article RA BEGINNINGS GREAT NYU A OTEMASTERS THE TO WAY YOUR ON SWATCH 1 WTH4SWATCH 6 SWATCH 4 YLRAN EHRLINGER LORRAINE BY Cast On SWATCH 5 SWATCH 2 76 Fall 2004 SWATCH 3 Most of us learned a basic cast on when we started to knit. The “thumb” method involves wrapping the yarn with the Because it was basic, it was useful for all of our projects for right hand and making a loop with the thumb of the left a long time. Slowly we came to realize that there were other hand, which is put on the needle before the wrap, lifted ways of starting our work. Perhaps we watched someone in over the wrap and dropped. our knitting guild. Perhaps someone mentioned something on the internet as a solution to a problem. Our eyes were The “slingshot” method uses only one hand to perform opened to the possibilities. the same motions.

When knitting we begin with a baseline of stitches forming The usual methods produce an edge facing you that the edge of our fabric. Our choice of method can be based resembles purl stitches. Working a purl row before starting on more than ease of use or quickness of execution. We your pattern puts the smooth edge on the public side must consider elasticity for ribbed edges, and stability for of the piece. Another option is to work the last row of a other edges. We base our choice on how it looks with the charted pattern. The slingshot method can be worked pattern we choose. with the yarn in the right hand and the needle in the left to put the smooth side facing you. Common Beginnings/Knitted-On Cast On The knitted-on cast on (Swatch 1) is used by many beginners, The long-tail cast on can be used to start almost any because it is easy. You start with a slipknot on the left-hand knitting project. It is easy to execute, but care must be needle. Knit into the stitch on the left-hand needle, and taken not to pull the loop under the needle too tight. without dropping the stitch off the needle, place the new stitch on the left-hand needle. Continue this process until Because you need to start the first loop a distance from you have the desired number of stitches. the end of the yarn, it is easy to estimate wrong and end up with a long tail left over, or not enough tail to work the It is easy to remember, fairly elastic and can be used to desired number of stitches. A too long tail can be tied up add stitches to knitting in progress. The two sides of the for later use in seaming. A too short tail means that you edge are identical, so either side can be the public side. start the cast on over again.

It can stretch out of shape if done too loosely, so some The length of tail needed varies with the weight of the experts recommend starting with a smaller needle than yarn, various methods have been devised to more you plan to use for your stitch pattern. accurately figure how much you need. The easiest is to cast on 10 sts starting with a slipknot, mark where the yarn Cable Cast On ends after the last stitch, unravel the stitches, and measure This is similar to the knitted-on cast on. When there are back to the slipknot. Multiply that number by the number two stitches on the needle, the next stitches are formed of times 10 stitches goes into you desired cast on number. by placing the needle between the last two stitches on the needle. Less Common, But Very Useful Cast Ons/ Crochet Or Chain Cast On This cast on is quite firm and dense, without much stretch. One of the more versatile beginnings involves a crochet It has a neat, uniform appearance, similar to a cord. It can hook of a size close to your knitting needle. Because this be used for adding stitches to work in progress and is used edge looks like the most common bind-off, it is also called for some buttonholes. It is also a good choice for patterns the bind-off cast on (Swatch 4). It is great for scarves and that are dense and inelastic, themselves, such as the honey- other items where you want both edges to match, as comb pattern in Swatch 2. shown on the swatch, and is often used to create a temporary cast on, as shown on the second swatch. Long Tail Cast On This has many names. June Hiatt calls it a half-hitch cast on. You can make a chain of as many stitches as you Others call it a double cast on. It involves using two strands need and pick up loops through the back of the chain. of yarn, one of which goes over the needle and the other What works better is to form the loops over the needle holds the stitch by looping below the needle. There are two as you make the chain. Start with a slipknot on the crochet distinct looks to this cast on, depending on which side is hook. Hold the knitting needle and yarn in your left hand the public side. The knit side resembles a rope, with the with the yarn under the needle. Wrap the yarn around the other side having purl bumps. Either side can be used, hook and pull it through the slipknot. Repeat this step until depending on compatibility with the stitch pattern, such you only need one more stitch. Slip the loop off the hook, as the purl side with the seed stitch (Swatch 3.) There are onto the needle. Continue working your project. a number of methods of working this cast on. Article cont’d. on page 78.

Cast On 77 www.TKGA.com Master Knitting article cont’d. from page 77 Program Graduates Hand Knitting Level I An easy way to do this quickly is to use a straight needle and Schuster,Maryanne 1988 • V Clearyogue Knitting, editors Fitchburg, of Vogue MA Knitting Magazine, and stick the knob end into the ball of yarn to hold up Pantheon BooksNora 1989Polizzi Sequim, WA upright, freeing both hands to work with the yarn. Mary Baldwin Marietta, GA Shelley Monitor Maplewood, MN This cast on can also be used to start a provisional cast on. Annette Bjorklund Spooner, WI In this case, use a smooth cotton type of yarn for the first Mary Beth Reed Denver, CO loops so it can be pulled out later. This yarn worked for Mary Shanley North Barrington, IL Marjorie A York Staley, NC a few stitches more than you need and the tail is pulled Lucy Bosio Golden, CO through the last loop. The next row is worked with the Rita Hartjes Medford, MA project yarn. When you are ready to have open stitches Kate Mitchell Poughkeepsie, NY to use in finishing a border, just unzip the chain slowly, Karen Lynn Weibusch Bay Village, OH putting the stitches released back on the knitting needle Betsy Barrett Exton, PA and continue working in the opposite direction. Swatch 5 Christa Maitland Omaha, NE shows a crochet chain used to start a tubular cast on. The Pam Olson Holland, MI Tubular Cast On is an advanced technique, making a vary Linda Bucklin Spencer, IN stretchy, reversible edge. Martha Ritter Lindley, NY Vicki Sever Oshkosh, WI Versions Of The Long Tail Cast On Christine Mercer Cincinnati, OH Kara Heller Guilford, CT If you use two different color yarns, one for each part, Linda Odegaard LaPuente, CA you have a nice contrast color edge. With a very long edge, Michelle Packer Santa Barbara, CA using two balls of the same color will prevent running out Molly Ferrante Boxford, MA of yarn tail. There are other decorative versions, twisted, Sandra Jefferies Phoeniz, AZ knotted, and braided. The varieties can make your head Ann Macllravie Carlile, WY spin, but most knitters pick a few favorites to use for Deborah Doyle San Mateo, CA most projects (Swatch 6.) Eugenia Fisher Manassas, VA JonMarie Hautz Cincinnati, OH Hints To Increase The Joy Of Knitting Peggy Sands Rocky River, OH 1. It is important that your cast on stitches be loose enough Level II to slide easily along the needle. You can start with a needle Nancy DaPonte Denver, CO smaller or larger than you plan to use for the first row, in Barbara Konopka Bloomfield Hills, MI order to make the stitches a good size. 2. When casting on a large number of stitches, it is useful Level III to place markers at regular intervals, so that you don’t have Joan Janes Sioux Falls, SD to recount the whole project. Jeannine Harris Cranburry, NJ 3. When counting stitches, “walk“ across the stitches with your thumb and first finger counting by twos. This Machine Knitting eliminates the possibility of counting the same stitch twice. Level III 4. When you finish the cast on, wind up the yarn tail and Marianne Wendl Middlefield OH secure it to prevent mistaking it for the yarn attached to the ball. The tail can be pinned to the work and used later Correspondence Courses for seaming. Professional Finishing Techniques Gabrielle Thodas San Mateo, CA RESOURCES Knitter’s Handbook, Montse Stanley, The Reader’s Digest Association, 1993 Advanced Finishing • Knitting in Plain English, Maggie Righetti, St. Martin’s Press, 1986 • The Nancy Swartzbaugh Dearborn, MI Knitter’s Book of Finishing Techniques, Nancie M. Wiseman, Martingale & Company, 2002 • The Principles of Knitting, June Hemmons Hiatt, Simon

Cast On 78 Fall 2004