The purl stitch in knitting looks quite different from the knit stitch. The videos below show how to make purl stitches and how to undo (un-purl) those stitches for right handed knitting.
The Purl Stitch:
Insert the right needle from front to back of the first stitch on the left knitting needle
Wrap the working yarn around the inserted right needle
Catch the loop made made by the working yarn (the new stitch) with the right needle
Slip the loop (the new stitch) onto the right needle and the first stitch off the left needle
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Un-Purl (undo the Purl stitch):
Insert left knitting needle into the purl bump below the new stitch on the right needle
Catch the left side of the purl bump above the working yarn and place the loop made onto the left needle
Slide the new stitch on the right needle off the needle
Pull the working yarn (dropped stitch loop) away from the stitch on the left needle
I bought the yarn for the Four Section Blanket almost a decade ago when they opened a new Hobby Lobby store near me. I was still a novice knitter dabbling in knitting a top down sweater and wanted to use this yarn for that. I tried to knit a sweater with this yarn but for some reason it didn’t happen. The yarn languished in my storage bin for years till a couple of months ago when I took it out from storage and crocheted this Four Section Blanket.
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Four separate pieces of the same size are crocheted for the Four Section Blanket using a crochet moss stitch pattern for the border and a mix of single crochet, chain 1 stitch pattern for the four pieces. Although both stitch patterns have single crochets and chain ones, the placement of the single crochet results in a distinctive looking pattern. Each section has a round of crochet moss stitch pattern as its border edge. The four pieces are then joined using the zig zag crochet slip stitch method. The border of the blanket is finished with several rounds of the crochet moss stitch pattern. The finished blanket measures about 42 x 44 inches.
The Four Section Blanket Pattern (text and images for personal use only)
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Yarn: Hobby Lobby I Love This Yarn! in Terra Cotta Colorway (4 skeins needed for this blanket) Tapestry needle to weave in ends Gauge: 4.5 stitches/inch Crochet hook: US size I-9 or 5.5 mm Abbreviations: sc: single crochet […]: pattern repeat
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Welcome to the first video tutorial here on Coffee Tea Knits. The knit stitch and how to tink (knit spelled backwards) or unravel that stitch is shown in the two videos below.
The Knit Stitch:
Insert the right knitting needle from back to front of the first stitch on the left knitting needle.
Take the working yarn around the top of the right needle and wrap it between the two needles on top of the first stitch
Catch and pick up the working yarn loop (the new stitch) with the right needle
Slip the first stitch off the left needle and onto the right needle for the new knit stitch
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Tink (to undo or unpick the knit stitch):
Insert the left knitting needle into the v – shaped stitch below the first stitch on the right needle
Catch the left strand of the v – shaped stitch with the left needle and slip it onto the left needle
Pull the first stitch on the right needle off the needle
Pull the working yarn (loop) out of the stitch now on the left needle
I am all for window shopping and retail (yarn) therapy.
You sometimes find the most unexpected things that just have to be purchased.
A market bag is a useful thing to take along for these shopping trips especially if you live in a place where plastic bags are not easily available.
These knitted or crocheted market bags can be for personal use as well as for gifting. They are also reusable and eco-friendly.
For me as a knitter and crocheter, making handmade market bags gives me one more reason to continue yarn therapy.
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The Summertime Market Bag Pattern (text and images for personal use only)
Yarn: YarnspirationsTM Caron Cotton Ripple Cakes yarn in the French Vanilla colorway. The yarn is discontinued but may still be available at Michaels etc. For the Summertime Market Bag 1 cake (240 g) of this yarn was used. Tapestry needle to weave in ends Gauge: Not really needed since the center out crochet moss stitch squares can be customized to any size. Crochet hook: US size F-5 or 3.75 mm for the crochet moss stitch squares and US E-4 or 3.5 mm for the shoulder strap Abbreviations: sc: single crochet […]: pattern repeat
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The Summertime Market Bag is crocheted in the round using the center out crochet moss stitch pattern. The crochet moss stitch square starts with a crochet magic ring.
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In a crochet magic ring pictured above (there are many tutorials available online on how to make a crochet magic ring) pull up a stitch with the US F-5 crochet hook, sc once into the ring, chain 2, place marker, sc into the ring, chain 2, place marker, sc into the ring, chain 2, place marker, sc into the ring, chain 2, place marker, and sc. Pull on the yarn tail to tighten the gap (pictured below).
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Round 1: Insert the crochet hook into the chain 2 space of the first marker and sc, chain 2, sc, chain 1 all in the same chain 2 space (see below). Remove the first marker and place it as the beginning of the round marker. [Insert hook and sc, chain 2, sc, chain 1 into the chain 2 space of the second marker. Remove second marker]. Repeat […] this for the third and fourth marker in their chain 2 space.
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Round 2: [Sc, chain 2, sc, chain 1 all in the same chain 2 space of the first corner with the beginning of the round marker. Sc in the next chain 1 space between the first and second corner (see picture below), chain 1]. Repeat […] for the second, third and fourth corners till the beginning of the first marker.
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Repeat the Round 2 till preferred size is reached ending with a sc in the chain 2 space at the beginning of the round. Cut the working yarn and pull through the sc stitch. There was a total of 34 round repeats for the Summertime Market Bag.
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Make another crochet moss stitch square of the same size. Wash and block the two squares (wrong side pictured below)
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The two sides and the bottom of the two squares are then joined together using two strands of the yarn and the crochet zig zag slip stitch method.
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The Shoulder Strap: Insert US E-4 hook from right to left on top of one side of the joined square, pick up and single crochet 11 stitches (pictured below) for the shoulder strap for about fifteen and a half inches ending with the right side row. Cut yarn and pull through the stitch. Repeat the same on the other side of the joined square. Join the two shoulder straps using the crochet slip stitch join method.
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Weave in the ends to complete the Summertime Market Bag.
I knit another Sheltering Tree Shawlette with hand dyed super wash merino yarn by Cozy Color Works in the Jersey Peach colorway. I purchased this yarn about 4 or 5 years ago at either a wool walk or the NJ Sheep and Wool Festival. Each hank of hand dyed yarn by Indie Dyers is unique and a work of art. This 550 yards of fingering weight merino yarn is unique in its colorful speckles, its softness, its warmth and lightness.
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The yarn also shows the stitch definition of The Sheltering Tree Shawlette Pattern well. There were some modifications made to the pattern. I knit this shawlette with US Size #5 circular needles, added a few more garter stitch rows for the border and omitted the eyelet row. This Sheltering Tree Shawlette is wider and longer than the previous one. The speckles in the yarn added pops of color and made knitting this shawlette fun.
In knitting patterns there is a right side and a wrong side for a row or a round. It does not mean that the wrong side (the inner side) pattern can’t be reversed and be on the right side (the outer side). I sometimes like the reverse side of the pattern just as much as the right or outer side. The Comfy Hat Patterns are an example of patterns with both the right side and wrong side as the outer side of the hats. When I completed knitting the Spring is in the Air Dishcloth last month, I liked how the two different colors of yarn gave a striped textured pattern on the reverse (wrong) side of the dishcloth (pictured below). The striped textured pattern on the wrong side led to the Reverse Side Dishcloth pattern.
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The Reverse Side Dishcloth pattern is the reverse side of the linen stitch pattern in two different yarn colorways. In this pattern I used Capri Eco Cotton™ by Loops and Threads® yarn made from recycled cotton in two different colorways. Stitches are cast on, the round joined and the dishcloth is worked by knitting towards the center with decreases every other round till 8 stitches remain. It is then finished with the duplicate crochet stitch running diagonally beginning at each corner and moving towards the center. Reverse single crochet stitch pattern is used as an edging for the border.
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The Reverse Side Dishcloth Pattern (text and images for personal use only)
Yarn: Capri Eco Cotton™ by Loops and Threads® yarn in Yellow (Colorway 1) and Pewter (Colorway 2) Knitting Needles: US #10 for cast on and US #8 circular needles to knit the dishcloth Crochet hook: US size 7 or 4.5 mm crochet hook Tapestry Needle to weave in ends Gauge: 5 stitches/inch Abbreviations:
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Knitting an impromptu custom top down sweater is much like an unplanned journey to me. The final destination is known but the path taken and the process to get there is not clear.
The cotton yarn for this project was meant for a weaving project that didn’t happen.
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I quickly cast on enough stitches to begin a custom top down raglan sleeved cardigan. Since both the yarn were variegated alternating them in stripes to prevent too much color pooling seemed like the way to go.
Several rows in I changed direction and decided to knit a pullover instead of a cardigan. So some more stitches were cast on, the round joined and the journey towards a top down pullover began.
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The journey to a completed sweater body and sleeves went pretty smoothly. I washed, blocked and photographed the sweater.
The finished pullover:
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Those uneven horizontal stripes (arrows) at the beginning of round where the yarn for the stripe pattern changed were pretty noticeable to me. I had to get some help from the crochet duplicate stitch pattern. The crochet duplicate stitch placed vertically fortunately made the uneven horizontal stripes less noticeable.
The finished impromptu custom sweater was not at all how I visualized it to be when I first cast on some stitches for a top down raglan sleeved sweater.
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Reaching my destination of a finished sweater took much longer than I had anticipated. I had expected a journey of simple stockinette and 2 x 2 rib stitch patterns but then had to add a more complicated crochet duplicate stitch pattern in the opposite direction.
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Knitting this impromptu sweater was quite a journey for me. I am pleasantly surprised and satisfied with how this unplanned sweater turned out.
Now having reached my destination I look forward to a chance to wear this impromptu pullover.
Somehow the birds chirping, the bright blue sky, the showers, warmer days, new leaves on trees and the vibrant Spring flowers refresh and lighten my mood. I get motivated to declutter, clean and of course start new knitting projects appropriate for Spring and Summer. As the weather gets warmer, I start knitting more with cotton yarn. Spring is in the Air Dishcloth reflects this cheerfulness that comes with warm weather. The dishcloth was knit in the linen stitch pattern with two different colors of cotton worsted yarn. It was knit in the round moving towards the center through a series of decreases every other round. The knitting technique for this dishcloth is similar to The Toward Center Mitered Dishcloth but was knit alternating two different colors of the cotton worsted yarn in each round.
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Spring Is In The Air Dishcloth Pattern (text and images for personal use only)
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The Nostalgic Wrap was knit for the opportunities and the arts and crafts stores that are no longer there. The wrap is knit with a cotton yarn that I purchased in the beginning of 2020 at A. C. Moore that closed its stores later that year. I spent many hours in that store exploring and learning about the different types of yarn and yarn brands. It was where knitting and yarn became a serious hobby and craft for me. A. C. Moore was my window at a time when several doors had closed for me. It is much missed by me.
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The Nostalgic Wrap is knit using the same cotton yarn as in The Harmony Wrap that I knit in September 2020. The colors of the yarn are different in the two wraps but each cake of this yarn has a gradient of 14 different colors. The yarn has been discontinued but a substitute yarn can be found on Yarn Sub. Both wraps are knit using the bias knitting technique with a 1 stitch cast on (tutorials for bias knitting technique can be found on YouTube). The wrap is knit using the garter stitch pattern. Although knitting the Nostalgic Wrap took a long time, I found it both a very relaxing and meditative knit. The wrap can be easily customized to shorter length or wider width if preferred. The Nostalgic Wrap is about 18 inches wide (without stretching) and about 96 inches in length.
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The Nostalgic Wrap Pattern (text and images for personal use only)
Yarn: Stitch Studio by Nicole Cotton Colors in Purple Red Pink Colorway (2 yarn cakes – 250 grams each used for this pattern). There are 14 different colors in a gradient for each cake which are marked as 1 to 14 Knitting Needles: US #2 or 2.75 mm knitting needles Gauge: 26 stitches/ 4 inches (this pattern is generic so gauge not so critical) Abbreviations:
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K: Knit
P: Purl
Kfb: Knit front and back (knit one stitch first in the front and then knit the same stitch in the back before slipping it off the left needle – 1 stitch increase)
K2tog: Knit the first two stitches together on the left needle (1 stitch decrease)
SSK: slip slip knit (slip 2 stitches to right hand needle then insert the left needle in front of the two slipped stitches and knit them together
RS: right side
WS: wrong side
garter ridge – RS and WS row in knit stitch pattern (2 knitted rows)
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Cast on 1 stitch with US #2 needles with color 1 (the first color in the center pull gradient yarn)
Increase Section: Row 1 (RS): color 1 – Kfb Row 2 (WS): color 1 – K2 Row 3 (RS): color 1 – Kfb, Kfb Row 4 (WS): color 1 – K4 Row 5 (RS): color 1 – Kfb, knit to 1 stitch before last, Kfb Row 6 (WS): color 1 – Knit all the stitches Repeat Rows 5 and 6 (with color 1) till 146 stitches on the needles. Change to Color 2 and repeat rows 5 and 6 till 208 stitches on the needles (the length can be extended if preferred with the next color in the gradient)
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Length Increase Section (garter ridges): Row 1 (RS): Color 3 – Kfb, knit till 2 stitches left, K2tog. Row 2 (WS): Color 3 – Knit all the stitches Repeat Rows 1 and 2 for twenty five more garter ridges (more or less garter ridges if preferred). Change to Color 4 and repeat rows 1 and 2 for a total of 26 garter ridges Change to Color 5 and repeat rows 1 and 2 for a total of 26 garter ridges Change to Color 6 and repeat rows 1 and 2 for a total of 26 garter ridges Change to Color 7 and repeat rows 1 and 2 for a total of 26 garter ridges Change to Color 8 and repeat rows 1 and 2 for a total of 26 garter ridges Change to Color 9 and repeat rows 1 and 2 for a total of 26 garter ridges Change to Color 10 and repeat rows 1 and 2 for a total of 26 garter ridges Change to Color 11 and repeat rows 1 and 2 for a total of 26 garter ridges Change to Color 12 and repeat rows 1 and 2 for a total of 26 garter ridges
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Decrease Section: Change to Color 13 and knit as follows: Row 1 (RS): SSK, knit till 2 stitches left, K2tog Row 2 (WS): Knit all the stitches Repeat Rows 1 and 2 for thirty more garter ridges. Change to Color 14 and knit Rows 1 and 2 till four stitches left on the needle. Row (RS): SSK, K2tog Row (WS): Knit 2 stitches, Last Row (RS): SSK and pull working yarn through Weave in the ends, wash and block the Nostalgic Wrap.
In the past year I’ve been exploring different variations in plain weaving on a rigid heddle loom. Rigid heddle loom weaving consists of warp and weft threads (or yarn). The warp thread is held vertically (lengthwise) under tension while the weft thread is passed horizontally through the warp threads by the weaver.
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One way to add some texture to a plain weave is to have warp, weft or both warp and weft floats. Pictured below is a woven scarf and a woven wrap/shawl that has both warp and weft floats. The scarf was woven with same cotton yarn for both its warp and weft. The wrap/shawl was woven with two different colors of wool yarn for its warp and weft.
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Floats are skips (not passed through) in the warp or weft threads and are created by using a pickup stick. A warp float is when the warp thread skips over two or more weft threads and a weft float is when the weft thread skips over the two or more warp threads (see picture below). Both warp and weft floats are created by how the pickup stick is placed behind the heddle. For the warp float, the pickup stick is turned on its side behind the heddle and for the weft float the pickup stick is turned on its edge behind the heddle.
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These woven items are just the beginning of my exploration of the various combinations and textures created by a pickup stick and one heddle. I look forward to learning more about the different weaving techniques on a rigid heddle loom and how to combine them with some knit or crochet stitch patterns.
