Creative Knitting – Beyond Knit and Purl

At this point of my knitted English Rose tablecloth, the stitch count seems daunting.  So I opt for thinking of it in units, or pattern repeats, which in this case equals 40 per round.

With this in mind, I decided to share some of my tracking tips, especially for those who are intimidated by this kind of project.

First, I think about only one repeat at a time.  I always have a colored piece of thread of yarn placed at the beginning of each round.  I also place a piece of contrasting yarn in the location of each addition of thread, just in case I need to do some work on them later.  Doing this also lets me know how far a ball of thread/yarn will go–  I am using Knitpicks Curio on this project.

Secondly, in this pattern, I am creating rose leaves.  Each leaf unit has a prescribed number of stitches.  In the photo above, I have illustrated this leaf top.  Each end of the leaf has 2 stitches knitted together, one leans left(slip one, knit one, lift slipped stitch over knitted stitch);  the other leans right(knit 2 together).  In between these two stitch combinations, 7 stitches are knitted, altogether making a count of 9 stitches in the leaf unit.

Why is this important?  When I finish a leaf, I always count the unit to make sure I have the appropriate stitch count.  If I don’t, then something is wrong and now is the time to check it out, not after I have knit 2000 stitches.  

Another check point, is paying attention to the divisions in the repeat.  In the photo above you see the division between the two leaves leaning in opposite directions.  That division always has a center stitch.  

I pause here again to make sure the appropriate stitch lands in the center of this unit, if not, I count back to see what is wrong.  Most of the time it is that I have forgotten a yarn over.  If this happens in an even round, I simply pick up the bar between the adjacent stitches and knit one to erase the error.  If it is in the present round, I tink back and put it in.

This photo shows the unit that divides the set of rose leaves.  Here again there is a line of center stitches that you can use for a guide to make sure your stitch count is right.

I often take just a few seconds each repeat to check all my stitches before I advance to the next repeat.  Trust me, it saves you lots of stress and headaches.

My next test will be placing the entire tablecloth on many circle needle cords.  Why?  I am not sure I want the cloth to hang down more than 6 inches from the top of the table, so I will stretch it out, with it still on the needles, then I will get a better idea how I want to finish it.  I am not enamored with the finishing rows of this pattern, so I am toying with the some alternative ideas of my own.

Happy knitting- KT