Not a Fan of the Provisional Cast On

#1

So have you guys tried this? I’ll admit that I am kind of a Long Tail Cast On weenie. I use it for everything, sometimes even if a pattern calls for something else. I did learn the Old Norwegian Cast on for Vaila, and I was feeling pretty good about myself.

So my new sweater, Lusekofte, asks for the provisional cast on for the sleeves so they can be hemmed and I JUST COULD NOT DO IT! It took me a few tries to figure out how to do it, and then when I finally got it, I just couldn’t join in the round. I guess part of the problem is that I’m knitting these sleeves using Magic Loop, which I usually love, but getting that first stitch knit and holding onto the waste yarn and not twisting it was too much for me. I finally got everything fine and when I got to the second round I realized I had twisted it! :!!!:

So I gave up and did the regular long tail cast on. I figure in the end, if sewing down the hem makes a large ridge, I can try to unpick the cast on and sew down the live stitches. But the hem is 3.5" so I don’t think it will matter. :pray: It is a little disconcerting to be unable to complete the FIRST LINE OF THE PATTERN!!! :teehee:

#2

crochet provisional cast on

I [B]Hate hate hate[/B] the twisty provisional cast on and have never been able to master it.

However, the crochet methods are so much easier. I usually do the chain one. Sometimes the chain doesn’t pull out all that easily, but I have scissors.:thumbsup:

#3

i learned the crochet provisional cast on…I love it!!! its the one i use for all my PCO now…

Recently, I started a afghan, and used this PCO as a CO because it mirrors the leap frog CO.

This is a handy one to learn!!

Melissa

#4

Funny I cannot do the crochet cast on–being as the crochet hook and I don’t work too well together but after watching and various video and reading instructions I can do the “twisty” kind. The trick is to twist the wrist. It did take me awhile to learn.

Anyway when having to join this sort of cast on in the round, one trick is to work the first row or two flat, then join. You can do a tiny seam later to fix it.

#5

I hated the provisional cast on until I saw this video: crochet provisional cast on I would skip to about 00:48. And yes, her tone can get annoying.

I absolutely looooove<3 the provisional cast on now.I just don’t like unzipping and reinserting the needle.

#6

I did the crochet provisional and it worked well. Made a scarf that had a 180 degree twist.

#7

You can just do a simple backward loop CO with another yarn, join and knit the first round with it, then switch to your working yarn. That’s pretty easy to take out and is easier to do than a crochet CO. I can do the over/under provisional pretty well, but haven’t tried it in the round and with a ML too.

#8

Thanks for those sites and videos. Now I know what a provisional cast on is. I have seen it in a few patterns I have, but have never even attempted it.

#9

I use this one.
http://www.knittingatnoon.com/provisional.html

#10

Wow, thanks for all the suggestions! Too bad I got impatient and knit a couple of inches off that regular cast on. :slight_smile:

I’m planning to hem the sweater body instead of the ribbing called for in the pattern, and I’ll try the crochet cast on then.

I thought of knitting flat for a couple rounds and then joining, but I didn’t want to fix the seam. Thinking about it again, though, this is going to be inside the sleeve so I could have done it that way and it would not have shown! I wasn’t coming up with a lot of original plans at 2 AM yesterday. :rofl:

#11

Neat…

I never minded the Provisional cast on, but that is really cool! I will give it a try next time I am needing to do one!!

#12

The easiest provisional cast on for me is to knit the first three or four rows with scrap yarn and then begin knitting with the yarn for your project. When you need to pick up the stitches, undo or cut the waste yarn. This method was in the Victorian Lace today book and I used it for the Melon Shawl.

#13

I agree with you, Jeremy

#14

[color="#330099"]You can still use the LTCO you rely upon, just join waist yarn for your long tail by tying a slip knot with both yarns together. Do not count the slip knot as a stitch in your CO.

I found this short video that gives a brief demonstration.

This method has one small short coming for me, you have to pick out each stitch of the waste yarn as you pickup the stitches to work. Perhaps not the thing for a 2 AM cast on.

Perhaps it was just time of night that was the real issue? :wink:
[/COLOR]

#15

I really like the simplicity of the crochet provisional cast on.
The website that Ingrid shared made it so simple!

Hey, if a diagram alone can get it through my thick head, it’s definitely DO-ABLE!

#16

I think you will really like this type of provisional cast on. So E-Z!

#17

I did the crochet provisional cast on for my 2nd sleeve! You guys are right, it was so easy. I actually saw and bypassed that video the first time, thinking it wasn’t what I was looking for. I guess I was thinking it was a way to start a crochet project. :whoosh:

I was going to try the knitting 4 rows with waste yarn for the body, but I really liked the crochet chain so I think I’ll stick with that. Lucy Neatby has such a cute accent. I don’t know what she means about potato sacks though. Either they are different in England or I’ve never bought a whole sack of potatoes before. :teehee:

Now to unpick the caston from the 1st sleeve. I have to rip it back to the turning row anyway as my gauge in stockinette is so much looser that the hem won’t fit nicely inside the cuff. Time to decrease a few sts and a needle size! At least it is stockinette and should unravel once I get the caston picked out. I was trying to unravel some ribbing in CeCe last week and I’d forgotten that ribbing doesn’t unravel. Whoops!

#18

Potatoes used to come in mesh or burlap bags before plastic ones were used.

#19

[color="#330099"]Before the heat-sealed plastic and resealable zip lock style closure, any large quantity dry goods (like potatoes or dog food) were sold in a sack or bag that was sewn closed across the top.

Like any sewn thread that was left unsecured, if you pulled on the correct end it would “unzip.” Trying from the wrong end only tightened the sewn thread into a knot.

Oh, I found this sample image at ( http://www.ritewaypackaging.com/products-bags.php )[/COLOR]

#20

Before the heat-sealed plastic and resealable zip lock style closure, any large quantity dry goods (like potatoes or dog food) were sold in a sack or bag that was sewn closed across the top.

This is the method that my livestock feed and my field seed come in.