Reversing Shaping

Occasionally my colleagues or I get a complaint from a new sweater knitter that “reversing all shaping” is too confusing (or, with some less polite knitters, too “lazy”) an instruction. Since I know this is a common instruction that pops up in many patterns, I thought I’d create a post explaining what it means.

Increases

Increases are generally more subtle than decreases, and typically with a kfb or an m1, you can continue doing just that. However, if your pattern’s author has specified a leaning increase, you will need to reverse it. So, an M1R becomes and M1L and vice versa. Raised (or lifted) increases are nearly invisible to begin with, but if you’re feeling nit-picky, a left-leaning increase is made by knitting into the stitch below the one you just knit. A right-leaning increase is made by knitting into the stitch below the one you’re about to knit. A YO increase can technically be wrapped in the opposite direction too, referred to as a reverse yarn over (rev YO), backward yarn over (BYO), or yarn forward (yfwd) – this last one is extra dangerous because it is something different in British knitting terms. As you can see by the lack of consensus on a name for this technique, it doesn’t get used often. To be honest, this one is a slight enough difference that I generally don’t bother.

You can see how much less noticeable the increases (near the arm) are than the decreases (near the hip).

Decreases

Decreases tend to be more visible than increases, so reversing this one can be important. The most common decreases are ssk and k2tog, which are each other’s mirrors. An skp can also be used to mirror a k2tog, and the unusual KRPR (knit-return-pass-return) can be used to mirror an ssk. Skp and KRPR are softer decreases than their more popular cousins. With 3+ stitch decreases, mirroring is often less important because they are more often central decreases. The exceptions are k3tog and its reverse, sssk.

Decreases are more obvious.

Placement

This part seems to confuse people the most, but is actually the most simple when you look at the piece as a whole. If the initial instructions tell you to increase (or decrease) at each neck edge, you continue to do so. However, pretend for example that you BO 3 stitches at the neck edge by working an immediate BO on the RS, and then knitting even to the end of the row. Now you’ll decrease at the neck edge on WS rows, by BO 3 stitches and then purling even to the end of the row. Ordinary decreases and increases can typically still be worked on the same type of row (RS or WS) as on the opposite side, just make sure you’re reversing the type of decrease and you’re still decreasing at the correct side (neck or armhole). If you were instructed to decrease at the neck edge and were decreasing at the end of the row on the left side, you will decrease at the beginning of the row on the right side in order to continue to decrease at the neck edge. This makes perfect sense when you actually look a the garment to see where your neck will go, but can be confusing if you’re just working the the abstract.

Don’t mix up your armhole and neck edges!

It’s really not as confusing as all that text makes it look, I promise! Doing it with the knitting in front of you will make so much more sense. For other confusing “pattern-speak” terms, this is a great resource. To review:

3-Needle Bind Off

The 3-needle bind off is one of my favorites for shoulder seams – it works well with short row shoulders and produces a sturdy seam without too much bulk. It’s also really simple! To begin, you’ll need live stitches on your two working needles, plus a third, larger needle. The larger size is important to keep your bind off from getting tight and puckering.

Step 1

To begin, you’ll need an even number of stitches on each working needle. Hold the needles together with the wrong sides facing outward.

Step 2

Insert your needle through both stitches as if to knit.

Step 3

Wrap your yarn as for a normal knit stitch and pull it through. You will have one stitch on the right needle. Repeat steps 2 and 3, so you have two stitches on the needle.

 

Step 4

Using one of the needles with live stitches, pull the second stitch over the first – just like a normal bind off.

Repeat steps 2 through 4 until you have one stitch left, then finish as normal. Easy!

Grafting Non-stockinette

I’m a big fan of Kitchener stitch, and like to use it to make nice, seamless joins in my stockinette. However, like most knitters I don’t always use stockinette. What if you’re doing sometime more complicated, where the fabric switches back and forth between knits and purls? Something like ribbing, or cables? Can you still graft? Absolutely!

First, a word about garter-stitch grafting. If you can already graft stockinette (click the link above if you need a refresher), you can easily graft garter. All you do is work the back needle’s stitches exactly the same as the front. So, your chant would go “knit, purl, knit, purl” rather than “knit, purl, purl, knit”. Both of your set-up stitches would be identical (as if to purl) as well.

Now, on to the “fancy” stuff.

Set-up Step: Look at the first stitch on the front needle. If it is a knit stitch, slip the needle into it as if to purl, and pull the tail through. If it is a purl stitch, slip the needle into it as if to knit and pull the yarn through. Basically, you will do the opposite of whatever the stitch on the needle is. For the first stitch on the back needle, match your yarn needle to the stitch (if the public side of the yarn is a knit, move as if to knit. For a purl, move as if to purl.)

The order of your next steps will vary based on what you’re knitting. Pick the one that matches what you see on the public side of the next two stitches for each needle. This means that garter stitch and reverse stockinette are both treated as purls.

If your next two stitches are knits:

Work standard Kitchener stitch. Knit, purl, purl, knit.

If your next two stitches are purls:

Work as for the garter instructions above. Knit, purl, knit, purl.

If your next two stitches switch from knit to purl:

This is the only situation you will work differently than if you were grafting stockinette or garter.  Both of your back needle stitches will be worked as if to purl. So, knit, purl, purl, purl.

If your next two stitches switch from purl to knit:

This is like working in stockinette. Knit, purl, purl, knit.

You’ll notice that your treatment of the front needle never changes – you always move as if to knit, then purl. Only your treatment of the back needle ever changes. Additionally, there’s only one specific situation where you don’t work the back needle as you would for stockinette or garter, and that’s when you’re moving from knits to purls. It’s really not at all as complicated as it looks. Try it with the step-by-step a few times, and once you’ve seen yourself do it once or twice it will quickly become intuitive. Go on, try it!

Traveling Loop

So, I’m lazy. Sometimes I’m on a knitting roll, and I just don’t feel like stopping to get up and dig through my mess of a stash to find out if I have dpns in the same size as the needles currently in my sweater, or if I have a second circular needle for Magic Loop (I usually don’t). So if I need to knit a sleeve or neckline or something else with a smaller diameter, I use something I’ve heard referred to as Traveling Loop:

Step 1

 

When I get to the point where I have few enough stitches to make them feel stretched and tight around the cable (this is a totally arbitrary, changeable point) I smoosh the stitches down some on the right needle and pull a length of cable loose.

Step 2

Then I bend the nice, flexible cable into a little loop so that I can continue knitting with the end of the needle as normal. This loop will come together between two stitches.

Step 3

As you can see, the loop stays between the same two stitches, so as the stitches travel closer to your left hand, so does the loop.

Step 4

Eventually, the loop will travel all the way to the end of the left needle, at which point it stops being a loop and you’re left with a bunch of extra cable on the left. Simply pull on the right needle until all the extra cable is gone from the left side, and start again with Step 1.

Alternate Option

Alternatively, you may decide at any point in the round that the stitches are being annoying and tight again, and simply pull the right needle free to move your loop back to the start mid-round.

This is not a method for everyone. If you have a large collection of dpns in all sizes, or lots of redundant circular needles, those methods can be a lot less fiddly. However, if you’re trying to avoid buying another set of needles (or are just too lazy to go find them!), this can be a great workaround.

Cabling Without a Cable Needle

I used to think cabling was an obnoxiously slow process, and I could never find the darn cable needle when I needed one. Then I discovered that I don’t actually need one, and my knitting life was changed forever. Cabling is one of my favorite knitting techniques, and since I’ve been on a serious cabling kick lately, I figure I’ll share the magic. Here are two simple cables you can make without a needle:

Right Leaning 4-Stitch Cables

Step 1

Skipping over the first 2 stitches in your cable, insert the right needle into the front of the 3rd and 4th stitches as if to purl.

Step 2

This is the heart-stopping part, at least the first couple times you do it. Pinch your first 2 stitches tightly, then pull the left needle out of all 4 stitches. As long as you’ve got a good pinch, I promise your stitches will not unravel.

Step 3

Slip the 2 pinched stitches back onto the left needle as if to knit.

Step 4

Slip the other 2 stitches back onto the left needle (also as if to knit), then knit all 4 as normal.

Left Leaning 4-Stitch Cables

Step 1

Skipping over the first 2 stitches in the cable, insert the needle into the back of the 3rd and 4th stitches as if to purl.

Step 2

Pinch the stitches tightly and (gulp!) pull the left needle out of all 4 of them.

Step 3

Slip the pinched stitches back onto the left needle as if to knit.

Step 4

Slip the remaining 2 stitches back onto the left needle (also as if to knit) and knit all 4 as normal.

Et voilà! Cable needle, thou art obsolete.

Massive Productivity

First,

Frost!

the first frost of the season! Just had to share that, because it’s exciting. Now on to the point of this post. I’ve been very productive the last few days. In addition to putting out the e-book(just a reminder, this is your last day to get a discount on it!), I had two big kid-free workdays at the day job. I finished an absolute mountain of paperwork and made skeletal plans through the new year, in addition to meetings and data analysis and putting together/hunting down lots of fun new resources.

As a reward for my day job productivity, I began to knit the Sandy-spun up into Urchin, as suggested by Lime Scented. I still don’t quite get the construction of it, but I’m having fun with it.

So green…

I’ve also begun work on a new design, and yesterday I finished off the undyed roving and will shortly dye it to match Urchin, so I have enough to finish the hat.

Lumpiness

There wasn’t much of it left, so I finally took out the pretty fluff I got from my sister-in-law almost two years ago. It’s been sitting in the closet because I was afraid of “ruining” it with my ineptitude, but the truth is it’s not any less wasteful to just let it sit in the closet forever.

I took out an armload of it (there really is a ton),

One armload

and following Sarah’s advice split it up into teeny pieces way smaller than I normally work with.

Beautiful stripey goodness

I was aiming for about an arm’s length of yarn per piece, but it turns out I am not nearly skilled enough to guess how much yarn I’ll get out of a given amount of roving. Still, definitely smaller amounts than normal, and I also spun slower than normal. Keeping the spindle in my right hand most of the time seemed to help, inexplicably. In the end, I wound up with this:

Yarnz!

Still definitely not even, and way darker and greyer than I would have expected from the top, but much closer to what I’m going for than last time. No giant lumps of unspun wool, at least.

Now if you’ll excuse me, after a minor beading crisis caused by the hurricane and repeated UPS screw-ups, I’m finally ready to go catch up on my Sky Scarf while I watch some play-off soccer. Ciao!

Tuesdays Are For Spinning?

All the awesome spinning my blog buddies have been doing lately is making me jealous. I have a spindle, and I do technically know how to use it (more or less). But invariably my arm gets tired and my feet get tired before I get a full cop. Then by the time I ply my yarn is way thicker than anything I ever knit with, and I can not seem to get the hang of spinning anything smaller, let alone anything an even size. I know some of this is because I always lose interest before I give it long enough to get any muscle memory.

My spindle, let me show it to you.

I want to spin pretties like my friends. I know if I stick to it long enough I’ll be able to, but I need some encouragement to stick to it. I know the Yarn Harlot says Tuesdays are for spinning, and that’s good enough for me. So from now on, every Tuesday or Wednesday I need you guys to ask about what I spun this week. If I just make the promise to myself I’ll once again quietly “forget” once I get frustrated, but if you guys keep bugging me I’ll be embarrassed enough to keep spinning. Plus, I’m hoping for some encouraging tips and stories about your early spinning to keep me motivated!

So, for the first of what darn well better be many Tuesdays, here’s what I’ve spun today:

See, I was productive! I deserve a cookie.

Jogless Stripes

This is one of those things that seem completely obvious in retrospect, but I somehow managed not to learn for years and years of knitting. Normally, when knitting stripes in flat fabric, you simply change colors at the end of the row et voilà, perfect stripes. However, since knitting in the round actually creates a spiral of fabric, if you change colors this way in the round you’ll get a jog, or uneven stripes:

Boo! Hiss!

The solution is mind-blowingly simply though. When you change colors (at the end of the round) knit your first round like normal. Then on the second round, slip the first stitch.

Sliiiip!

That’s it. Literally. Problem solved. Continue knitting as normal, slipping the first stitch of the second round on each stripe. As you can see, it produces a much nicer stripe.

Hooray!!

 

 

 

 

Provisional (Crochet) Cast-On

Occasionally, usually in circular knitting, you will need a cast-on that you can remove later for grafting. There are many options out there (Wendy Bernard has a good knit-only tutorial), but as a comfortably bistitchual crafter, my favorite is a knitting cast-on that requires you to crochet the provisional row directly onto the needle. It’s not as complicated as it sounds:

Start with your knitting needles, a crochet hook in a similar (but not necessarily identical) size, and a generous length of scrap yarn.

Tie a slip knot onto your crochet hook.

Hold your knitting needle to the left of your hook, and the yarn under the needle.

Reach over the needle to pull the working yarn through the stitch on the hook.

Then move the yarn back behind your needle.

Repeat the previous steps until you have the number of stitches your pattern requires.

Pull the yarn tail through the last loop as you would at the end of a project.

I like to tie a knot in the tail, so I remember which end to pull from.

Now that you have your cast-on row, pick up your project yarn and begin working with Row or Round One. When you get to grafting time, unpick the knot and last stitch, then simply pull (as if you were frogging, which you basically are) to reveal live stitches. I find this part way more fun than I probably should.

 

 

 

 

Kitchener Stitch

Last week I posted a two-part article on knitting in the military, and there was some interest in the method of grafting sock toes developed during WWI. I suspect many of you are already familiar with it, but I did promise to post a tutorial, just in case. The technique is named after Lord Herbert Kitchener of Khartoum, who invented the technique and encouraged a campaign for British and American women to use his pattern rather than the more foot-irritating traditional seams when knitting for soldiers. It creates a smooth, seamless appearance when joining two pieces of stockinette. It is typically used to graft sock toes, but can also be used to join lightweight sweater shoulders and all sorts of interesting less-conventional items as well. In the demo pictures I am grafting the ends of a circular sweater (Pole) together.

To Kitchener

Pre-Kitchener: If you are grafting sock toes, or anything else that involves attaching two sides of something worked in the round, you will skip this step. If you are grafting a provisional cast-on to your most recent row, you will need to remove the scrap yarn and place your stitches on the near needle.

Preparatory Steps – You will do these three steps only once, when you first begin your graft.

Prep 1. Hold the needles parallel, with the purl sides facing inwards and the yarn tail on the end of the needle farther away from you. Make sure you have an equal number of stitches on each needle. If you have an odd number of total stitches, you will need to complete an extra step at the end. It does not matter which needle you put your “leftover” stitch on.

Prep 2. Using a tapestry needle threaded with your nice, long yarn tail, insert the needle into the first stitch on the near needle as if to purl. Pull the tail through.

Prep 3. Now insert the tapestry needle into the first stitch on the far needle as if to knit. Pull the tail through.

Actual Kitchener Grafting – You will repeat these four steps until you run out of stitches.

Step 1. Insert the tapestry needle into the first stitch on the near needle as if to knit. Pull the yarn through, dropping the stitch off the needle at the same time.

Step 2. Insert the tapestry needle into the next stitch on the same needle as if to purl. Pull the yarn through. Do not take the stitch off the needle.

Note the new location of the dropped stitch from Step 1.

Step 3: Insert the tapestry needle into the first stitch on the far needle as if to purl. Pull the yarn through, pulling the stitch off the needle at the same time.

Step 4: Insert the tapestry needle into the next stitch on the same needle as if to knit. Pull the yarn through. Do not take the stitch off the needle.

Repeat these four steps until you have two (or three) stitches remaining. Remember: knit, purl, purl, knit.  Repeat Step 1, then go directly to Step 3.

If you have no stitches remaining, weave in your ends. You are done. If you have one stitch remaining:

Special directions for odd numbers of stitches

Thread your tapestry needle through the last remaining stitch. Pull it down against the purl side (wrong side) of your fabric. Thread your tapestry needle through the stitch again to attach it to the fabric. If your yarn is smooth and heavy, or you are worried about small objects escaping through your knitting, you may wish to do a quick whip stitch to secure this corner of the graft even more.

That’s all there is to it. Congratulations, you have mastered Lord Kitchener’s pet project! Go forth, and graft stitches.