May 14, 2007
Houston, we have a problem...
Last week, I met Michelle for a little "lunch-hour" knitting. We were going to discuss summer-time knits and what we were going to and/or wanting to accomplish. Is it at all surprising that I immediately cast on for something? (even though I have about a million projects already on the needles) I have been wanting to knit the Molly Ringwald tank-top since it came out in the Fall 2006 Knitscene. (scroll down to project 18) It's so cute and simple. Here is where I have a problem...everytime that I knit in rib, when I go from a knit to a purl stitch it looks all wonky. I've tried everything that I can think of to fix this problem. I've heard that you can twist the stitch on purpose on the right side and then untwist it on the wrong side. I've gently tugged a little on the knit stitch right before I change to a purl. Nothing works. I still have loose sloppy stitches. It's SO ANNOYING! Help me please. I really want to wear this top for my birthday, which is exactly a month from today, so I need to keep on knitting. Do any of you wise knitters out there know of a good solution? Please, I beg of you, share your knowledge with me.
Well, I don't know the answer, but I have the same problem! I'll be very glad to hear what folks have to say about this one. Cute top!
Posted by: Jen at May 14, 2007 01:45 PMhm...what kind of needles do you use? because if you are using metal needles, maybe try plastic/bamboo--they aren't as slippery and might provide more 'stickiness' so you have more control on the ribbing knitting?
also, what about trying the 'knit thru the back loop' technique rather than purling--that creates a purl stitch as well right? i'll be curious to hear what works for you. :o)
More info needed: are you knitting English or continental style? I knit continental style and the purl stitch I use I learned from the Vogue Knitting Book. The yarn is over the middle and index, under the ring finger and wrapped around the pinky. the stitch is made by lowering the index finger. The tension is the same as with the knit stitches (at least for me).
Good luck1
Posted by: Katie K at May 14, 2007 02:03 PMUse a bit of combined knitting to alleviate the problem. When you switch from knit to purl, you need to use a bit more yarn when you wrap it the normal way (over the top of the needle, counterclockwise).
When you are switching from a knit to a purl, wrap the yarn clockwise from the underside on that one purl stitch. This will change how the stitch sits on your needle, though, so you will need to remember to knit through the back loop on the wrong side of the garment.
This should eliminate the gap. Good luck!
Posted by: Jeannine at May 14, 2007 02:15 PMWow! You guys rock! I knew that I could post this question and by the end of lunch I'd have some suggestions. I love the knitting community.
So, to answer Katie K.'s question...I knit English style, I'm a "thrower". I'm going to try Jeannine's suggestion as soon as I leave work tonight!
Keep the suggestions coming though, this is good information to know about! Thanks everyone!
Posted by: Stacey at May 14, 2007 02:19 PMYes yes this happens to me too! Jeannine got in before though, what she said works wonders!!! You won't believe the difference it makes!!!!
This is the same tank I'm waiting to cast on for!!!! I love it sooo much, just need to get a few projects off the needles first!
I totally agree with Jeannine's suggestion...I just used this for the ribbing on my Central Park Hoodie that I'm working on and it made the stitches look so much better.
Posted by: Legally Knit at May 14, 2007 04:01 PMLOL - I knew you were going to end up starting that. I can't believe how far you've gotten already though. You must have knit on nothing else this weekend. Can't wait to see it in person. I love how it's turning out.
Posted by: Michelle at May 14, 2007 05:01 PMWill you please explain what Jeanine said to me when I get out to Denver? You know I have the same problem.
Posted by: Cyn at May 14, 2007 05:52 PMhi, my name is carola, i´m from chile, south america, your page is wonderful, i like knit very much, congratulations for this page.
Carola
Thanks for posting this - I have the same issue! :)
Posted by: wenders at May 15, 2007 04:41 AMIt seems all the suggestions have been made! I knit continental and would recommending purling that way and knitting American. I know many knitters who do the combo approach.
Let us know how it works out and which methods is better for you!
Posted by: Stacey_CrimsonPurl at May 15, 2007 05:32 AMLooks like you already got the answer I would have given. I think you can read more about it on Annie Modesit's site under combination knitting. It really helped me with this exact problem...
Posted by: Deb at May 15, 2007 11:16 AMI found this blog entry to be really helpful. Go check it out!
http://explaiknit.typepad.com/let_me_explaiknit/2007/04/tickle_your_rib.html
I knit the way Jeannine says- I'm a thrower, and when I go from knit to purl, I bring the yarn to the front, then wrap clockwise. I didn't realize I was always twisting, but it WORKS- now I either knit into the back, or just purl as I'm supposed to, but it should help!
Posted by: Annie at May 15, 2007 07:17 PMHi there, I actually knit continental, but I learned English, and I've had this problem with both styles! Do you find that your knit stitch sort of opens up and spreads into the purl stitch (if that makes sense)? That's what happens to me... I deal with it by twisting the last knit stitch before the purl - that is, if the pattern says "k3, p1" I will actually "k2, k1tbl, p1," a la clapotis. You can kind of tell the last k stitch is twisted if you look really close, but on a FO it will end up looking much better than all those wonky spread apart knit stitches, that's for sure. Maybe this will fix your problem? Good luck with Molly Ringwald!
Posted by: LEO at May 15, 2007 10:31 PM