Author Topic: Knitting in the round part 2 (Read 8657 times)

SallyintNorth · « **Reply #30 on:** September 28, 2012, 05:06:51 am »

Yes, lots of circulars, Dans! Yes you could call them U-shaped when small, Mammyshaz, circular when longer

DPNs aren't a bit scary - just have a go, Dans! The trick is to use ones that are short enough but not too short - I prefer 6-8" ones for socks, preferably bamboo rather than metal - and to use at least 4 if not 5 so you're not all working round tight corners. And to not wear a woolly jumper while knitting with them in case you catch the end of one in the jumper you're wearing

(Fleecewife gave me that tip - and she's right!) In terms of not getting a big gap where you move from pin to pin, there are two tactics. I just knit across the next 3-4 stitches each row, so my DPNs keep moving around the tube row by row, or jaykay reckons if you tighten the second stitch on each pin, that keeps it neat. (I haven't tried that yet, will do on the next tube I knit.)

I do hourglass heels, so that I can drop them out and replace them if they get too holey / undarnable (or so lumpy with darning they're not comfortable any more.) For the heel itself you would need to use short needles as you knit that bit back and forth, then rejoin when the heel is shaped. So if you preferred, you could knit the whole sock except the heel itself on circulars. If you like gusset heels, I'm not sure - jaykay would know, I've seen her knitting socks on circulars; mind on that occasion she was doing both socks together (toe up) so she could just keep knitting up the legs till her yarn was used up, which is a different thing again!

In the Twisted Sisters Sock Workbook, which is my bible for socks, they talk about a technique where you knit the heel afterwards. You knit the sock as a tube, then open it up at the heel, knit the hourglass heel and join it in with kitchener stitch. If you really hate DPNs, you could consider that?

Bionic · « **Reply #31 on:** September 28, 2012, 08:03:05 am »

Quote from: Dans on September 27, 2012, 10:22:52 pm

DPNs scare me.

Dans

Dans, DPNS scared me too until last year. I tried to make socks and wasn't getting on very well as I kept stabbing myself. After some advice on here I persevered and this was the end result.
http://www.accidentalsmallholder.net/forum/index.php?topic=20862.0
I do as Sally does and knit across 3 or 4 stitches on the next needle too so that the 'end' keeps moving round. You can't seen an obvious starting place that way.
the other Sally

Alistair · « **Reply #32 on:** September 28, 2012, 09:30:36 am »

Magic loop needs long, like 16" circulars, th longer the better, the only things I've found difficult at first are making sure you pull the right cable back, cos if you don't all the stitches I fall off and it's easily done, and also at first the laddering at the join jaykay is right you just tighten into the second stitch and it goes away

Can't see any reason why you couldn't do socks this way? It's just the same st the end of the day?

Blackbird · « **Reply #33 on:** September 28, 2012, 12:18:13 pm »

On the mittens v. fingerless gloves debate. My sister-in-law made me a pair of fingerless gloves which have a little "hood" that you tuck over your fingers and secure with a button on the back of the hand, thus turning them into mittens. They are fab! WIll post a pic if anyone can't make any sense of my description. They will be great for those chilly mornings up the yard sorting out ponies and sheep!

Lesley Silvester · « **Reply #34 on:** September 28, 2012, 02:53:22 pm »

I made my builder stepfather a pair of those. They weren't difficult. I made fingerless mitts then picked up stitches along the back and knitted the tops using the mittens pattern.

Welshcob · « **Reply #35 on:** September 28, 2012, 03:36:22 pm »

Quote from: SallyintNorth on September 28, 2012, 05:06:51 am

I do hourglass heels, so that I can drop them out and replace them if they get too holey / undarnable (or so lumpy with darning they're not comfortable any more.) For the heel itself you would need to use short needles as you knit that bit back and forth, then rejoin when the heel is shaped. So if you preferred, you could knit the whole sock except the heel itself on circulars. If you like gusset heels, I'm not sure - jaykay would know, I've seen her knitting socks on circulars; mind on that occasion she was doing both socks together (toe up) so she could just keep knitting up the legs till her yarn was used up, which is a different thing again!

Sally, I'd be very interested to hear more about that hourglass heel. I am just about to finish the second sock of my very first pair and I am quite chuffed with myself (even my mum, a very experienced knitter, never tried socks on DPNs), these have gusset heel and I love the look of them, quite precise and neat; however OH would like socks too and at the rate he destroys socks (and any other clothing item

) I'm not sure I want to spend time and efforts if he'll kill the heels too soon. So, the hourglass type sounds ideal, so then I can set him up to fix his own socks when darning is not an option anymore

I have never tried knitting in the round but I have a lovely cardigan pattern (found on Ravelry, it's called B.O.B. Cardigan) that I want to try when I find the right wool for it. I'm happy to try anything and I have to say, DPNs are actually ok. It only takes a wee bit of adjustments where/how to hold the lot and then you are off.

I'm sure one could make socks in the round if you make heel-less socks (i.e., a tube), I've seen folks knitting those and they are quite comfy (tried myself), problem is, I find the stitches stretch quite a bit in the heel and it folds sometimes awkwardly at the front of your foot, so not the prettiest socks to wear when going out. I used mine as bed socks