I am ready to start my new project, but before I do that, I would like to hear any insights from you about knitting with ribbon yarn. This is the first time I will be using ribbong yarn, so if there is anything I should know, please, let me know.
I will be making the Racer Back Tank Top from Lion’s Brand web page, with Incredible yarn in black accents, and size 10 knitting needles.
Roberta, all the advice I have received is just go with the flow. It will twist,but that’s okay.
Go with the flow. Twist is okay.
I am finishing a sweater this weekend using Katia Idea jeans, which is a linen, rayon, cotton tape. It’s thinner than the incredible, but it does twist. I will smooth it out a little at a time, but it’s not been really bad.
Deeknits
I keep the ball in a sandwich-sized ziplock bag. They have a tendency to collapse on themselves as you knit and this will help to contain it so you don’t end up with a tangled mess. Also, they do tend to gather twist between the ball and the project. So I zip the bag closed on the strand, and let either the ball or the project hang and untwist. I think you’ll see what I mean once you get into it.
Have fun! I love ribbon yarn.
Carol
Oh yeah - about joining a new ball. You can’t really secure ribbon very well like wool yarn. You may have to knot the two ends together and knit on. Later you might want to return to the knots, undo and tighten the stitches by pulling a little, and secure the ends together with thread. Depends on the ribbon - some are very slick and will unweave themselves.
When joining a new ball of yarn, rather than knotting them togher, get a sewing needle and sewing thread that is of simalar color to you yarn and sew them tohger.
I’m working on a ribbon tank too, the RibbonXBack from Knitty http://www.knitty.com/issuespring05/PATTxback.html. I’m making it with Colinette Giotto ribbon which I have frogged from an ill-fated poncho project, so my ribbon is already scrunched and twisted :lol: . It still looks fine once knitted, so I wouldn’t worry about the twists. BTW, I frogged the poncho into a pile on the kitchen table and I’m knitting the tank right out of the top of the pile rather than try to re-wind it. So far, it’s working fine with no tangles. We just can’t use part of the table until I finish the tank :rofling: .
:XX: Thank you for all the advice. I started the top and it is going pretty well except for the curling on the bottom. But I expected that since I am working in stockinet stitch. If it is still curled too much after the whole top is done, I will figure out something.
I like the zip-lock bag idea. I promised myself not to worry about the twisting. Just from time to time I do the untwisting with the zip-lock bag. Works good.
I am still on my first ball of yarn and haven’t done any yarn joining. Thank you for the advice about that too. I will see what will work better.
Silveridger, I like the top you are knitting. I love seed stitch. I haven’t done anything in seed stitch though. Just a scarf that is close to seed stitch and turned out perfect.
You cast on odd number of stitches and then:
Row 1: (WS) *K1, p1; repeat from * to last st, end k1.
Row 2: Knit.
Here is the top that I am knitting:
http://cache.lionbrand.com/patterns/50592.html?noImages=
On the picture you can see that the bottom is curled but it doesn’t look bad at all. Kind of cute.
You all have good day.
Roberta
That is a really cute tank top. I’m glad to hear the ziplock is working. A little twist is ok to work with, but sometimes it built up so much that I felt like it was impossible to go further without untwisting.
I was going to make this, http://www.straw.com/cpy/patterns/deco_knit_bag.htm, but I ended up making a seed stitch bag with a flap. The flap was slightly curly even tho it was seed st, so I crocheted an edge around it and that helped.
Keep us posted!
Carol