Okay, so I’ve worked for a year on this stocking and I’m in the home stretch. Yay! I’m stuck, however. This is a link to the pattern I’m using: eileencaseycreations.com/patterns/personalised-christmas-stocking. You have to click the .pdf file in order to view the pattern.
Anyway, I’ve finished the stocking and am now working on a flap for the cuff. The pattern wants me to pick-up 90 stitches of the cast-on edge of flap (I’ve worked the flap on circular needles) and work a 4-stitch attached I-cord around that edge. Then, in says [B]“to do so, cast on 20 stitches and place at front of left needle. Using US #5 dpn, knit 3 and SSK last stitch of I-cord together with first stitch of picked up border.”[/B]
I’m not sure how and why it’s telling me to cast on 20 stitches and place them on the left needle. Is there another way to communicate that instruction, or is there another way to explain this? Does anyone have a video tutorial that will help me understand what they are saying?
Thanks for your help!
Millie J.
http://www.eileencaseycreations.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/06/Personalised-Christmas-Stocking.pdf
I don’t see anything about casting on 20 stitches in the cuff flap info. It says “to do so cast on 4 stitches and place on front of left needle”. Did you maybe read it wrong or am I missing something?
I read it the same as Jan does.
[I]With MC1, pick up and knit 90 stitches along
cast on edge of stocking.[/I] - PU sts on edge of stocking, not the flap. Then you knit the sts from the flap together with the PU sts.
[I]Place flap on top of
stocking with right side facing out. Knit the
stitches on the flap together with the picked up
stitches on the cast-on edge of the stocking, all
around (90 stitches on needle, and the flap and
stocking are now joined; see picture on pg 5).[/I]
ETA You can find videos for I-cord bind off on youtube.
Thank you ladies for the replies!
GrumpyGramma, you are reading from the “Finishing” section. I’m reading the section “Cuff Flap” (it runs over to the column above “Finishing” section). It says: [B]With CC1, pick up and knit 90 stitches around cast on edge of flap. Work a 4-stitch attached I-cord around this edge in CC1 (to do so, cast on 20 stitches and place at front of left needle. Using US #5 double pointed needles, knit 3 and SSK last stitch of I-cord together with first stitch of picked up border)[/B].
I’ve seen videos of the attached I-cord that make sense by casting on 4 stitches, but I can’t make sense of the extra 20 stitches it’s asking me to cast on here. Also, you see those same 20 stitches mentioned under the Finishing section when binding the flap to the stocking as GrumpyGramma mentioned.
Thank you so much. I really appreciate you taking the time to respond here. 
I suspect that there are two versions of this stocking, the one you started on about a year ago and a current update (see Jan’s post #2). Now the “20sts instructions” has been changed to the one that GG quoted under Cuff Flap. The flap is knit by itself and joined to the picked up sts at the top of the stocking. An I-cord is knit and attached here and also one at the lower edge of the flap.
The 20sts may have been part of an earlier version of the flap which was knit horizontally around the top cuff or it may just have been a mistake.
Thank you so much Salmonmac! You have helped answer a HUGE hurdle in my work.
Now, I have one last question: When I’m supposed to PU the 90 stitches on the flap to start the 4-stitch I cord, am I supposed to pick-up the 90 stitches on a circular #5 needle, or on the #5 DPN’s that are listed one sentence later?
Thank you, thank you, thank you!
90 sts may be a bit much for the usual length dpns, even using 5 needles. If you’re working with a short enough length circular (about 16inches) then use them. It depends on your preference and your ability to keep sts on the dpns.
