Czech these slippers out

My sister in law is Czech, and it is the done thing out there for guests to be given a pair of knitted slippers to be worn when they come to their home. I haven’t got one in front of me to copy, but this is what they look like from memory.   They’re a quick and simple knit, a couple of hours each if you’re a quick-ish knitter.

50 grams-ish of DK or lightweight aran (Worsted to our American friends)

4 mm needles (or 4.5 mm if you knit tightly like me)

Tension –  21 st   and 42 rows in 10cm x 10cm gauge square

Cast on 36 sts

Rows 1 & 2 – k whole row

Row 3 – k14, inc in next st, k 6, inc in next st, k14 (38 sts)

Rows 4 – 6 – k3 rows

Row 7 – k15, inc in next st, k6, inc in next st, k15 (40 sts)

Rows 8 – 10 – k3 rows

Row 11 – k16, inc in next st, k6, inc  following the pattern above (42sts)

Row 12 – k1 row

Row 13 – k 17 inc in next st, k6, inc  following the pattern above….. (44)

Row 14 – k1 row

Row 15 – k18 inc in next st, k6, inc  following the pattern above (46)

Row 16 – k1 row

Keep knitting each row until slipper measures 10cm for shoe size 3 – 5 (UK)  or  12 cm  for a shoe size 6 – 8 (UK) ending with a WS

Decrease Slipper

Row 1   K2, k2tog, knit to last 4 sts, k2tog, k2

Row 2   k1 row

Continue these 2 rows until there are 16 stitches are left ending with a WS

Row 3   k2, sl1, k2tog, psso, knit to last 5 sts, sl1, k2tog, psso, k2

Row 4   K1 row

Row 5    k2, sl1, k2tog, psso, knit to last 5 sts, sl1, k2tog, psso, k2

Purse string those stitches together and then sew up the from of the slipper where you have been decreasing.  Then sew up the back of the slipper – your initial cast on.

You can embellish these to your hearts content!

Increase in next stitch – I prefer to knit into the front and the back of this stitch rather than picking up a stitch between stitches myself. I just think that it looks neater.