Knitting Help - Linen Stitch
Uploaded by verypinkknits on 04.01.2012
Transcript:
I’ve had a lot of requests to demonstrate this stitch. It’s called the Linen Stitch,
and it makes this really cool fabric that ends up looking like woven fabric, instead
of knit fabric.
It’s really nice if you want to knit something that is a little bit dense, but lies really
flat with no curling.
And this is just a two row repeat.
If you’d like this written out for you – or printed out for you, I have this available
over on my website, as a free downloadable PDF, and the link to get there is just below
the video in the video description field.
Let’s go ahead and take a look, a close-up, at this fabric.
You see here, this really does look like woven fabric.
Much different than a normal stockinette stitch.
That’s the right side of the work.
The wrong side of the work looks like moss stitch, which is still pretty.
I think this would be so nice for placemats.
This is actually – I should say. This is actually an unblocked piece!
If I were to block this or if I was using cotton and I actually ironed it out a bit,
it would be really, really smooth.
Let’s take a look at some variations on this.
This piece is interesting looking.
The only difference here was that I held two strands of yarn together, as if they were
one, while I was knitting it.
And, I love this.
This ends up looking kind of zig-zaggy.
To do this one, I knit two rows in one color, switched to the other color, knit down and
back, switched to the other color, worked down and back.
And I just carried both colors up the side, as I did it. I didn’t cut the yarn between
the two row sets.
That is a very cool effect.
Now I want to make placemats that look like this!
Okay.
To get going with this, you’ll want to cast on an even number of stitches, using the long-tail
cast-on.
And if you need a review of the long-tail cast-on, I’ll give you a link right here.
Okay. I have 20 stitches there.
And in the written instructions I tell you to start with a wrong side row, which is actually
Row 2.
And the reason for that is this side of the cast on is prettier than this side of the
cast on, and I like to make this side of the cast on be the right side of the work.
So we’re going to start with Row 2.
And the stitch combination is really simple, you just got to pay attention and keep it
in your head with where you are.
We’re going to start with purl 1. The next, the ONLY other stitch on this side is to slip
1 with yarn in back.
So I’m going to move the working yarn back between the two needles, and I’m going to
slip 1.
And you always slip as if to purl.
I put my needle in as if to purl, and slide that stitch from the left needle to the right
needle without working it.
Now that is the two stitch repeat.
To go through this repeat, you need to yarn forward again to purl 1, yarn back to slip
1 with the yarn in back.
Yarn forward, to purl 1, yarn back, slip.
Yarn forward, purl 1, yarn back, slip.
This is the pattern all the way across.
Okay, one I want to talk about.
You might lose track of where you are at some point, the easiest way to catch up and figure
out where you are is counting in twos.
This was purl 1, slip 1.
Purl 1, slip 1, purl 1, slip 1, purl 1, slip 1, purl 1, slip 1, purl 1, slip 1, purl 1
– I know I’m on a slip 1 right now.
Just go back to the beginning of your row, get your bearings, with where you are.
And you’ll end with a slip 1.
So that was a wrong side row, you can’t really see the pattern coming out yet.
The right side row we start with knit 1.
And then slip 1 with the yarn in front.
So I’m going to pull my yarn forward between the two needles, and slip 1 as if to purl,
yarn back to knit 1, yarn forward, slip.
Back, knit.
You can see your hands really get in a flow for doing this, as long as you’re paying
enough attention to make sure you remember what is knit and what is slipped, this is
really pretty easy to work.
Let’s take a look at the finished fabric again.
I’ll tell you, if you do make a mistake in this – this is such an intricate, beautiful
pattern, if you do make a mistake it becomes pretty obvious.
So keep looking at your work, because if you see a mistake you want to catch it early to
rip out, to get back to where you were to correct it.
I have a couple of notes for you.
First thing, in the written instructions, I give you a little bit of a trick to work
for the bind off row so that it looks as good as the cast on row, and that’s all in the
instructions, nothing tricky about it.
The other thing is I’ve been telling you this fabric is nice and flat and doesn’t
curl.
If you are seeing that the fabric is curling as you knit it, you’ll need to go up a needle
size or two. That’s the only problem you’re having.
Using small needles with a yarn that’s a bit too big for a tight stitch could cause
some curling.
Just a couple needle sizes up, and you can use this for really anything. Anything that
you want to lie flat, and you don’t need a pattern for it.
Just work the linen stitch.
Good luck.
[music]
and it makes this really cool fabric that ends up looking like woven fabric, instead
of knit fabric.
It’s really nice if you want to knit something that is a little bit dense, but lies really
flat with no curling.
And this is just a two row repeat.
If you’d like this written out for you – or printed out for you, I have this available
over on my website, as a free downloadable PDF, and the link to get there is just below
the video in the video description field.
Let’s go ahead and take a look, a close-up, at this fabric.
You see here, this really does look like woven fabric.
Much different than a normal stockinette stitch.
That’s the right side of the work.
The wrong side of the work looks like moss stitch, which is still pretty.
I think this would be so nice for placemats.
This is actually – I should say. This is actually an unblocked piece!
If I were to block this or if I was using cotton and I actually ironed it out a bit,
it would be really, really smooth.
Let’s take a look at some variations on this.
This piece is interesting looking.
The only difference here was that I held two strands of yarn together, as if they were
one, while I was knitting it.
And, I love this.
This ends up looking kind of zig-zaggy.
To do this one, I knit two rows in one color, switched to the other color, knit down and
back, switched to the other color, worked down and back.
And I just carried both colors up the side, as I did it. I didn’t cut the yarn between
the two row sets.
That is a very cool effect.
Now I want to make placemats that look like this!
Okay.
To get going with this, you’ll want to cast on an even number of stitches, using the long-tail
cast-on.
And if you need a review of the long-tail cast-on, I’ll give you a link right here.
Okay. I have 20 stitches there.
And in the written instructions I tell you to start with a wrong side row, which is actually
Row 2.
And the reason for that is this side of the cast on is prettier than this side of the
cast on, and I like to make this side of the cast on be the right side of the work.
So we’re going to start with Row 2.
And the stitch combination is really simple, you just got to pay attention and keep it
in your head with where you are.
We’re going to start with purl 1. The next, the ONLY other stitch on this side is to slip
1 with yarn in back.
So I’m going to move the working yarn back between the two needles, and I’m going to
slip 1.
And you always slip as if to purl.
I put my needle in as if to purl, and slide that stitch from the left needle to the right
needle without working it.
Now that is the two stitch repeat.
To go through this repeat, you need to yarn forward again to purl 1, yarn back to slip
1 with the yarn in back.
Yarn forward, to purl 1, yarn back, slip.
Yarn forward, purl 1, yarn back, slip.
This is the pattern all the way across.
Okay, one I want to talk about.
You might lose track of where you are at some point, the easiest way to catch up and figure
out where you are is counting in twos.
This was purl 1, slip 1.
Purl 1, slip 1, purl 1, slip 1, purl 1, slip 1, purl 1, slip 1, purl 1, slip 1, purl 1
– I know I’m on a slip 1 right now.
Just go back to the beginning of your row, get your bearings, with where you are.
And you’ll end with a slip 1.
So that was a wrong side row, you can’t really see the pattern coming out yet.
The right side row we start with knit 1.
And then slip 1 with the yarn in front.
So I’m going to pull my yarn forward between the two needles, and slip 1 as if to purl,
yarn back to knit 1, yarn forward, slip.
Back, knit.
You can see your hands really get in a flow for doing this, as long as you’re paying
enough attention to make sure you remember what is knit and what is slipped, this is
really pretty easy to work.
Let’s take a look at the finished fabric again.
I’ll tell you, if you do make a mistake in this – this is such an intricate, beautiful
pattern, if you do make a mistake it becomes pretty obvious.
So keep looking at your work, because if you see a mistake you want to catch it early to
rip out, to get back to where you were to correct it.
I have a couple of notes for you.
First thing, in the written instructions, I give you a little bit of a trick to work
for the bind off row so that it looks as good as the cast on row, and that’s all in the
instructions, nothing tricky about it.
The other thing is I’ve been telling you this fabric is nice and flat and doesn’t
curl.
If you are seeing that the fabric is curling as you knit it, you’ll need to go up a needle
size or two. That’s the only problem you’re having.
Using small needles with a yarn that’s a bit too big for a tight stitch could cause
some curling.
Just a couple needle sizes up, and you can use this for really anything. Anything that
you want to lie flat, and you don’t need a pattern for it.
Just work the linen stitch.
Good luck.
[music]