Cast On, Bind Off (36 page)
Authors: Leslie Ann Bestor
Drop the thumb loop and tighten the stitch.
Drop yarn B (light blue) to the front and bring yarn C (lavender) up behind it, holding yarn C over the index finger.
Repeat steps 3â8, always dropping one color yarn to the front and bringing the new color yarn up behind it. The thumb yarn always stays the same.
Remove the slip knot when working the first row of knitting. Your first row of knitting will be a wrong-side row if working flat. If knitting in the round, join stitches and begin with the first right-side row.
A provisional cast on is a temporary cast on
. It is worked so that the cast-on stitches can be removed later and the live stitches placed on a needle to be knit. The cast on is done with waste yarn â a smooth, slippery yarn, often in a contrasting color, that can be easily removed. It is a useful cast on for knitting hems and for edges where you want to add a border or knit in the opposite direction later. It is ideal for scarves when you want both ends to be identical: Start with a provisional cast on at what will be the center of the scarf, knit half, and then go back and remove the cast on and work the second half of the scarf to match the first.
One thing that should be noted about provisional cast ons is that the stitches are actually formed by the loops
between
the upper stitches, and thus are one-half stitch off from the stitches going upward. This doesn't matter if you are knitting stockinette or ribbing. If you plan, however, to continue a color or texture pattern, the stitches will be offset from each other. You can get around this by working a few rows of another stitch or adding a contrasting color stripe before working down.
Provisional
page 110
Provisional Crochet 1
page 113
Provisional Crochet 2
page 116
This method has you cast on stitches
around a piece of waste yarn. The waste yarn is never knit; it merely serves as a base to hold the cast-on stitches together. I find it easiest to use a contrasting color of waste yarn so I can tell the two yarns apart. But I love this method the most because of this tip: Instead of using waste yarn, I use the cable of a circular needle to cast on, and when I am ready to knit the second half, the stitches are already on the needle, so I don't have to pull anything out!
Extras
Waste yarn; circular needle (optional)
CHARACTERISTICS
⢠Provisional edge
⢠Easiest provisional method if you have a circular needle
GOOD FOR
⢠Adding a border or I-cord
⢠Working in the opposite direction later
⢠Hems
Knot the working yarn together with the waste yarn in an overhand knot (
page 12
). Hold the knot and needle in your right hand, using the index finger to hold the knot against the needle.