We met inside on August 14th which turned out to be a good idea because nearly everyone at the meeting had at least one tip to share. Vicki took good notes, I took some too, between us we hope we've got them all. If not, remind me at the meeting next Thursday and I'll post them here.
Kris Kyles
1)
When
making Top-Down socks, cast on over two needles, remove the extra needle, knit
first row, then join into a circle.
2) The
Repeat Row Method. Make an index card with the number of rows in the repeat pattern on
top of each other on the left-hand side. For a 4-row pattern, for
example, write the 1st 4 numbers from top to bottom on the card, then
start a second column with the next 4 numbers, etc. If you are on row 23,
find 23 to the right of the 1,2,3, or 4 columns, and you will discover you
should be knitting row 3 of the 4-row repeat pattern. My card looks something
like this:
1 5 9 13 17
21 25
2 6 10 14 18 22 26
3 7 11 15 19 23 27
4 8 12 16 20 24 28
Nancy Snow
Cast
on over two needles if you find your cast on tends to be too tight.
Victoria Jicha
Life
line – inserted directly under the left needle, and several rows below the left
needle.
Mitch Woesner
When knitting with two
strands of yarn at the same time run them both through a drinking straw to keep
them even and untangled.
? Thibaudeau
Use
a two compartment makeup bag for notions; keep sharp notions on one side.
Julie LaFavre
I like to attend fiber shows. Before you go, have a pattern in mind
that you would like to make, also the amount of yardage you need. A lot
of yarns can be specialty items and finding additional yardage is difficult.
Becky Moore
Keep
yarn skein clean by putting it in a zip lock baggie for road trips.
Sally Halstrom
When knitting with more than
one ball, she keeps two strands in one bag to keep the yarn from tangling
Kathy Eisenshenk
For
clean edges, slip the first stitch as if to purl
Julie Deprey
Do
not knit mohair wearing black slacks
Pat Hickey
1) To eliminate the hole when changing from K to
P, wrap yarn in opposite direction then knit in the back of the stitch
2) Repairing mistakes in lace – Block to the
error, then the stitches will be easier to pick up…. And use a life line!
Andy Trotti
No
ruler? A Dollar bill is 6” long. Fold in half for 3”. Fold in thirds for 2” and 4”
Cheryl Brocher
Elastic Bind Off (From Love of Knitting Magazine)
K1 *Reverse yarn over
(wrap in opposite direction as usual) K1, pass YO over last
knit st., then pass first st. over last knit st. Repeat from * to
end. Cut yarn and pass through the last stitch.
Sewn Bind Off (From Cast On Bind Off) (Elastic edging for cuffs or neckline)
1. Measure a tail of yarn that is 3 times the width of the knitting
to be bound off. Thread this onto a blunt tapestry
needle. Work from right to left with the right side facing you.
2. Insert the needle PURLWISE through the first 2 stitches on the
needle and pull the yarn through. Leave the stitches on the needle.
3. Insert the needle KNITWISE through the first stitch on the
needle and drop this stitch off the needle.
Repeat steps 2 and 3. You will end with 1 stitch left
of the needle. Insert the needle through this stitch PURLWISE, drop the
stitch from the needle and weave the end in.
Laurie Brungraber
When making mittens, use a crochet hook to pull up stitches to close holes
in the first round of the thumb, then k2tog in the second round to decrease to the number of stitches the pattern calls for in the second round.
Barbara Malcolm
How to
Remember Right- vs Left-Leaning Stitches (From fringeassociation.com)
A stitch will always lean in the direction the working needle is
pointing when you work that stitch. When you insert your
working needle into the front of your stitch(es) as for K2tog or m1R—you insert
it from left to right. The working
needle points to the right and the resulting stitch will lean to the right. When you knit through the back of your
stitch(es)—as with SSK or m1L—you insert the working needle from right to
left. The working needle points left and
the resulting stitch will lean left.
SSK
I learned from the Yarn Harlot’s blog a few years ago that when
the pattern calls for a ssk you can simply knit the stitches together through the back loops. The decrease is the same (looks the same,
leans the same) as if you had slipped them each to the right needle and then
knitted them together.
The September meeting launches the BLKG 2nd
Annual Design-A-Thon. Are you ready for
some fun with a little learning tossed in for excitement? We’ll do a quick (hopefully) presentation on
what design is and is not, and go over what is needed for the entries. More information will appear from time to
time here on the Blog and in the newsletter.
For our new members or new knitters DO NOT BE
INTIMIDATED. The Design-A-Thon is also
known as “Oh, Yes You Can!” Our guild
has representatives from all levels of knitting and this
event really does level the playing field.
Promise.
