The Knitting Fiend

I’m almost done!

When I decided to insert a decorative cable at the raglan shaping line, I knew that meant I would eventually need to “decrease in pattern”. That meant I’d have to figure out what to do by “looking and fiddling”. But, I’m going to explain my solutions at the two places where you must “decrease in pattern”, the front neck and shoulder.

Now, let’s look at the front neck.

Examine the picture to the top left. To shape the neck, I bound off a bunch of stitches, and then began binding off 1 stitch every two rows on each side of the neck. There’s more than one nice looking way to do this; I did this:

• Decrease row (knit or right side facing): SSK, knit across working cables and decreases in the pattern established, k2 together. (Turn work because I’m working back and forth.)
• Non-Decrease row: Purl all stitches.

If you recall from my earlier post describing how to knit the shoulder cable, the cables separate the paired a set of paired raglan decreases that would normally be next to each other.

Now, if this were a normal paired raglan decrease, with no stitches worked between the decreases, the neckline decreases would just be worked as described until there were only two stitches left at the neckline. At that point, the neckline decreases run into the shoulder decreases. My pattern generator provides very precise instructions for what to do next. (You can read the instructions by creating a pattern for the Husband Sweater , or the Ballgame Sweater. They are the same pattern– with toggles selected to create different necklines!)

Even though there are a whole bunch of correct solutions, and very few incorrect ones, I provide very precise instructions because I anticipate some beginners will think of 3-4 possible ways, all of which seem “right” (because they are) and wonder, but “which is most right”? Then, they’ll stop because they are confused by all the right answers!

Well, there are a whole bunch of “most right” ways, because the “most right” way depends to a large extent on personal preference. I figure if I tell you what I would do, but if you think of a better way, well do that!

Ok, so why this long article on what to do with the cable? If you work the cable, you are going to suddenly be puzzled when there are 6stitches left on the front neckline! You won’t be able to do what the pattern tells you. Once again, there are many “right” answers. In place of the previous instructions, I began doing this:

• Decrease row: Slip 1 as to knit, k2tog, psso. Work across the cable, turning of necessary, continue across working decreases and cables as you come to them until you there are three stitches left on your left hand tip. SSK, slip 1, transfer stitches to the left needle, with the right tip pass the left, and final stitch, over the SSK you just worked.
• Non-decrease row: Purl across.

Notice the underlined: Slip 1 as to knit, k2tog, psso. That’s a double decrease. If you begin at the correct point, the first time you work this substitute row, the k2tog is exactly were you would have worked a double decrease earlier. So, you should be seeing that decrease fall on the “k2tog” ridge. To work the “psso” you use the left tip of your needle to pass the stitch you slipped over the k2tog. The slip 1, and psso combination replaces the “ssk” for the neck decrease. The whole underlined procedure eliminates two stitches and takes care of the neckline decrease and the k2tog you need to work for the first raglan decrease.

I decided to work it this way because it leaves the neck edge smooth, which will make it easy to pick up stitches later on. I also knew I could mirror it exactly on the other neck edge on a right side facing row and it made the raglan decrease look continuous right up to the neck. So, it met the criteria I happened to care about.

How did I mirror the shaping? Well, read the next underlined instruction: SSK, slip 1, transfer stitches to the left needle, with the right tip pass the left, and final stitch, over the SSK you just worked. This is a mirror image of what you did at the beginning of the row. I used words to describe the last step because it’s unusual to work a mirror image psso!

Well, when you get to the neckline shaping, fiddly bits come fast and furious, so I have a lot to take about. Still, this is long enough! But, I need to warn you: After a few more rows, you are going to be puzzled again: What do I do when the raglan decreases slam into each other at the top of the sleeve. Once again, you “look and fiddle”, and I’ll explain tomorrow!

Meanwhile, I need to fiddle behind the scenes with Wordpress. It seems to be fine on the “public” side, but there are some odd things going on on the “author” side!