Knitch Magazine

If you are a “process knitter," your connection to the knitting that kept you occupied for so many hours is severed with the last stitch you cast off. You may even dash to the finish just to be done with the project that, begun in a rush of desire for the yarn and stylish pattern, now bores you.

Most of us remember the dreaded “now what” as we completed that last row in our knitting. After concentrating to avoid dropped stitches and to keep all the stitches on the needles, you were startled to learn that you were now expected to get them off the needles. You may have wondered if that was even possible without your work unraveling in the process. Most knitters are taught the basic chain cast off, but there are many other ways to finish off projects. Binding off can be accomplished by drawing the stitches onto a thread or by knitting, crocheting or sewing the stitches off the needles. Try learning a few new methods of casting off to enhance your knitting.

Sometimes you just need a provisional cast off to hold the stitches for picking up later, as at a neckline or shoulder seam. Thread a long strand of contrasting yarn onto a needle and gather the stitches onto this provisional holder. Tie the ends of the strand to secure the stitches. You’ll avoid the snags and emergencies caused by stitches popping off metal holders. A contrasting yarn makes it easier to see and recover the stitches. If you use a smooth yarn like cotton, you won’t have to pick out contrasting bits of fuzz from your knitting. Provisional cast-off will hold your pieces in preparation for three-needle bind off. Hats, mittens, gloves and sock toes can be easily and neatly finished off using the working yarn pulled through live stitches and then secured.

The basic chain cast off technique serves most knitting well, but can give even better results when you consider the following tips:

• Cast off with a relaxed but even tension. If you have difficulty keeping your tension even, try using a needle that is 1 or 2 sizes larger than your working needle to ensure a relaxed but even tension.
• Always cast off in pattern, knitting the knit stitches and purling the purl stitches.
• Be generous to yourself by leaving a long tail of 10 to 12 inches for darning in ends and sewing seams. Scrimping here just makes later tasks a little more difficult.
• Casting off takes more yarn than a single row of knitting. If you are nearing the end of your supply of yarn, leave four times the width of one row for the cast off edge.
• For a smooth edge, cast off garter stitch and stockinette stitch from the wrong side.
• Avoid decreases and increases in the cast off row, if possible. For a smoother edge, make these changes one or two rows before the cast off row – but there is always an exception or two:
• For a sharp square corner, knit the last two stitches together and then cast off. Chain cast off moves each stitch to the left, leaving you with an angled corner at the last stitch. Knitting the last two stitches together neatly finishes off the edge in line with the selvage, and neatly finishes off the edges of scarves, afghan squares, blankets, etc.
• If you can’t avoid the increases or decreases, make them evenly across the row.

Picot cast-off is a simple cast off especially suited to baby items, necklines, and some lace. It is worked like chain cast off except that you add a picot point every 3, 4 or 5 stitches. Figure out the closest multiple to the total cast off stitches. To make a 4-stitch picot edge:

• Bind off 4 stitches using chain cast off.
• Return the last stitch to the left needle without twisting it.
• Make a backward loop on the left needle next to the returned stitch.
• Using cable cast-on method, cast on 2 new stitches, but do not return the last cast on stitch to the left needle. (You will bind it off without kitting it.)
• Bind off each of the 3 new stitches and the original stitch (4 bound off).
• Repeat from beginning.

Three-needle cast off combines binding off with a seam. It ensures a perfect match of pattern when joining cables and other decorative stitches. Hint: you may wish to stabilize shoulder seams with crochet or I-cord. Three-needle bind off can be worked from the right or the wrong side. When worked from the right side, you may choose to work in a contrasting color. In this case, you’ll need to add a set up row in the contrast color. In this technique, take time to be sure you have right (or wrong) sides together and that you are starting from the same edge on each piece. For example, check to be sure that you are working from the neck edge to the sleeves on both pieces for a three-needle shoulder bind off. Put stitches from both pieces back on working needles and check again to be sure you have everything arranged correctly. With a third needle of the same size, bind off using the chain cast off method, being careful to go through both the stitch on the front and the back needle. This may require some concentration when working in pattern. You can practice on some plain knitted swatches before attempting the shoulders of your Aran cardigan if this sounds too complex.

Laces require a very elastic bound off edge to allow the lace to stretch and bloom into its full glory. Traditional lace knitters create a stretchy but neat edge as follows:

• Knit two
• *Knit two together
• Knit 1, repeat from *

For even more flourish, apply a lace edging to the live stitches of your lace. You will work the lace edging around the piece, attaching it to the raw stitches every alternate row by knitting an edging and a raw stitch together. Take the time to learn this traditional technique to save the effort of sewing on edgings.

Crochet cast off creates a rather firm edge and is often used to stabilize cast off edges. The stitches are chained together using a crochet hook in place of the right needle. Slip the first stitch purlwise onto a crochet hook, then insert the hook through the stitch on the left needle, hook the yarn and draw it through the knitted stitch and the stitch on the hook, making 1 single chain. Repeat until all stitches are worked off.

Sewn cast off techniques yield perfect tubular knitting for casting off ribbing at neck edges. Although any ribbing is enhanced with this technique, bulky yarns tend to magnify the chain selvage, and you may want to try sewn cast-off for a more subtle edge to your ribbing. You’ll need step-by-step instructions by your side, and be sure to find a guide that shows you tubular sewn cast off for either 1 x 1 or 2 x 2 ribbing to match your knitting.

Consider trying one of these techniques for casting off to add definition and shape to your knitting. Bon voyage.