Flip Flop socks on a Superba

I saw some directions for CSM flipflop socks, and I was not impressed.  Between the big toe and the first toe, there were two seams!  In addition, the pattern did not take into account that the total of circumference of the big toe plus the circumference of the rest of the toes is 4 or 5 cm more than the circumference of all 5 toes together.   Throw in my love for my sock-making superba, and you've got a blog post.

Flip flop socks should not be a joke or a punchline.  Yes, it's an inherently funny look, but only if you are not wearing flipflops.  My flipflop loving 'customers' want a season-extending, suitable for public admiration, sock.

Here's a superba pattern for the serious flipflop sock.

Sized for women's medium ( shoe size 7 - 8 1/2)

Written for 8 st and 11 rows to the inch for the stockinet.  Check your gauge on both beds.

Sock yarn- opal, berocco, online, 2/12 or two strands of 2/24.

Cast on from 32 L to 32 R- I used 2x2 industrial rib. beds at half pitch,  Zigzag at 1, circular rows at 3.5, and rib at 4.5.  Knit in rib to RC 63.  Transfer all stitches to the back bed.
Change tension to 5.5 on both carriages.  Put all empty needles out of work. Knit one row. Take the stitches from 0 to 32R off on decker comb, and put them on the left side front bed, from 32L to 0.  Lightly weight the web.
Set beds to 'flow combs opposite.  Set both carriages to C
Set row counter to 0.  Knit 20 rounds plain.  Row counter reads 40.
Set front carriage to 0, set back carriage to V.
Turn a shortrow heel on the back bed.  Decrease down to 10 center stitches, then back up.
When heel is complete, return to Circular setup.  Set Row counter to 0
Foot:  Knit circular for 65 rounds, Row counter is 130.  If carriages are not on the right, knit across to the right.  (for the right sock)
Set row counter to 0.
And now for the tricky part.
Using Decker combs, and working on the left side, the side with the opening in the rib, (because this is the right sock), take 11 stitches off the back bed and 11 stitches off the front. Let the decker combs drop between the beds and take the empty needles out of work. You have 21 stitches on each bed,  On the toe side, bring two extra needles into work on both beds.  You are going to e-wrap these 4 needles to increase to 23 stitches each bed, over the next two rounds.
Knit to the left (front bed)  With carriage on the left, e-wrap the two end needles on the front bed, then e-wrap the two empty needles at the beginning of the backbed row.  Raise the two e-wrapped back bed needles to holding position.  Knit to the right.  Back bed row knitted, and two e-wrapped needles are not yet knitted, and are still in hold postition.   With carriage at right, use an eyelet tool to lower the back bed e-wrapped needles to b position.  Then, use the eyelet tool to raise the front bed e-wrapped needles.  Set the front carriage to knit back the raised needles.  Knit to the left.
With carriage at left, raise the two back bed e-wrapped needles again, and this time set the rear carriage to knit back the raised needles. Knit to the right.
RC =4.
Decreases- On the right side, on both the front and back beds, move the outside 3 stitches in by one stitch, doubling up the 3rd and 4 th stitch.  Knit 2 rounds.  RC = 8. Repeat until RC = 36.
When RC is 36, 40, and 44, set up decreases on both the left and right sides of the both beds.
RC = 48 - take off on waste yarn.
Back to the toe.
RC back to 0
Carriage at right
Put the toe stitches on 11 back bed needles and 11 front bed needles.  On the left (should be the inside side) side of the toe, raise 2 more needles on both beds.  On these needles, pick up the four e-wrap stitches you added to the first section.
Knit 18 rounds (RC = 36)  Decrease 1 stitch, both sides, both beds, and knit 2 rounds-
RC 40 and RC 44,  Repeat the decrease round.
RC 48- take off on waste yarn.
Kitchener the toes.  Seam the ribbing.

Make the left sock reversing all shapings.  I keep the right sock handy for comparison.  Big clue:  As the sock is hanging on the machine, the seam side of the ribbing is on the left for the right sock, and on the right for the left sock.  The big toe is on the left for the right sock, and on the right for the left sock

Here are the toe stitches on decker combs, which will be allowed to drop below the beds

This shows the 4 e-wrapped stitches for the first toes section

This shows the stitches for the big toe back on needles,along with
 those 4 ewrapped stitches on the inside of the toe.

This shows the 4 stitches addded to the toes, and then picked up for the big toe.

just need to kitchener and seam.

.  This is how I get through these socks without having to look at my feet!

If you make two lefts, You may not have to rip back and rehang if you have enough yarn to make two rights.  If you make three lefts, you are on your own.

I hope you will give this a try- When you have done it once, you will be able to put this divided toe onto any sock.