppo säätää.

• Koot: EU 36 (37) 38 (39) 40 (41) 42
• Jalkaterän pituus: 22 (23) 24 (24,5) 25,5 (26) 27 cm
• Lanka: 150 g sport-vahvuista sukkalankaa, noin 420 m
• Puikot: 4,5 mm sukkapuikot tai 80 cm:n pyöröpuikko magic loop -neuleeseen
• Neuletiheys: 22 s ja 30 krs sileää neuletta = 10 cm
• Ohjeessa on kaaviot ja kirjoitetut ohjeet.

På svenska
Antarctica är flätsockor som stickas från tån och uppåt. Flätorna börjar på fotens ovansida och slingrar sig efter hälen runt hela skaftet som snörena på gladiatorsandaler. Mönstret är helt omskrivet 2026: i stället för numrerade stickor används markörer, och skaftdiagrammet har en upprepning så att skaftets längd är lätt att justera.

• Storlekar: EU 36 (37) 38 (39) 40 (41) 42
• Fotens längd: 22 (23) 24 (24,5) 25,5 (26) 27 cm
• Garn: 150 g sportgarn, cirka 420 m
• Stickor: 4,5 mm strumpstickor eller 80 cm rundsticka för magic loop
• Stickfasthet: 22 m och 30 v slätstickning = 10 cm
• Mönstret har diagram och skrivna instruktioner.

Share your socks with #antarcticasocks and #fromtheartesanitarium, and tag me @artesanitarium on Instagram!