π©π»βπ§ Fix your ribbing with these knitting tips
"By stretching yourself beyond your perceived level of confidence β Michael J. Gelb β Hello there fellow knitter! This is The Yarnist. The daily newsletter that makes you love knitting the same way this guy loves rubber bands. Here's what we've got for you today...
β Disclaimer: This newsletter may contain sponsored ads and affiliate links. β Knitspirationπ©π»βπ§ Fix your ribbing with these knitting tipsToday's newsletter is a continuation of our exploration of knitting stitches. βLast week we talked about how shifting knits and purls just as stitch or two can create drastically different patterns. This week, instead of talking about how ribbing works, we're going to discuss how to make it better. The Problem with RibbingBefore we get into fixing our ribbing we first must understand what the problem is. Many knitters experience ribbing that is inconsistent, flared, and just plain sloppy looking. But it's not your fault. Not entirely at least. The culprit here is slackers. What are Slackers?Ok, so I lied. We are going to talk about how ribbing works. Above you can see how 2x2 ribbing forms an "S" shape when it's not on the needle. Unlike stockinette, which is basically flat from stitch to stitch, ribbing shifts from front to back with every change from knit to purl and back. In the diagram we can see the two *B* stitches are on a different side of the fabric than the two *C* stitches. There's a short "tweener" strand (red) between those like stitches. But there's a longer strand (green) connecting the stitches from front to back. These green strands are the slackers and they make your ribbing look sloppy. So how do you get rid of slackers? Read on fellow knitter! Fix #1: Tighten your purlsThe first thing you should try is tugging on your stitch after you've moved from knit to purl. This is going to reduce the amount of slack between those stitches. However, you will be limited by the barrel size of your needle, which is why you might want to use the next fix.
Fix #2: Use a smaller needleA smaller needle size (usually 1 mm smaller or two US sizes down) will give you tighter stitches. The smaller barrel size minimizes slack between stitches, so coupling this with tightening is a good strategy. This will also improve transitions from ribbing to stockinette fabric. But if you don't have a smaller needle to work with, the next tips might be for you. Fix #3: Twisting a stitchThis technique requires you to work your knit stitches through the back loop. But only on the wrong side of the fabric. Doing this will twist the stitch, thereby tightening the slack between stitches. It also provides more separation between columns in 1x1 ribbing. This is a method I have tried myself and quite liked the result. Although it does make the ribbing a little less elastic. If that isn't for you, I've got one more option. Fix #4: The After Slip RibThis is a bit of an unusual technique, but it might have some of the best results. Instead of purling your purls, you slip them. Then on the next row, you pull the strand that's left from slipping, through the unworked stitch. Doing this there is no extra slack in the yarn, so you get nice, tight, crisp rib stitches. It's a bit of extra work, but the ribbing looks great. ConclusionThere are more ways to deal with this issue. βTECHKnitter does a great job breaking down the problem in more detail, as well as why some of these solutions are not ideal. She even offers a few solutions we didn't go over. But what do you think? Have you encountered this problem? If so, what did you do to fix it? Hit reply and share it with us! β Daily StitchDouble Twisted Rib StitchSpeaking of twisting your rib stitches, this pattern takes it to the next level. Instead of twisting your knits on the wrong side you twist them again when purling the other side. The result is a ribbing that looks like it's been braided.
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β Members Onlyβ Pattern PickManHATtan by Johnny VasquezI designed this hat to be simple but elegant. It uses a lot of little tricks I've learned over the years to make your knitting look more professional. They are subtle things, like the direction of the decreases, and using twisted stitches to make the ribbing POP. This pattern was part of our Yarnist: Hats collection, and right now you can save $2 off the normal price!
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