In my internet surfing the other night, I watched some videos on how to make an separate I-cord, and also one on how to apply it to a cast off edge. Using the method suggested for making the cord by itself seemed rather tedious. So…. I asked myself, why can’t you “apply” an I-cord to a cast on row only? Answer, you can. It makes a rather nice roped cord and you can cast on the number of stitches you need for the length, then simply work across. Here is a photo of the one I made to replace the drawstring in my Twine Knitted Slippers.
In my case I used a #3 needle, as I did for my slipper. Cast on the amount of stitches I needed for 24 inches. I then proceeded as follows:
Cast on 2 sts, [:Knit 2, knit 2 together through back loop:]. Slip three stitches back onto left needle, and repeat the process in the brackets [ ]. I DID NOT pull the yarn hard across the back as some instructions suggest, I simply used the same tension as in my normal knitting. It worked just fine and ended up very close to the exact measurement I wanted. The example in the photo was done with Sports weight yarn.
As you can see in the photo below, the slipper on the right has the new cord. It does not curl up like the crocheted chain, making a much neater looking finish.
Give it a try!
Happy Knitting!
KT
Creative Knitting - Beyond Knit and Purl 
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