Knitting 101- Slip Stitches - the patterns

Slip Stitch Speckles
from Halfknits.com

How's that slip stitch going?  I hope you're having a ball with it.  These are a few free patterns that include slip stitch as their primary design element.  So pretty!

The cloth at left is more practice, and much like one of the exercises in the first article.  It's nice in that it's fast to knit, and would make a great blanket square or washcloth.

Slip Rib Fingerless Gloves

The fingerless gloves at right are from Cascade Yarns.  The photo shows them made in Pure Alpaca, in a particularly lovely heathered colorway.  This pattern is knit in the round, so if you're not there yet, be patient.  If you already knit in the round, you'll love this project and the beautiful gloves.  The finishing and weaving in goes in a flash!

Texture Study 1

This last is a stunning scarf that has the wonderful benefit of being easy while looking intricate and difficult.  Like the turkey at Thanksgiving, it's a WOW piece that merely requires a little patience and attention.  It's from Flying Dog Fibers, and it suggests you find "300 yds of the softest sport weight yarn you can find" and have a go.  I agree!  One caveat - it will not look as textured the fuzzier the yarn you use is.  Low-halo softies like cashmere and baby alpaca will be stunners.  Mohair and other high-halo yarns will hide your wonderful stitch work.

Knitting 101 - February Slip-Stitch

Simple slip over stockinette from
The Walker Treasury 

Yes, slipping a stitch on purpose is a "design element".  No, not when you do it by accident.  It's the next step in knitting after you master that K/P thing.  And it's beautiful on its own or with other stitches!

Slipping a stitch is very easy, and it's a gateway to scads of interesting and pretty knitting.  Cables, lace, some button holes, trellis stitches and many more have you slip a stitch at some point.  Let's get started.

Here's how: Cast on 31 stitches.  The odd number is important here, so make sure.  Now knit across one row.  Purl across the next row.

On the next row - Knit 1 stitch.  Slip one stitch from the holding needle to the working needle by sticking the tip of the needle into the stitch as if to knit, but then don't knit the stitch.  Slip it onto the working needle.  This is called Slip 1 Knitwise.  It's abbreviated Sl1k.  K3.

There is another version of the slip stitch, and it's just as easy.  Stick the working needle into the stitch as if to purl, and slip it onto the working needle.  This is called Slip 1 Purlwise.   It's abbreviated Sl1p.  K3.

Complete the row by sl1k, k3, sl1p, to the last stitch.  K last stitch.

Purl the next row.

1. K1, (sl1k, k3, sl1p, k3) across, k1.
2. Purl across.

Repeat these 2 rows for at least 4 inches.  You can see there is a subtle but distinct difference between the two types of slipped stitches.  Pretty, eh?  You can finish the swatch to any size you like.  When a slip stitch pattern does not indicate weather to slip knitwise or purlwise, always slip knitwise.

We'll work some other basic slip stitch patterns this month.  You'll be delighted what interesting patterns you'll make!

Giving The Girlfriend Socks

This is a close-up of the heel flap reduction on the Girlfriend Socks.  The specific reduction technique is easy, and I really like the look.  It makes a neat line with no holes where the fabric changes direction and tension.  (The pattern is in the Knit Simple Knitting Workshop booklet.) The Girlfriend received hers today, and seemed pleased.  This photo has the colors pretty well down, which is half the fun of these socks, in my opinion.

They're roll-top socks, and have a slip-stitch heel for durability.  The kitchener stitched toes, once the scourge of my existence, were achieved through obsessive You Tube video lessons.  The yarn is the lovely Schaeffer Nichole, and the  needle size is US 2.5.

On the Brioche stitch project I cannot claim as much success.  I have done well with the one color brioche swatch.  I then cast on my reversible scarf project.  I'm having a little trouble fully understanding what I am to do for the set up row and for row 1.  The designer may have written it perfectly and I am overthinking it, or she may have given sparse instructions where I need the gaps filled in.  I'll be trying again tonight, and I'll let you know!