HeathKnits

If you want a sharp looking buttonhole then baste it closed during blocking and remove basting when completely dry. Voila! Fabulous buttonhole.

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Many a knitter struggles with the Kitchener stitch at times. We know that it is a combination of knit/purl and purl/knit, but remembering the order gets even the best knitters frustrated.

The Kitchener stitch is performed as follows:

The initial Kitchener set up is – Front needle: knit and leave on; Back needle: purl and leave on
Then for the remaining stitches:
Front needle: “Knit and take off, Purl and leave on”
Back needle: “Purl and take off, Knit and leave on”

Here is my best hint for Kitchener:

The stitches on the front needle look like knit stitches, so work them knit-wise first.
The stitches on the back needle look like purl stitches, so work them purl-wise first.

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Here’s another hint from an In The Loop knitter – Thanks, Mary. Very clever!

“In addition to Heather’s great tips, there is another way, which I like best, for a seamless join when knitting in the round but works only with long tail cast-on. When ready to join, insert right needle into back of first stitch on left needle and pull the tail all the way through, leaving the first stitch on the left needle. Give it a little tug to bring your circle together then knit in the front of the first stitch with the working yarn as usual. When you’ve knit around to this spot again, flip the tail to the back of the work and forget about it ‘till it is time to weave it in. Try it, you’ll like it.”
Mary K

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How do I avoid messy looking joins when knitting in the round?

When joining stitches in the round it can be difficult to create a seamless join on circular needles and DPNs.
Here are two tricks to solve the problem:

Cast on one extra stitch. When you start the first row, slide the last cast on stitch onto the left hand needle. Then knit two stitches together, avoiding the loop that is caused by the join.

*OR*

Before placing your stitch marker and knitting the first stitch, swap the first stitches on the left and right needles as follows:

1. Slip the first stitch on the right needle to the left needle.
2. Slip the second stitch on the left needle up and over the first stitch and onto the right needle.
3. Place a stitch marker on the right needle to indicate the beginning of a new round.
4. Knit the first stitch on the left needle.
5. Continue until all stitches have been knit and you’re back to the stitch marker. This completes one round.

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It’s Sweater Weather! The time of year many knitters anxiously wait for. Knitting returns to the forefront of our thoughts. Casting on with new yarn and all its promises epitomizes the knitter’s high. Making sure the sweater fits is of utmost importance, which means it’s time to collect the current measurements.

Attached is the perfect tool for keeping an accurate guide in your knitting bag. So grab a partner, a measuring tape, and fill out the Actual Body Measurement Chart created by Laura Bryant and Barry Klein. Available for free at Actual Body Measurement Chart.

Knit a sweater that fits! Happy Sweater Weather (Fall)!

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