Beginnerland
Stockinette Will Roll
I started this cardigan in a fever. It turned out pretty, in a furry, handspun Padmae-the-sheep and Shadrach-the-goat way. However, it was a project that had a watery question mark over it the whole time: what will happen when I get to the neckline? It’s stockinette. Stockinette likes to curl. Will this cardigan behave?
I hoped that the mighty redemptive power of blocking would impose order on this neckline.
Before:
After:
The yarn bloomed beautifully, and it looks like a different fabric entirely. However, as I suspected, blocking cannot fix a fundamental design-and-engineering issue. The neckline, attractive though it is, likes to flop.
The I-cord edging, coming as it does at the edge of stockinette fabric, likes to curl.
Do I wish these things weren’t happening? Well, yeah. But I can’t get too steamed up about it these days. A hook and eye will pull the neckline in place. The rolling front edge will roll.
The moral of the story here? Pay attention to your instincts when starting a project. When you know, in your heart, that unsecured stockinette fabric will roll, and roll heartily, don’t ignore that fact.
I came upon shall we call it « a way out» of the curling conundrum. It consists of a way to hem the knitting as you knit. On the knit row, move the two first stitches by slipping them on a third needle and putting them back in place: the first becoming the second and the second becoming the first. Without knitting them, go on knitting the rest. If you need a hem on the other end (for a scarf for example), do the same thing with the last two stitches. That being done, purl the next row. Please try it and give me your comments.
Would garter stitch I cord make a difference?