annaplexis

Mosaic knitting uses slipped stitches to create colourwork patterns. Unlike stranded knitting, this technique only requires working with one colour per row.

👉 On right side rows, stitches are slipped purlwise with the yarn held in back (wyib)

👉 On wrong side rows, they're slipped purlwise with the yarn held in front (wyif)

Practice your mosaic knitting with square 24. The Mosaic One of the Learn-to-Knit blanket.

Pattern available in my book Learn to Knit in 50 Squares

It’s undeniably cotton season in this part of Europe, and while cotton is a wonderfully versatile natural fibre, it does have one frustrating disadvantage: the ends tend to poke out after weaving in.

So, I take extra care with cotton ends. As with joining skeins, I cut each ply at a different length while weaving in.

I also check the yarn ends after the first wash and trim or sew in any ends sticking out…

How do you handle your yarn ends in cotton? I’d love to hear if you have any tips!

We’re having a very severe heatwave, so it’s time for cotton knits!

Cotton is a very versatile natural fiber, easy to wash and moth-proof, BUT it’s not stretchy and it doesn’t felt. This makes joining skeins and weaving in ends a bit more tricky than with wool.

When joining skeins, I cut each ply at a different length to taper the yarn ends. Tearing or fraying the yarn (as I do with wool) doesn’t really work, nor will the join felt…

It’s more time-consuming than the wool equivalent, but I still can’t bring myself to tie knots in my knitting projects, unless they’ll be completely hidden by a lining or similar…

My top tip for even-tensioned floats in colourwork knitting:

🧶 Knit your colourwork inside out - especially on small-circumference projects like socks or, as shown here, mittens.

A lot of people get confused by this tip and think they have to purl the whole project instead. Not at all! Simply turn your work inside out and knit as normal.

The only difference is that you are now knitting on the inside of the tube rather than the outside.

You won’t be able to admire your work as you go (which is a little frustrating, I know!), but - believe me - it will work wonders for the tension of your floats.

In the video I’m knitting a new pair of StripesNFlowers fingerless mitts 🌺🌺🌺

Short rows are an exciting way to shape your knitting project.

The idea is to turn and knit back before the end of the row. This, however, will make a hole at the turning point. There are several methods to avoid a gap.

My favourite is German short rows. They are easy to work and are done the same on knit and purl rows.

Slip the pivot stitch and make a yarn over, all in one movement. Tighten the yarn and knit on. That’s it! 😉🧶

You can practice your short rows with square 42. The Short One of the Learn-to-Knit Blanket. Find the pattern in the book Learn to Knit in 50 Squares 🔗

Italian/Alternating cast on lifeline

Tubular cast on 🧶🧶🧶

🇮🇹 The Italian cast on can be combined with 2 rows of double knitting for a tubular cast on. Looks really neat 👀 🤩

To work double knitting in a single colour:

Knit a stitch, slip the next stitch with the yarn in front. Repeat to end of row.

Italian cast on 🧶🧶🧶

The Italian cast on works really well with 1/1 ribbing, brioche and double knitting.

👉 Use the long-tail cast on for the last stitch to anchor it in place.

👉 On the first row, note that the knit stitches will have the wrong leg in front — knit these through the back loop.

🤩🇮🇹 The Italian cast on can be combined with 2 rows of double knitting for a tubular cast on. Looks really neat 👀 (Stay tuned for how this is done 😉)

Did you know that you can make cable twists without actually crossing the stitches?

No cable needle and no stitches hanging in mid-air 😉

This works if you are crossing a single knit stitch, i.e. C2F and C2B or 1/1 RT and 1/1 LT.

You can practice these faux cable twists with Square 35. The Faux One of the Learn-to-Knit Blanket

To make a right twist: knit 2 sts together without slipping them off the LH needle, then knit the first st only and sl both sts off the LH needle.

To make a left twist: sl 2 sts knitwise and

place them back on the LH needle (as with SSK), knit into the back of the second st leaving it on the LH needle, then knit both sts together

and sl them off the LH needle.

Find the pattern and tutorial in my book Learn to Knit in 50 Squares 🌺🧶❤️

FAQ: What happens if you drop a stitch all the way down to the cast on edge? 🧶🧶🧶

Insert a crochet hook behind the lowest strand, turn it to create a loop (i.e. “make one right”), then knit up the ladder.

This works with the long-tail cast on. In garter stitch, you should do this from the side where you have a line of single strands at the bottom rather than a purl ridge.

To pick up a stitch in garter stitch, either you turn your work around every row and pick up a knit stitch on each side or check out my relevant video.

One of the most valuable skills a knitter can develop is learning to read their stitches. Once you understand how they're constructed, fixing any issues becomes much more intuitive.

Invisible stranding, also known as ladderback jacquard 🧶 🧶 🧶

This is a technique for catching floats which is completely invisible from the right side. To work it, cast on an extra stitch behind the work and purl it on every round with the colour not in use. This creates an extra layer on the wrong side, like a spider’s web. When the pattern is completed, the extra stitch is eliminated by knitting it together with its corresponding front stitch.

This method is ideal for sweater yokes with isolated motifs and very long floats.

I once tried it on socks, but I wouldn’t recommend it for that purpose: the extra layer on the inside tends to catch when pulling them on…

You can practice this technique with square 28. The Invisible One of the Learn-to-Knit Blanket. Find the pattern in the book Learn to Knit in 50 Squares.

Made a mistake a few stitches back?

Here’s how to un-knit (=TINK) stitches. The process is the same whether you’re undoing knit or purl stitches (unless they were knitted through the back loop) 🧶🧶🧶

To get a smooth and jogless cast off edge when knitting in the round, complete the chain formed at the top before sewing in the end 😉👌

What I like about the Norwegian purl is that whether you are about to knit or purl, you always position the yarn the same way.

This is especially important at the beginning of a row, where most beginners’ mistakes occur.

Whether you should knit, purl or slip the first stitch, is a separate discussion.