you can work this to match whatever rib
pattern you’re using for your sock cuff.
HOW TO WORK A LONG-TAIL CAST-ON
Begin by making a slip knot with a yarn
tail roughly four times the circumference
of your sock. Tension the yarn between
your thumb and index finger, with the
tail of the yarn over your thumb and the
ball-end over your finger and the needle
with slip knot in the middle.
For a knit stitch, bring the needle down
to the left, and catch the yarn at the front
of the thumb. Now bring the needle back
to the central position, then around the
yarn running from the needle to the index
finger, from right to left. Pull this through
the loop on your thumb – creating the
stitch on your needle – then drop the yarn
off your thumb and tighten the stitch.
For a purl stitch, you essentially work
this in reverse. Take the needle to the right,
and catch the yarn that’s coming away
from your index finger, towards the ball of
yarn. Bring the needle back to the middle,
then underneath the yarn running from
the needle to your thumb, from left to
right. Catch this yarn and pull it through
the loop on your index finger to create the
stitch on the needle. Drop the loop from
your index finger and tighten the stitch.
Tip: The first stitch on your needle is the
slip knot – so if you’re working 1x1 rib, you
need to start with a purl cast-on.
GERMAN TWISTED CAST-ON
This is another long tail knit cast-on, also
known as the Old Norwegian cast-on.
It adds an extra twist into the technique,
which gives it a bit of extra stretch –
perfect if you’ve got a larger instep to
pull the sock over.HOW TO WORK A TWISTED GERMAN
CAST-ON
Begin as for a standard long-tail cast-on,
placing a slip knot with a long tail on your
needle and tensioning the yarn between
your thumb and index finger.
Bring the needle down to the left, and
catch both strands of yarn running to the
thumb. Bring the needle up, then push it
down the middle of the thumb, between
the two strands, and back round to the
middle, wrapping the yarn from the back
of the thumb around the needle.
Now bring the needle to the right, across
the yarn leading up to your index finger.
Catch this with the needle, and pull
through the loop around your thumb.
Drop this loop off your thumb, and then
bring your thumb down to tighten the
cast-on stitch and re-tension the yarn
ready for the next stitch.PICOT CAST-ON
This cast-on takes a little more time and
thought, but is still very simple and gives a
really pretty edging to the top of your sock.
It’s also very stretchy, as there’s no tight
cast-on edge around the cuff – the cast-on
edge is going up and down all those picots.HOW TO WORK A PICOT CAST-ON
Cast on 4 stitches using a standard knitted
cast-on.*K2, cast off 1 st, K1, cast off 1 st, then slip
the single stitch on your right-hand needle
back onto the left needle, then cast on 6
more stitches.
Repeat from * until you reach your desired
stitch count.
Each repeat adds 4 stitches to your stitch
count, plus you’ll have one extra stitch at
the beginning and one left at the end, so
this pattern will give you a finished stitch
count of a multiple of 4 + 2.
It’s easy to play around with this to
adjust the picots. The size of each picot is
determined by the number of stitches you
cast off each repeat, while the spacing is
created by the difference between the
number of stitches cast on and cast off.TWO-COLOUR CAST-ON
Casting on with two colours is very simple,
and can give a couple of great effects. In
one version, you work each stitch with one
colour, while the connection between the
stitches is in the other, creating horizontal
stripes across the top of your cuff. With the
other, you change the yarns around after
every stitch to alternate. This is a great way
to lead into corrugated ribbing, although
note that the very top of each stitch will be
made of the opposite colour.HOW TO WORK A TWO-COLOUR CAST-ON
Hold the two yarns together, about 15cm
from the ends, and create a slip knot with
the two yarns. Place this on your needle.
Now take the two yarns, and tension them
over your thumb and index finger as
though working a long-tail cast-on –PICOT CAST-ON TWO-COLOUR CAST-ON (HORIZONTAL STRIPE)
Masterclass
The Knitter 65 Issue 141