My Favorite Lace Ankle Sock Pattern: Simone Ankle Socks
There is something deeply satisfying about finishing a pair of handknitted socks. You hold them up, still warm from the needles, and you know that every stitch was placed there by your own hands. But lace socks? Lace socks are something else entirely. They have that extra layer of magic — the way the light passes through the eyelets, the way the pattern dances across your foot, the way you feel just a little proud every time you slip them on. That is exactly the feeling I get every single time I knit the Simone Ankle Socks, and today I want to tell you everything about why this pattern has become my absolute favorite.
I have knitted a lot of sock patterns over the years. Plain stockinette socks, ribbed socks, cabled socks, colorwork socks — you name it, I have probably attempted it at least once. And while I treasure all of them in their own way, the Simone Ankle Socks hold a truly special place in my heart and in my yarn basket. Whether you are a seasoned sock knitter looking for something elegant to add to your rotation, or a newer knitter who is just starting to dip your toes into lace, I think this pattern has something beautiful to offer you.
Let me walk you through everything — the pattern itself, the yarn choices, the techniques involved, my personal tips and tricks, and why I keep coming back to this design again and again.
What Are the Simone Ankle Socks?
The Simone Ankle Socks are a delicate, feminine lace ankle sock pattern that features a repeating lace motif running along the leg and across the top of the foot. They are worked from the cuff down, which is the style most traditional sock knitters are comfortable with, though the pattern is clear enough that an experienced toe-up knitter could adapt it without too much trouble.
The ankle length makes them incredibly practical. They are perfect for warmer months when you want the cozy comfort of a handknitted sock without overheating, and they tuck beautifully into sneakers, loafers, ballet flats, or low boots. The lace detail peeks out just enough to be noticed without being showy, which is exactly the kind of knitting I love most — functional and beautiful at the same time.
What sets the Simone pattern apart from other lace sock patterns I have tried is the balance. The lace portion is meaningful and pretty without being so complex that you lose your place every few rows. The heel and sole are worked in simple stockinette, which gives your hands and mind a little rest before diving back into the decorative section. It is the kind of pattern that rewards you with something gorgeous without punishing you with an impossible learning curve.
The Yarn: Choosing the Right Fiber for Lace Socks
Yarn choice for a lace sock pattern matters more than it does for a plain stockinette sock, and I want to spend some time talking about this because it can genuinely make or break your finished object.
For the Simone Ankle Socks, you want a yarn that is smooth, has good stitch definition, and is strong enough to hold up to the wear and tear that socks inevitably face. Lace patterns do not show up well in fuzzy or highly textured yarns — the halo of a mohair blend, for example, will completely swallow your eyelets and make all that careful yarn-over work invisible. Save the fuzzy yarns for simple stockinette.
My personal recommendation is a fingering weight sock yarn with a high twist. The high twist helps the stitches pop, which means your lace pattern will be crisp and clear. A nylon content of around 20 to 25 percent adds durability, which is especially important in the heel and toe areas.
Some of my favorite yarns for this pattern include:
Malabrigo Sock: This is a superwash merino yarn that comes in the most breathtaking hand-dyed colorways you have ever seen. It has lovely stitch definition, a beautiful sheen, and a softness that makes wearing the finished socks feel like a luxury. For the Simone pattern, I particularly love using semi-solid or tonal colorways because they let the lace speak for itself. Variegated colorways can compete visually with the lace motif and muddy the effect.
Cascade Heritage: A more affordable option that does not sacrifice quality. Heritage is a wool and nylon blend with a high twist, and it produces incredibly clear stitch definition. If you are knitting the Simone Socks for the first time and you are not sure how the pattern will go, this is a great yarn to practice with.
Madelinetosh Tosh Sock: Another hand-dyed option with gorgeous depth of color. Tosh Sock is a bit lighter in weight than some fingering yarns, which makes it breathable and ideal for warm-weather socks.
Lorna’s Laces Shepherd Sock: A classic choice for a reason. This yarn is reliably consistent, washes beautifully, and the solid and semi-solid shades are absolutely stunning in lace patterns.
Whatever yarn you choose, make sure you swatch. I know, I know — swatching is the part every knitter wants to skip. But for socks, gauge matters, and for lace socks specifically, your gauge in the lace pattern section can differ from your gauge in plain stockinette. Do yourself the favor of knitting a small swatch in both the lace pattern and in stockinette, measure carefully, and adjust your needle size accordingly. Your feet will thank you.
Needles and Tools
The Simone Ankle Socks are designed for a US size 1 or 1.5 needle (2.25mm to 2.5mm), depending on your tension. Most sock knitters work on double-pointed needles or a long circular using the magic loop method. Both work beautifully for this pattern, and the choice comes down entirely to personal preference.
I personally am a magic loop knitter. I find that it gives me more consistent tension and I lose fewer needles down the side of the sofa. If you have never tried magic loop, ankle socks are actually a wonderful place to start because the circumference is small enough that magic loop is genuinely more manageable than wrestling with a set of five double-pointed needles.
You will also want a tapestry needle for finishing, stitch markers to mark the beginning of your round and the start of your lace repeats, and a small cable needle or locking stitch marker to hold stitches if you need to rip back.
One tool I cannot knit lace without is a row counter. Whether you use a physical click counter, a ring counter that sits on your finger, or an app on your phone, keeping track of which row of the lace repeat you are on will save you enormous frustration. Lace knitting requires a relationship between your yarn-overs and your decreases, and losing your place can mean a significant amount of tinking or frogging.
Understanding the Lace Pattern
The lace motif in the Simone Ankle Socks is built around a combination of yarn-overs, knit-two-togethers, and slip-slip-knits. If you have ever knitted even a simple eyelet row, you already understand the basic building blocks of what this pattern asks of you.
A yarn-over creates a new stitch and leaves a decorative hole — that is your eyelet, the airy part of the lace. To keep your stitch count consistent, every yarn-over must be paired with a decrease. In this pattern, the decreases are either knit-two-together (k2tog), which leans to the right, or slip-slip-knit (ssk), which leans to the left. The direction of the lean matters because it creates the flowing, directional quality of the lace pattern. When you follow the chart or written instructions carefully, those leaning decreases guide the eye along a path that makes the lace look intentional and structured, not random.
The lace portion of the Simone Socks runs along the entire leg section and continues over the instep (the top of the foot) while the sole is worked in plain stockinette. This is a common construction for lace socks and it makes the knitting feel nicely varied — lace on the top, plain on the bottom, and you spend less time worrying about whether the lace is sitting flat against your arch.
One technique tip I always share with knitters attempting lace for the first time: read ahead. Before you start each row or round, read the instructions for the entire row so you know what is coming. Lace knitting requires you to think a stitch or two ahead, and understanding the shape of what you are making helps you catch mistakes before they travel too far.
The Heel
The Simone Ankle Socks use a traditional heel flap and gusset construction, which is my personal favorite heel for any sock. I love a heel flap because it creates a slightly denser, more reinforced fabric right where your heel takes the most wear. You can even slip stitches on the heel flap rows to add extra durability — a technique called a slip stitch heel — and it is worth doing if you are a hard-wearing sock user.
The gusset pickup is one of those moments in sock knitting that can feel intimidating the first time and completely intuitive every time after. You pick up stitches along the sides of the heel flap, work a few decrease rounds to shape the gusset, and then you are back to your regular round count knitting the foot. The pattern walks you through each step clearly, and there are wonderful photo tutorials available online if you are a visual learner.
Why I Keep Coming Back to This Pattern
I have knitted the Simone Ankle Socks in at least a dozen colorways at this point, and I am nowhere near tired of them. That tells you something, because I am someone who usually likes to move on to the next project quickly. The Simone Socks keep calling me back, and I have spent some time thinking about why.
Part of it is the rhythm. Once you have the lace pattern memorized — which happens faster than you expect — knitting the Simone Socks becomes almost meditative. Your hands know where they are going, the pattern flows naturally, and you can knit while watching television or sitting in a café without losing your place. That combination of engaging enough to be satisfying and relaxed enough to be calming is genuinely rare in a lace pattern.
Part of it is the versatility. A pair of Simone Socks in a dusty rose semi-solid looks completely different from a pair knitted in deep navy, which looks different again from a pair in warm oatmeal. The lace pattern changes character depending on the color and sheen of the yarn you choose. I have gifted these socks to friends with wildly different style sensibilities and every single one of them has loved them.
Part of it is the wearability. These are not socks you knit and then keep in a drawer because they feel too precious to wear. They hold up beautifully with proper sock yarn and proper care, and they are comfortable enough for everyday wear. That practical quality matters a lot to me. I want my handknits to be used and loved, not just admired.
And part of it, honestly, is the way they make me feel while I am knitting them. There is something about lace that feels ambitious and accomplished even when the pattern is genuinely accessible. Every time I cast on a new pair, I feel that little flutter of excitement — the anticipation of watching a beautiful pattern emerge one stitch at a time.
Tips for Success
A few things I have learned through many, many pairs of Simone Socks that I think will make your experience smoother:
Block your finished socks. Blocking lace is not optional — it is transformative. Wet blocking opens up the eyelets, evens out the stitches, and makes the lace pattern fully visible. What looks like a slightly muddy fabric on the needles will bloom into something beautiful after a good soak and blocking. Pin the socks out to their full dimensions on a blocking mat and let them dry completely before wearing.
Use lifelines. If you are new to lace knitting, thread a lifeline — a piece of smooth, contrasting yarn — through your stitches at the end of every completed lace repeat. If you make a mistake and need to rip back, your stitches are safe on the lifeline and you do not have to unravel hours of work.
Knit both socks at the same time if you are prone to second sock syndrome. Magic loop knitters can easily cast on two socks and work them simultaneously on one long circular needle. It takes a little setup patience, but it means you always finish with a matching pair rather than one beautiful sock and one lonely cast-on waiting months to be started.
Count your stitches regularly. After every lace row, count to make sure you have the right number of stitches. A missed yarn-over or an accidental double decrease is much easier to fix when you catch it immediately than when you discover it three pattern repeats later.
Do not be afraid to adjust the leg length. The Simone pattern gives you a specific number of lace repeats for the leg, but you can easily add or subtract a repeat to customize the height of the cuff to your liking. Some people prefer a slightly taller ankle sock, and some prefer something that barely peeks above the shoe. Both are beautiful choices.
Final Thoughts
If you have been hesitant to try a lace sock pattern, I genuinely encourage you to let the Simone Ankle Socks be your first. The pattern is well-written, the construction is logical, and the finished result is so beautiful that you will want to knit pair after pair. Whether you are knitting for yourself, as a gift for someone special, or simply because you want the pleasure of working with a gorgeous pattern and lovely yarn, the Simone Ankle Socks will not disappoint you.
Lace knitting has a reputation for being difficult, but the truth is that most lace patterns are built from a small vocabulary of techniques that become easy with just a little practice. The Simone Socks give you a wonderful place to build that vocabulary while producing something genuinely wearable and lovely.
Get yourself some beautiful sock yarn in a color that makes you happy, wind it into a cake, and cast on. I promise that the first time you pull a finished pair of Simone Ankle Socks off your needles and hold them up to the light, watching the lace pattern catch and release the light through all those little eyelets, you will understand exactly why this pattern has become my favorite lace ankle sock of all time.
Happy knitting.
