Colorwork Without Interlocking Floats - Technique Tuesday Alpaca Direct 8.4K subscribers Subscribe 1.1K views 1 year ago ALPACA DIRECT, LLC Kelley Hobart from Alpaca Direct shares tips on how. How often to catch floats when working colorwork comesdown to personal preference. Basically, this is multi-colored knitting thats done by carrying two colors at a time across a row. Required fields are marked *. Hats or mittens are also great choices. Next: choose a natural, non-superwash wool yarn. Make sure that youre not pullingtoo tightly, which would cut off the corner where the twoneedles meet. Thoroughly soakyour socks in water, then roll them up in a towel to squeezeout any excess moisture. Youve effectively trapped the float already! AKA Both strands on the left. Lopi, on the other hand, is typically woolen spun and a single ply, which means it just wont stretch as much. I find myself hating colorwork and dreading it because of how tangled it's been getting. This will ensure that the unused yarn strandwill later relax against the back of the work. Managing long floats in Fair Isle knitting | Interweave Three ways to hold yarn for stranded colourwork - Ysolda Ltd This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. Most color work patterns use a light to medium weight wool yarn our Nature Spun Fingering, Nature Spun Sport, Lanaloft Sport, and Prairie Spun DK are ideal for color work projects. Privacy Policy. And remember to alternate where you catchyour floatscatching them in the same place every round willmake a noticeable blip of color going up your sock (Photos 5 and 6 above). click here to sign up for our newsletter & well send you a free PDF download of the Jeanette Hat & Scarf Pattern, Guide to Subbing Brown Sheep Yarns in Knit & Crochet Patterns. Now I'm making adult totoro mittens with a more complicated pattern. Please confirm you want to block this member. Go ahead and knit the next stitch normally. Improve Your Stranded Knitting | Interweave The most important thing is to consider what kind of item youre knitting, and whos going to be wearing/using it. It is an in-depth tutorial perfect for anyone who has no experience knitting colorwork and would like to learn how. You initially catch the floating yarn by changing its position as you knit, then you go back and make the floats ladder up themselves, in a technique that is somewhat similar in look to the ladderback jacquard technique used in commercial knitting. The basketweave pattern is reminiscent of fishing nets, so I chose blue and natural colors to accentuate the ideas of sea and shore. Picking Both Colours with One Hand. Oneof the questions I get most often from students or knitters working from my patterns is how to trap floats in stranded colorwork. I have done very little colorwork but am working on a hat with some simple(ish) colorwork. "Floats" are the yarn that's carried behind the stitches across a row. Please allow a few minutes for this process to complete. I have done very little colorwork but am working on a hat with some simple(ish) colorwork. The basics of colourwork knitting How to read a colourwork chart How to hold two yarns at the same time Floats and tension Joining a new colour Increases and decreases Yarn dominance Blocking Tangled yarns Weaving in ends Yarn choices in colourwork Choosing a colourwork palette The basics of colourwork knitting This is also part of why steeking is so common in these places - sticky wools are unlikely to unravel when the stitches are cut. I don't want to have long strands of floats inside the hat, nor do I want it to be too tight. Read morehere. trapping long floats in stranded colorwork. The knitted loops create the elasticity of knitted fabrics, while thesestraight sections of yarn do not have much stretch capacity. The duplicate-stitch weaving closely mimics the pathof the yarn and will stretch almost the same amount as the originalstitches. Focus on one section of the fabric at a time and knead it. If you've been wishing for a better way, this is it. This scarf is knitted in the round, which simplifies the Fair Isle patterning (no wrong-side rows) and creates an insulating double layer of fabric. Knitting Color Work: Tips & Tricks - Brown Sheep Company, Inc. UFO to WIP: Can This Crochet or Knitting Project Be Saved? You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. In the swatch pictured above, there are two long floats where the blue yarn is stranding across twelve stitches on the wrong side of the fabric. Some knitters will have an easier time with smooth wools while others will have an easier time with sticky ones. That being said, if a rule doesnt jive with your personal preferences, thats perfectly fine! This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. If the pattern repeat for your sock issmallfor example, a four-stitch repeatyou can simply increasefour stitches after the cuff and work an additional repeat. Knittersgenerally find that their gauge is tighter, with more stitches perinch, over stranded areas than plain stockinette stitch. Please, for the sake of your sanity, choose a pattern thats knit in the round! Now settled backin the mountains of Northern California, Terry enjoys thesocialization of knitting with friends once again. The unused yarn ends up floating behind the pattern. Please allow a few minutes for this process to complete. "Float" is a common term for the strand of yarn that runs across the back of colorwork fabric - the strand that makes colorwork stranded. (Side note: its always better to have floats that are a little long than a little short you can always draw in the slack when youre weaving in ends, but you cant make a short float longer.). How can one get a copy of the pattern? Conversely, depending on the knitter, a very smooth yarncan also cause less elastic knitting because it will be easy to pull your stitches tight without meaning to as the smooth yarn fibers slide right past each other. How to catch floats when knitting stranded colour work by - YouTube How to keep yarn from tangling with stranded colorwork? My UPS gal surprised me again the other day with several new Interweave books full of wonderful, inventive projects. I share two methods: 1.) It is fun to knit and easy once you get the hang of it. Stranded colorwork gets its name from these strands of yarn, commonly called floats, that travel through the back of the work. Make a swatch topractice spacing your stitches on the needle until youve had somesuccess and know how much space is too much. Socks fit our legs and feet through a combination of shapingand negative ease. Get your copy of Vintage Modern Knits today and queue up your version of the Ajiro scarfor one of the other 25 designs in this fab booktoday! I watched the video but would like more information & can't seem to find it. Then work the first stitch of the new colorthis is the yarn that creates the float. trapping long floats while using the two-handed stranded colorwork methodfromDiannaonVimeo. When you join a new ball of yarn, just weave it in for 1 1/2 to 2 inches using the tacking technique. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website. As a result, there are no limitations as to how many stitches a given color block can be wide (a common problem with stranded knitting). I really love this scarf. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); Fervent fiber nerd and frequent baker living in Norway. Locking Floats - YouTube Discussion. Any other tricks? A float should look like a flattened U rather than an arrow-straightline (Photo 2 below). Enjoy! If you want to knit more than 4-5 stitches in a single color, you will have to catch floats. Im all about creativity. By accepting all cookies, you agree to our use of cookies to deliver and maintain our services and site, improve the quality of Reddit, personalize Reddit content and advertising, and measure the effectiveness of advertising. We just dont get along. For more information, please see our The background color/main color is also my working yarn here, while the dominant/contrasting color is being carried across the wrong side of the work. If theres one thing Ive learned from my students, its that knitters are all over the map as far as which method works best for them. This is due to the strands being carried across the back of the work (the floats) unlike knit stitches, these strands dont really stretch that much, so the stretch of the overall fabric youre creating is much less. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. How to catch floats when knitting stranded colour work by ARNE & CARLOS ARNE & CARLOS 161K subscribers Subscribe 163K views 4 years ago This week we take a close look at the back of our knit wear. trapping long floats carrying both yarns in your left hand, trapping long floats while using the two-handed stranded colorwork method, DIY: Knit Laurus Hat and Free Pattern by Dianna Walla - Kiku Corner, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1Sex1qLRd_I&t=7s, Something spooky this way comes Halloween inspired knitwear | Wolfish Written, On Dasher, on Dancer the Fallow Jumper | Wolfish Written. Back-knitting is just as easy with two strands of yarn as a single strand. With this weather were all having, doesnt this scarf sound tempting? Learn to keep perfect colorwork tension - every time, Learn how to adapt any pattern to use the strandless method, Learn how to read charts with strandless knitting in mind, Start with the basics and practice as you learn, Take your skills to the next level with progressive lessons that make it easy to apply what you learn, Practice right along with me as we knit a strandless project together - step by step, Learn from the comfort of home - on your favorite device, Your lessons never expire - you'll have ongoing access to the workshop if you need a refresher. combatting tight colorwork - Paper Tiger Fair Isle knitting, also known as stranded colorwork knitting, is a technique for working two (or more) colors of yarn in the same row. Please note: googletag.cmd.push(function() { googletag.display('interstitial-ad');}); Save patterns, share updates, and connect with your community. You can read aboutcolor dominance here.). 2.) ), Ondifferent yarn types: Enjoy! Im trapping my float every 6th stitch as I work across the span of charcoal grey, but you could trap every 5th or 4th stitch as well. How to Knitting: Colorwork Rescue - Yarn Vibes 2. Knitting Colorwork and Color Dominance Theory explained If you want to explore this issue in further depth, I recommend checking out some of the following links to blog posts, videos, and books. Kelley Hobart from Alpaca Direct shares tips for knitting colorwork inside out to see if it improves the tension of your floats + new Free Giveaways! The technical storage or access is necessary for the legitimate purpose of storing preferences that are not requested by the subscriber or user. So what do I do? Also, if you need to catch floats in a bunch of rows dont catch in the same place every row. Stranded colorwork without floats in 3 minutes - YouTube Knitting In the Round 3 Ways: DPNs, Two Circulars, or Magic Loop? My first project was baby mittens with totoro on them. Sue Blacker on Woollen vs Worsted mill spinning, how the knitter is holding/carrying the yarns, how much space the knitter leaves between stitches, whether the knitter is working on DPNs or circular needles. This means picking up the float in the back of a stitch to hold it in place and keep some tension in the floating yarn so it doesnt pull too tight or loosen up. Colorwork and fairisle knitting offer a range of beautiful, unique patterns. Enter your email address to follow this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email. If youve listened toepisode one of the knit.fm podcast, you know that needle type can affect gauge. Colorwork can be stressful worrying about having the right tension and this new method takes all of that away! Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. Easy Trick To Catch Long Floats flynnknit 3.46K subscribers Subscribe 20K views 1 year ago This tutorial is designed to show you one easy trick for catching long floats when you're knitting. too short? Tryusing needles one to two sizes larger than normal to increase thegauge for the stranded areas of the sock, especially on the legportion. Tryfollowing the pattern for the next size up, decreasing stitch countsfor the cuff and heel to fit. How to Measure Your Gauge in Knittingfrom Craftsy.com, Your email address will not be published. Here are some things to consider: Smoother yarns are closer to the top of the list, while stickier wools are towards the bottom. You cant seemuch of a difference between the gauges, but it makes a differencein the elasticity of the fabric. The color changes in Fair Isle are close together. Enjoy! AboutPressCopyrightContact. These cookies do not store any personal information. I hope it helps you or at least entertains you. I get this question a lot, and its a tricky one to answer. If you are able to take a class on this technique, or self-learn the opposite knitting style from your current preference, I highly recommend giving it a try. After knitting this stitch, I have 7 stitches of my 21-stitch span knit. Privacy Policy. Decreasethese four stitches at the ankle before working the heel. So for knitted fabric thats likely to come into things that may catch on floats, like fingers and toes, we musttraporcatchlong floats to anchor them to the fabric. To use Marie's words, it is a game changer! googletag.cmd.push(function() { googletag.display('interstitial-ad');}); Save patterns, share updates, and connect with your community. She is also the founder of Knit Camp, an online knitting resource community, and Olive Knits pattern design where she is known for her approachable, timeless style. I thought it would be a good idea to finally address this issue! If you dont feel like measuring, you can also tryslipping on your sock at this point, taking care not to break yourknitting needles. Some teachers use hard-and-fast rules, like never carry a float more than five stitches without trapping it. Some teachers tell you not to go more thanthreestitches. This method leaves floats, which are lengths of yarn carried across the back of the work that can be easily snagged. Archived. Its possible to trap those long floats as youre weaving in ends after the fact (and if there isnt a long end to weave in where you need to trap a float, you can take a spare bit of leftover yarn and just weave it into the wrong side of the fabric as if it were an end, trapping the floats as you go). This always affects the knitted fabric youre creating, but it affects colorwork even more. Ive found that this method of weaving in works best with worsted-weight and smaller yarns. Whats the process for trapping non-dominant float? Theres a big difference between a knitted bag youll sew a lining into and a pair of mittens or socks. The Japanese word ajiro describes a herringbone pattern in basketry, which seems fitting for a country known for its long fishing traditions and bold graphic representations of natural elements. To help shorten the floats while maintaining good tension, tack these long floats to the wrong side of the work. Colorwork Sans Floats I've made it pretty clear to the knitting world that when it comes to colorwork, floats and I are incompatible. [] used Dianna Wallas tutorials for dominant strands and trapping floats. Not to mention how much faster it seems to be and no fussing about trying to hold and knit with 2 yarns at the same time. The colorwork pattern for the Ajio scarf calls for a 7-stitch float. Every knitter is different, so while some people knit tighter on wooden needles, others knit tighter on metal needles. Im all about creativity. Now my tension is perfect every time! It maysoundprecise at first, but when you think about it, gauge makes this an incredibly imprecise way to go about it. This is also part of why steeking is so common in these places sticky wools are unlikely to unravel when the stitches are cut. Reddit and its partners use cookies and similar technologies to provide you with a better experience. Im trapping my float every 6th stitch as I work across the span of charcoal grey, but you could trap every 5th or 4th stitch as well. First of all: choose the right pattern for learning to knit with two colors at a time. Contains spam, fake content or potential malware, https://www.interweave.com/store/vintage-modern-knits-ebook, How to Sew Crochet Motifs to Your Clothes, 5 Things That Made Our Yarn-y Hearts Happy at Yarn Fest Loveland 2023, Floral Beaded Jewelry Patterns for Mothers Day, Unique Ways to Have Quality Yarn-Time with Mom. The hat used almost one full skein of the main colour yarn.