Fair Isle knittingis a method of
knitting that probably originated in
Fair Isle, one of the smallest of the
Shetland Islands, off northern Scotland.
It involves working with two colors
across a row, carrying both yarns
across the back. The challenge in Fair
Isle knitting is maintaining tension:
If the yarns stranded along the back
are too tight, your knitting will pucker
and have no elasticity; if they are too
loose, your stitches will look uneven.
There are several ways to approach color knitting. When the intervals
between color changes are no more than 4 stitches, you can do one-handed
or two-handed stranding. One-handed strandinginvolves knitting in your
usual way but alternating colors according to the pattern. Two-handed
stranding, which is more efficient and results in an effortlessly neater back,
requires holding one color in each hand, working the English method and
the Continental method at the same time to alternate colors without
stopping. With either type of stranding, when you work more than 4 stitches
successively of one color, you have to weave or twist the color not in use
in and out of the backs of those stitches.
One-Handed Stranding versus Two-Handed StrandingLearn Fair Isle Knitting.
ONE-HANDED STRANDING: KNIT SIDE
To avoid puckering, you need to keep the stitches on the right needle spread apart so
you can strand a sufficient length of the non-working yarn across the back.
1 Work to the point in the row where you need to change colors. Let go of yarn A,
pick up yarn B and bring it above and over yarn A, and knit the correct number
of stitches in yarn B.
2 Work to the point in the row where you need to change colors again. Let go of
yarn B, pick up yarn A and bring it underneath yarn B, and knit until the next
color shift.
3 Repeat steps 1 and 2, taking care to keep yarn A underneath yarn B when
changing colors.
Note:Always carry both yarns to the end of the row because the color pattern may call for the other
color to begin the next row.