This is the chart for my Icelandic Horses Xmas Stocking, adapted from ChemKnit’s KAB stocking using her Excel chart-making tutorial. It is a top down sock, knit in the round, so the chart should be turned upside down and read from the bottom up, right to left. Please see the pattern posted on her blog for the full instructions on constructing the stocking: http://www.chemknits.com/2010/09/kab-stocking-pattern.html

I did this on 16” circular 10.5 needles, switching to magic loop for the toe and heel. The entire pattern can be knit on dpns or magic loop if preferred.

Cast on 70 stitches in color of your choice, placing a marker every ten stitches (corresponds to the heavy black grid line in the chart). Work 3 rounds in 1x1 rib, then begin chart.

The horses’ manes, tails and hooves are knit in the same color as the horse’s body, with contrast color added by duplicate stitching at finishing stage. This simplifies the number of skeins you are working with at any given time and remains true to the fair isle technique. The same for the flowers in the band above the toe. They are knit in green, with the blossom color added at finishing in duplicate stitch. Horses manes and tails can be made more “3D” by rug hooking the duplicate stitch contrast color and leaving the ends loose on the outside of the stocking - in this way you get a flowing mane and tail.

The yellow band represents a place holder for the afterthought heel. Knit the yellow boxes, turn the work and purl those same stitches. The black boxes in the same row are not knit.

I recommend weaving in ends and doing any duplicate stitching before beginning toe and heel construction. Your live stitches from the last row of the chart should remain on the needles ready to begin the toe at this point.

I also modified the heel on magic loop to make it a little deeper and less like a backwards toe:

Pick up the 70 stitches and cut away the waste yarn.
Knit TWO rounds even across
Knit one round: (k5, k2tog) repeating to end of rounds
Knit TWO rounds even across
Knit one round: (k4, k2tog) repeating to end of round
Knit TWO rounds even across
Knit one round: (k3, k2tog) repeating to end of round
Knit ONE round even across
Knit ONE Row even across, stopping 3 stitches before end of first side of magic loop, then k2tog, k2tog, k2tog (this will use up the SIX stitches spanning the first “loop” of the magic loop, 3 on each side), knit across, again stopping 3 stitches before end of second side of magic loop, then k2tog, k2tog, k2tog as before
K2tog for remainder until you are left with 5-6 stitches, pull yarn through remaining stitches then weave in ends.