So I used a long tail cast on. So directions state work garter stitch for 5 rows. Then beginning with right side row work in stockinette. So when I started the first garter stitch row that should have been right side since the tail was at the beginning. So the 5th row was a right side row. So since it says beginning with a right side row work in stockinette, that doesn’t work out correctly or am I looking at this wrong? The pattern is yarnspirations precision wrap sweater
Hello
The long tail cast on produces stitches on the right needle so that was a right side row produced as the cast on, meaning the first row you work and all odd rows are WS. After 5 rows worked the next row, row 6 is right side and knit for the stockinette part.
Having said that it really doesn’t matter, you can have either side the right side if you choose to have it so. Just make sure the other pieces are done in the same way so the garter hem lines up when seaming.
Just out of interest, a knit cast on or cable cast on produces stitches on the left needle meaning the first row worked is right side.
Hope this helps.
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I think nothing is a 100% in knitting. I keep a folder of little tidbits of info that I think to be useful. So I previously had written that with long tail cast on, if the tail is at beginning of row, you are fixing to start a right side row. But now I’ve googled and found out that the cast on row using long tail cast on can also be counted as the first knitted row. So normally I don’t count the cast on as first row or the right side. Normally my odd numbers are right side rows but in this case the odd numbered rows will be wrong side rows. Literally the more I try to talk this out I get more muddled in the brain
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Not to fret about this.
There’s no hard and fast rule here. There’s some discussion of RS/WS after the cast on but most agree that the cast on row is just that, the cast on row whichever cast on you use. Then start the next row however the pattern recommends, as a RS or WS row. If the pattern doesn’t designate that first row, then it’s up to you. This is really a matter of personal choice.
For myself, I sometimes want the bumpy side of the long tail to be the RS and sometimes the smooth side as the RS.
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You are so organised!
I barely manage to keep a pattern to the end of a project!
I decided I “must” write down the pattern to the sweater I made up for my own size (couldn’t find what I wanted and I really wanted it) so that I could make it again in a different colour and I didn’t even manage thatm100% off course it started out pretty well but by the end it’s anyone’s guess which arm hole and sleeve cap drawings I used out of the half dozen sketched and reworked!
It’s wierd as I am great at organising other things, but not knitting info.
Since you’re starting with garter stitch unless one row more or less makes a crucial difference in the pattern choose the side you want as the RS IMO. I put a marker on the side I choose as the RS. If that means working another row then I just make any other pieces the same way. I never count the cast on as r1 either. Others do, especially with the ltco. Suzanne Bryan has a video explaining why it’s not the first row, I think there are other videos explaining why it is. Do what works best for you is my suggestion. I prefer the alleged WS of the cast on to show on the RS if I’m not picking up stitches along that edge. That’s my choice. I’m not saying it’s the right way, but it is my way and for me that makes it the right way. There is no 100% for much of anything knitting. I often do my ltco with the thumb yarn in the open position. The tail yarn doesn’t twist and I think it looks nice.
edited for typo
Well, I just followed the instructions, cast on, 5 rows of garter, then started the stockinette. The biggest challenge will be to remember that odd rows are WS, which is not normally the case. But now looking back, I really like the way the bottom looks which is now my right side. Smooth not bumpy. Since I put all my wip in knit companion, I just added a note to remind myself of the changes in case I put it down for an extended period of time. Also @Creations, I don’t consider myself that organized. But if I learn something new, I want to remember, if I don’t add it to a knit folder on my phone I would probably never find it again. Just like here. There are so many pieces of info I wish I knew how to tag them or something to find again at a later time. But thanks for all the input, my head was literally spinning.
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If you like the cast on with a particular side showing then that is definitely the side to use, whether or not it it supposed to be the right side or wrong side.
Sometimes the “wrong side” of a cast on looks nicer with the fabric, like with reverse stockinette the purl side of the cast on is nice to go with the purl right side of the fabric.
I had a project put down for quite some time and this week when I returned I discovered I had not even turned the dial on my row counter before abandoning it so it was a row out from my chart. All good in the end though.
It won’t help you now, but you might like this for future projects. I’ve switched to purlwise long-tail cast on so that my next row is ready for knitting. Otherwise, I sometimes switch so that the next row is a purl row. Of course, this depends on the pattern, but I was often getting the reverse of what I wanted on the next row. https://youtu.be/A3GByQvpaAc?si=5chL9nI2WaH-7Vim
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