Ugh... what to do

#1

So… I finally realized I was wrapping the yarn ‘wrong’ (clockwise) and decided to change that in the middle of the very first scarf I’ve ever knitted. Wrapping counterclockwise is easy and just as fast and I’m totally used to it… the only problem? My stitches got tighter! Ugh…

So here’s a picture of it… I tried to take the picture so that the left half is the original ‘wrong’ way, and the right half is the right way. I haven’t changed yarn tension at all… at least not that I can tell.

Anyway I absolutely LOVE the yarn I’m using for this scarf and was hoping it would be as close to perfect as possible for a first project. I’m near the end of the scarf… should I frog back to the clockwise rows and just knit incorrectly until it’s finished or just keep on trucking and chock it up to being new at knitting?

(sorry for the quality of the photo, it was taken with my phone on my lap)

#2

It is up to you. I will venture an opinion and say leave it and call it a new look! Different but looks fine to me.:cheering:

#3

Hmmm, if you liked the stitches the way they were coming out before you switched how you wrapped the yarn, then frog back to that and finish the “wrong” way. If you like the stitches the way they’re coming out now, frog all the way back and start again. Don’t worry if you think you want to start again. It happens to everybody at some point. What’s the brand of yarn? It’s a pretty color.

#4

[color="#330090"]Well, :think: You might not have been “wrong” in your wrapping at the start and if it tightened up after you switched then that would most likely be caused by twisted stitches. There is [U][B]a recent thread[/B][/U] were the direction of the wrap has been discussed, but only a brief mention of western knitting vs. knitting in the old way. Mainly because I was the one to mention that there is a difference, but since I am still learning about knitting I don’t know the “old way” of knitting.

To be clear this “old way” has nothing to do with left or right hand hand holding the yarn; It is about how you wrap the yarn around the needle and how you put the needle into the stitch to be worked.

It can be seen in how the stitches sit upon your needle.
Are slanted to the back: (Combined or “the old way”)
/ / / / / X
or slanted to the front: (Western or the modern style)
\ \ \ \ \ X

Do you knit by placing your needle through the stitch in front of the back leg (top example) or in front to of the front leg (bottom example)?

If you go into the top example from in front of the front leg then you twist the stitch making it tighter. The loop becomes crossed like an X and the new loop is pulled through the top.

There are times when you want to twist a stitch (e.g. to close a hole in an increase.)

I think Amy, who does the videos here on KH, call this “old way” combined knitting. You may want to look at the video for combined knitting. Some time ago I found a video of a tubular cast on that used only a pair of DPN’s. The way the person was knitting and purling looked very strange to me, but then the comment mentioned she used a different method. I will try to find it again and provide a link. :think:

[YOUTUBE=dH6wD2jT-TI][B]Combined Knitting[/B] by djinnj[/YOUTUBE]
Watch how she does the purls and then the knits.

So, you might not have been wrong, just using a different method.
:thumbsup:
That is why you may hear that there is no wrong way to knit.

Newer doesn’t always mean better; we often seek wisdom form our well aged elders.[/color]

#5

Thanks everyone!!! I think I’ll just leave it as it is… I mostly made it to keep my face warm while walking the dogs, so it’s not really intented to make a fashion statement!

I REALLY love the yarn, I got it on clearance at a local shop ($3/100gr) it’s Nashua Creative Focus Chunky in Algae Heather. 75% wool, 25% alpaca. You can’t really tell from my fuzzy picture but there are some very pretty hints of a baby blue in with the green.

Jack, I’m inserting the needle in the back and I was wrapping the yarn counterclockwise. That video is great!

#6

[COLOR="#223399"]Glad that the video was of help.

When you near the end of your ball of yarn you might want to switch back to how you were knitting at the beginning. Then the end will match the start and the different look in the middle will look like a planned design element! After all, everyone is entitled to change their mind and make any modification to a pattern if they find it more appealing.

:thumbsup: [/COLOR]

#7

I’m actually near the end of the last (third) ball of yarn… I’m hoping adding some short fringe might help. :slight_smile:

#8

Well… I decided to unravel and redo the ‘new’ stitches to make everything match. The OCD in me just couldn’t leave it alone!

This is only the second time I’ve gone back to fix a mistake… it’s super scary, but the scarf is still looking good! The first time I went back to fix a dropped stitch and did it with a crochet hook… I was super impressed with myself and the ability to “make it work” (to qoute Tim Gunn).

Thanks again for all the help! Next project I’ll be wrapping the yarn the ‘correct’ way :slight_smile:

#9

LOL! That’s why I said what I said before. :wink: Taking the stitches off the needle IS super scary but once you know what you’re doing … eh, who am I kidding, you’re still gonna hold your breath! :slight_smile:

#10

~Evan

One day to become - TheDoilyLlama!

:roflhard: :roflhard: Love this!!!

#11

Once you learn to fix your mistakes, along with reading your knitting, you’re on your way to being an ‘experienced’ knitter. :wink: