Knitting

Patterns, projects and techniques

Fun with Garter Stitch

by

wacing fingers wildflower knitsWhen we’re new knitters, the first thing most of us do is knit something made with garter stitch. And we usually pretty quickly abandon “knit every stitch of every row” because, frankly, it can be kind of boring. But there are reasons to keep coming back to humble garter stitch: it’s fast, it has built-in texture, it doesn’t curl and you can do things to spice it up should you want to.

I happen to be working on a scarf right now (a rare non-book bit of knitting, for a good reason that I’ll share probably later this week) that I’m working in garter stitch with a row of elongated stitches every few rows to make the yarn go further, make the scarf a bit less stifling and to add interest in the knitting and the wearing.

I also just came across this cute Waving Fingers Scarf from Wildflower Knits, which uses regular cast ons and bind offs to make “fingers” of fringe along one edge of the scarf. The sample was worked in Plymouth Kudo (another self-striping beauty), but any self-striping yarn you like (including Noro!) would make quick and beautiful work of this easy scarf.

How do you feel about garter stitch? Spill it!

[Photo by Wildflower Knits.]

Next Pattern:

Comments

  1. Hi Sarah!
    Just wanted to add that this is a great project for beginners because they get lots of practice casting on and binding off! Thanks for posting!
    Kennita

  3. There is so much to recommend about garter stitch – in addition to the list of positives you’ve already written I would add that garter stitch projects are fabulous for when you just want some “stitch therapy”. I just love pieces with big runs of knit stitch – time to zen out (zone out) and sort through the day.

Have you read?

Book Review: Cable Knitting Stitch Dictionary

Stitch dictionaries are a fun way to learn new-to-you knitting stitch patterns or to take a deep dive into a particular technique. Debbie Tomkies offers 100 cable stitch designs and thoughts on how to incorporate them into projects in her Cable Knitting Stitch Dictionary.

Each stitch pattern is shown in a large swatch photo and with written and charted instructions. Any special stitches are included on the page. The stitches are rated on a difficulty scale of 1 to 3, and the pattern notes also indicate how many extra stitches you should add to a project if you’re going to work this cable (since cables pull the fabric closer together you need to compensate for that) as well as how many stitches and rows are in the repeat if you want to design a project yourself.

The cables are arranged into sections: classic cables, combinations, all-over panels, creative cables, motifs and panels and cabled edges and borders.

It’s fun to flip through the designs to think about projects you can add a single cable or two to or make with an allover cabled design. Or you could make swatches of different cables and sew them together into a pillow cover or a throw.

At the back of the book there’s a section on general cable knitting techniques, reading charts, working swatches and avoiding errors (though it mentions working the wrong number of rows between cable turns, it doesn’t share how to count rows between cables to avoid this mistake).

It also talks about how to design your own cables, combine cables in a project, choose the right yarn and needles and determine how many more stitches you need to cast on when working cables instead of stockinette stitch. There’s also a glossary of symbols and abbreviations you may find in cable knitting and other patterns.

The book provides a good overview of things you can do with cables, as well as some fun things you might not have tried like infinity cables and horizontal cables. It’s a great book for a designer who likes to work with cables or a knitter who wants to play with different stitches in their projects.

About the book: 176 pages, paperback, 100 stitch patterns. Published 2024 by David & Charles. Suggested retail price $26.99.