Why Does Stockinette Curl and Can You Fix It?

Around the beginning of the year I joined a Facebook group for beginner knitters, both because I thought I could help people and because I wanted to see what kinds of questions people were asking so I could produce posts around them.

One of the biggest questions a lot of new knitters have is around stockinette stitch (aka knit one row, purl one row). First they want to know what they’re doing wrong that causes it to curl, and then how to fix it.

The first part of the answer is that you’re not doing anything wrong. I have read that stockinette stitch curls because of the difference in size between knit stitches and purl stitches (knit stitches are shorter and narrower) or because of a difference in tension between knit stitches and purl stitches when you work them.

That doesn’t account for why stockinette still curls when you work it in the round, though, so I can’t say that’s 100 percent the reason, but the result is the same regardless. Stockientte stitch tends to curl to the knit side on the cast on and bind off edges an toward the purl side on the sides.

So how do you stop it? One way is to add a border that will help to keep the edges flat. Ribbing is commonly used for this purpose on the edges of hats, socks and sweaters, but you can also use garter stitch or any combination of knit and purl stitches that’s relatively balanced (such as moss stitch or seed stitch).

You can also add a hem to a project, which helps weigh down the edge and can keep it from curling. Nimble Needles shows one way to do that by sort of picking up stitches along the back of the work and knitting them together with the live stitches, but you can also do this by knitting an inch or so, working a row of purls on the knit side and then knitting on. When you’re finished with the project you can fold it along that purl row and sew the hem down along the back.

Or you can use a purl row to stop the edge from curling beyond that point and use the rolled hem as a style feature.

Do you have any tips for reducing curl or working with the curl in stockinette stitch? I’d love to hear them!

[Photo: Nimble Needles]

Learn a New Stitch: Stockinette Chevron

A Scarf Knitting Pattern for Learning How to Knit

Getting ready for back to school makes me think about pencil crafts, so let’s take a look at some pencil themed knitting patterns!

I recently made a pencil on a circular knitting machine, and it was a fun, quick, easy project that uses little bits of leftover yarn (and if you don’t have yellow you can make it a colored pencil using whatever color’s your favorite). And if you want to make a bigger version check out this pattern from Orange Olive Road on Etsy.

If you want to knit a pencil pillow by hand, check out Sketchy, available on Ravelry from Shana S. Cohen. This one uses worsted weight yarn and has two size options and the choice to make a pencil with an eraser or a colored pencil.

Pencil scarves seem to be the most popular kind of pencil knitting pattern, and there are lot of cute ones. This one from Cosy Craft UK mostly uses garter stitch, with some welts to add texture and what looks like an I-cord edging. It calls for DK weight yarn.

If you want to go all garter stitch try this version from Emsley Co Creations, which uses five colors of DK weight yarn and just a little shaping to make the point of the pencil.

There’s also this fun, mostly stockinette so it looks like it curls a bit, pencil pattern that looks like it’s worked in chunky yarn from Little Knits Studio. This one uses just a little garter stitch and easy shaping for the point.

If you don’t want a pencil scarf, how about some pencil socks? The No. 2 Pencil Socks from The Yarn Enabler are available from Ravelry and use five colors of sock yarn. They feature wide ribs to mimic the texture of a pencil and have options to be worked from the top down or the toe up.

Needs Sharpening by Alexander Walker is a free pattern on Ravelry that uses five colors of sock yarn to make a sort of shortie sock. The little bit of black at the tips of the toes inspired the name. These, too, can be worked in either direction and are available in three sizes.

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