Discover how to add blocks of color and manage the yarn for your project.
Tags:add color blocks to knitting,diynetwork,How To Knit,how to manage yarn,kelley deal,knitting techniques,knitting tips,knitty gritty
Grab video code:
Transcript
Female: So we've knit over 15 stitches to the start of your new color. You're going to pick up your length of yarn, which in this case we're going to use the green. And you go ahead and knit your first stitch and then we got to interlock our main color that we were working with prior and our new colors. So you kind of cross it over, interlock, the old with the new. And knit that next stitch. Vickie: And you're going to want to do that every time so that you don’t get a hole in between. Female: Every time you're transitioning from old color to new color, you’re going to make that interlock. So we're going to go ahead and knit our third stitch that our chart calls for. Now we need to work with the main body again. Now I'm going to go ahead and pick up another bobbin or butterfly of yarn with the main color and work with that. We're going to go ahead and do our stitch. Got to pull it snuggly watching your tensions even. And go ahead and do your interlock again. Vickie: And so you chose to start your new butterfly yarn rather than carry the old. Female: Right, you can, certainly, take your first butterfly and pull it across. Vickie: But you're going to get this, it’s not going to be as tidy. Female: It’s not going to be as tidy, you need to be careful that you're not going to pucker the yarn if you pull it too tight, it creates a little pucker. But you need to incorporate what technique works best for you. Vickie: Okay. Female: And what you feel most comfortable with and what works best for your project. Vickie: Now over here, there's crazy amount of yarn hanging. Let's talk about management. Female: So we're up to the second polka dot row. So we now have 7 individual bobbins going on. We’ve got your main body color plus your three polka dots. So you’ve got all these various butterflies and lengths of yarn that you're having to manage. It’s a really good habit to get into every time you finished a color row to kind of take your yarn and kind of straighten them out. Vickie: Just untangle them. Female: The interlock that prevents the hole is creating a twist in those two yarns. And so it’s complicating the process even more and creating a little bit more of a jungle. And if you don’t keep on it, you can end up with a knot. Vickie: Okay, so there’s some bobbins here. Some people prefer bobbins that kind of keep your yarn tidy. You actually prefer to do this butterfly knot, right? Female: Right. There are many different bobbins that you can use. I prefer either using the butterfly or if it’s a shorter length of yarn, just leaving it as is. Vickie: Okay, why don’t we show how you can make a butterfly? Female: Okay. You want to take your length of yarn here and you just kind of wrap it around your hand. Remember that you need a little bit of length because you're going to be knitting with that. Now you're going to twist it and then you're going to go back right over it and kind of pinch it. And then pull it snuggly. Now you have to release this each time to release more length of yarn. Vickie: Okay. So the benefit of using a bobbin would be you're not going to have to do that. The benefit of using this is there's not that weight, and that extra sort of thing that can possibly snug your yarn. Female: Right, exactly. Vickie: Alright, so let's go over here and look at this chart. I noticed that you are using a post-it. Female: Yes. Vickie: This really helps, this really helps to keep track. That’s a great idea. Female: Its really great tool. This chart is particularly simple. So it’s a little easier to read your knitting and look at where you are. Not all charts are as easy to do that. So your post-it note gives you a real clear idea of where your next row is going to be. Vickie: Okay, when you're using stockinette stitch in this pattern, but that’s not the only time. Female: You don’t have to. If you want to incorporate purl stitch or other stitches, you absolutely can do so. Vickie: This just maybe a little cleaner. Female: Little cleaner. It creates a smoother fabric. And you don’t want your fabric to compete with the color work that you're working on. Vickie: Okay. Let’s go over this Pisces thing. Why don’t you tell us what you do if you want to carry a color over more than a few stitches at a time? Female: Right, this particular design, where you start and stop is a little bit vary from one row to the other. So here, we've knit you the section right here in our motif. Now if you look ahead, our next row, we actually need our yarn in position over three stitches and we typically we would if we just left it here. So what you want to do is go ahead and do your interlock that you normally would do. And then knit a stitch and then carry your motif color over. Vickie: Okay. Female: And just kind of carry it along. Vickie: Okay. Female: So if you needed to go further along you would just do that every 3 or 4 stitches and then the yarn is in place perfectly for your next row.
DIY Network is the go-to destination for rip-up, knock-out home improvement television. DIY Network's programs and experts answer the most sought-after questions and offer creative projects for do-it-yourself enthusiasts.
Comments