Knitting

Free Patterns, Tutorials and Project Ideas

Ways to Join in the Round for Circular Knitting

by

how to join in the round for circular knitting.I think the biggest hurdle knitters have to get over when they want to start knitting in the round — perhaps maybe how to manage double-pointed needles — is understanding logistically how to get started.

How do you keep your stitches from being twisted? How do you make all those floppy stitches behave so you can start knitting? Do you need to do anything special to start circular knitting or can you just, you know, knit?

I decided to try to answer these questions in a quick video.

[youtube width=”400″ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=giIfI1UP8NA]

I show you what a non-twisted cast on looks like and offer three different methods for joining in the round:

Casting on an extra stitch and working it together with the first cast-on stitch

Swapping the first and the last stitches one over the other so the stitches change position

Doing nothing

I’ve used all of these methods through the years and while doing something to hold those stitches together makes the whole thing a lot less wobbly, especially on DPNs, just starting knitting without any special preparation is fine, too.

How do you start knitting when working in the round? Do you use one of these methods or do something else? I’d love to hear about it.

Next Pattern:

Comments

  1. I bring the working yarn forward, transfer the last stitch onto the first needle, lay the working yarn to the back between that last stitch and the next to last one, slide the last stitch back onto the right hand needle and start stitching. This avoids the lagging gap between the first stitch and the last stitch, and the whole thing is smooth as silk.

  2. Thank you for the useful video, Sarah. I’ve been avoiding knitting in the round and found your information very helpful.

  3. Thanks for the informative video. I like to knitting in the round, I primarily knit hats and some scarves in the round. I recently started knitting socks, currently on my second pair using double pointed needles. I look forward in the future to knitting cardigans for a smoother finish.

    Thank you!

  4. Please move your camera over to your work. We cannot see any knitting, only your left hand and the ball of yarn.
    Many thanks. H.

Have you read?

Knit and Felt Some Tabi Style Slippers

The felted slipper craze that began last year doesn’t seem like it’s fading away. The Sailor Slippers, often striped knit and felted slippers made with super bulky yarn, because the project of the moment late last year (check out more knit slipper options in this post all about sailor slippers) and they’re still consistently popular with knitters.

Which makes sense because they are fun and fast to knit, and seeing them go from this giant thing to something that actually fits a foot feels a little magical. 

I have always loved felting (in fact my first book was about felting knitting) and it’s always fun for me to see people rediscover this technique. 

If you’ve knit enough plain slippers to fit all the feet you know, maybe it’s time to stitch up some tabi style slippers instead. 

Maymade Knits has designed these cute tabi ballerina slippers, made with bulky yarn and felted. They’re worked flat at first and then in rounds, and are available in 10 EU sizes (the Internet tells me add 31 to your American shoe size to get your EU size). The designer says the slippers are meant to have a close fit and you should choose a size a little smaller than your foot for the ideal fit. 

The pattern includes a video tutorial along with the written pattern. 

You can grab this pattern on Ravelry. The same designer has her own version of the striped felted slipper as well, called Sarah’s Striped Slippers. These are worked in super bulky yarn and have a contrasting foot and a striped body. These are knit flat and seamed and there are 7 size options available. Check that pattern out here if you’re looking for a more traditional slipper shape. They also look roomier so you can wear them with socks if you like. 

[Photo: Maymade Knits]