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Combined Knitting

January '09 Kit Questions, Notorious Sock Knitters | February 02, 2009
By Inge Freund

I was taught to knit using the “Combined Knitting” method, meaning I knit into the back of the stitch with the yarn in my left hand (the leading edge is at the back, not the front).  Do I need to make any adjustments when reading the pattern?  This is my first attempt at more complex knitting and I would appreciate any feedback.

Inge

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4 Responses to “Combined Knitting”

On February 2nd, 2009 at 10:41 am JC Briar said:

Inge, I don’t think you’ll need to make any adjustments, really. Just remember to always knit into the LEADING leg of the stitch (the one closest to the tip of the left needle), regardless of whether it’s in front or in back, in order to avoid twisting any stitches.

On February 2nd, 2009 at 10:44 am Fiona said:

If you’re a combined knitter (as I am, some of the time) then you do need to bear in mind that when you’re working in the round, things are a bit different. Because you aren’t alternating knit and purl rows, you need to take care that you don’t end up with twisted stitches, because your stitches won’t necessarily be presenting the way you are used to.

There are two ways of dealing with this. You can work in the ‘usual’ way, ie Western style instead of Eastern style. All that you need to do is make sure that you’re working into the face of the stitch.

Or you can wrap the yarn around the needle in the other direction when you work each stitch, if you need to. I find this gets a bit complicated, myself.

It’s a personal choice. I think that most combined knitters stick with Western Style when they are working in the round - but whatever works for you is the right way!

By the way, it makes no difference at all which hand you use to hold the yarn.

On February 2nd, 2009 at 10:46 am Fiona said:

Ok, I should just keep quiet! :)

On February 3rd, 2009 at 9:57 am JC Briar said:

Not a problem, Fiona! BTW, if you haven’t already read it, you might enjoy _Knitting for Anarchists_ by Anna Zilboorg. In the first part of the book, she persuasively makes the argument you should wrap the yarn however you like. All that’s required is subsequently working those stitches through their leading legs (and an understanding of right- and left-leaning decreases, of course).

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