How to Cast On
There are some things I constantly find myself going back to my knitting books for a refresher on, and casting on is one of them. I’ve built it into my muscle memory now, but for years I’d need to consult some reference or another to remind me how to start every new project.
If you’re anything like me, you can use a reminder on occasion about even some of the most basic knitting techniques. If so, I hope you find this little tutorial helpful. It also might be useful for any beginners out there who are trying to tease out the meat from the illustrations in knitting books that often don’t speak very well from themselves.
There are, of course, many different ways to cast on, but once I learned this one, I never bothered to learn another. Anyway, here’s how I do it:
- To begin the slipknot that will become the first cast-on stitch, make a loop with the yarn, leaving about an inch of tail for each stitch you plan to cast on (in this example, we’ll use 10+ inches for 10 stitches) and a few extra inches, just to be safe.
- Loop a section of the tail and pull it through your first loop. The slipknot formed by second loop will be your first stitch, while the first loop will provide the tension.
- Insert the needle through the slipknot and pull it tight. You’ve cast on your first stitch.
- Hold the needle in your right hand, with the knot of the first stitch facing away from you. Loop the tail around your left thumb (as shown here), and insert your needle into the front of the loop.
- Wrap the skein-side yarn around the tip of your needle, just as you do when knitting.
- Fold the loop in your left hand over the tip of the needle and pull taut. You’ve just cast on your second stitch and are ready to do the rest just like this one.
Once you’re done casting on, here’s what your 10 stitches should look like:
And that’s basically it. Works every time.
Céline 1:27 am on November 17, 2006 Permalink | Log in to Reply
Hi,
I’ve tried this particular type of cast on I don’t know how many times, trying to follow different indications in different books, and I still don’t get it. I must be a bit dense that way. But I’ll give it another try with yours. Maybe the fact that the yarn is green will help!
Thanks!
Brian Sawyer 8:56 am on November 17, 2006 Permalink | Log in to Reply
Don’t sweat it. It’s really hard to learn even basic techniques from a book. I had this particular lesson in person more than once and still found myself fumbling through numerous books to remember how to do it later.
Rob 2:55 pm on January 4, 2007 Permalink | Log in to Reply
another place to look if a particular technique isn’t “clicking” for you is knittinghelp.com — Amy has videos showing most common stitches, and she shows almost all of them in both english and continental style:
http://knittinghelp.com/knitting/basic_techniques/index.php
long-tail is the one i use (“the slingshot one”).
How to Bind Off « Brian Sawyer 11:14 am on April 9, 2007 Permalink | Log in to Reply
[…] 9th, 2007 by Brian Sawyer After posting my How to Cast On tutorial, a few people asked for a similar demonstration of binding off, another of those basic […]
Rainy Day Crafts » Blog Archive » HOW TO - Bind Off in Knitting (photos & video) 5:11 pm on April 10, 2007 Permalink | Log in to Reply
[…] close-up photos as well as a video (yay!) on how to bind off when knitting. Also, check out his how-to on casting on. […]
••> The Point Knitting Cafe: Knitting news Crochet news by NYC best Knitting and Yarn Shop 12:53 pm on April 21, 2007 Permalink | Log in to Reply
[…] close-up photos as well as a video (yay!) on how to bind off when knitting. Also, check out his how-to on casting on. […]
Instructables, Again « Brian Sawyer 12:25 pm on January 23, 2008 Permalink | Log in to Reply
[…] site, but I just surfed over there today to find my How to Cast On instructable (also available here) featured in the main […]