Uploaded November 2018 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
This shows a rescue technique for replacing the lower edge of a piece of knitting. This technique can be used in many tricky situations.
I was working the Grenfell Mitten from the new book Saltwater Mittens by Shirley Scott and Christine Legrow.
I launched forth with some available yarn. You know - just grabbed some needles and got on with it. (NO SWATCH) After a couple of inches of the palm it looked as it would fit perfectly, as long as I knew a large guy with hands like pizza paddles. Tape measure out, gauge significantly off. I knew I was gambling in the first place and just treated this bit as an UTS - Ultimate Tension Swatch. (This being my term for a garment piece knit in optimism and then regarded as a swatch.)
I decided to rip back to the cuff, grab some smaller needles and off I went. Success.
Mitten number two followed. However in comparing the two, the rib on the first mitten by comparison was sloppy, on it’s own not bad, just not up to its companion’s appearance.
I could have cut the mitten just below the increases and ribbed downwards, a bit of a fudge. I would have ended up with and extra row of stripe before the ribbing began. I opted for my old favourite, knit a new replacement cuff plus the increases and topped it off with 5 rounds of brightly contrasting, similar weight, waste yarn. Now the plan would be to graft the new cuff to the second pattern round of the mitten with stitches of Round 1. This I did, and filmed it for your pleasure! Several of the possible mistakes actually occurred during filming (and were successfully resolved) and I hope this movie and if you have to patience to watch Part 2 (coming soon), will convince you of the power of waste yarn in complex grafting situations!
This shows a rescue technique for replacing the lower edge of a piece of knitting. This technique can be used in many tricky situations.
I was working the Grenfell Mitten from the new book Saltwater Mittens by Shirley Scott and Christine Legrow.
I launched forth with some available yarn. You know - just grabbed some needles and got on with it. (NO SWATCH) After a couple of inches of the palm it looked as it would fit perfectly, as long as I knew a large guy with hands like pizza paddles. Tape measure out, gauge significantly off. I knew I was gambling in the first place and just treated this bit as an UTS - Ultimate Tension Swatch. (This being my term for a garment piece knit in optimism and then regarded as a swatch.)
I decided to rip back to the cuff, grab some smaller needles and off I went. Success.
Mitten number two followed. However in comparing the two, the rib on the first mitten by comparison was sloppy, on it’s own not bad, just not up to its companion’s appearance.
I could have cut the mitten just below the increases and ribbed downwards, a bit of a fudge. I would have ended up with and extra row of stripe before the ribbing began. I opted for my old favourite, knit a new replacement cuff plus the increases and topped it off with 5 rounds of brightly contrasting, similar weight, waste yarn. Now the plan would be to graft the new cuff to the second pattern round of the mitten with stitches of Round 1. This I did, and filmed it for your pleasure! Several of the possible mistakes actually occurred during filming (and were successfully resolved) and I hope this movie and if you have to patience to watch Part 2 (coming soon), will convince you of the power of waste yarn in complex grafting situations!
