Greetings from the Other Side
Alert Reader Amy from Seattle cleverly asked of the Chinese Garden wrap "What does it look like on the other side?", prompting me to spend a little time reflecting on the notion of "Right" vs. "Wrong" sides of things. Of course, we can always diplomatically change our vernacular to "Public" and "Non-Public" when we refer to insides and outsides. But as knitters, we're always referring to the planes of our work. Have you ever wondered how to make colorwork that's presentable to the world from both sides? It's easy. I do it all the time, and so can you.
Today I would like to challenge you, Gentle Readers, to think about the insides of things. I often hear that part of the fun of seeing my trunk shows is getting a good look at what's going on behind the scenes of the pieces. For those who haven't seen yet, here are a few:
Chinese Garden Outside
Stars and Stripes Outside
Regnbue Outside
Butterflies Outside
Chinese Garden Inside
Stars and Stripes Inside
Regnbue Inside
Butterflies Inside
One of the many charms of Stranded Colorwork knitting is that its insides can be just as lovely (more?) as its outsides! How can we achieve this? Those who have been to my introduction to Stranded Colorwork class, 2 Strings=Not Scary already know: We can easily keep our floats beautiful and our tension perfect by applying two concepts (okay, they're really just Sexy Party Tricks, but who cares?).
Thing One: Strand Orientation. Don't twist the unused strands around one another. Ever. This is especially easy if you are knitting from one of my patterns because I design the motifs in such a way that you will never have to tack (twist) a float. Period. So just don't do it. Ta-Da! Instantly beautiful insides.
Thing Two: Float Tension. Mechanically introduce extra slack into the unused strand as you knit by stretching the stitches you are carrying across the back of. This extra float length will magically disappear during blocking, wearing, etc [insert Interpretive Dance here]. Yes, if you work on Stranded Colorwork with me, I will explain float tension via an interpretive dance; just one more service I provide.
That's it. There are only two things to know in order to make the back of your knitting as beautiful and interesting as the front. Mischief Managed. Come see me in class to get the full explaination/show on this. CLICK HERE for my upcoming session, or if you aren't in that neighborhood, contact me to schedule a class with your guild, event, or group of knitting pals!
Oh Knitting! You are so beautiful and full of surprises. Aren't we lucky to know the secrets?
Next Time: Who's up for a Knitalong? I've been asked for help with a pattern, and you know how hard it ISN'T to trick me into knitting something with you...