Cast-ons and first rows
Have you ever heard or read the tip that you should always start knitting on the wrong side? If you have and wondered if and why that is true, here is a brief post explaining it.
The why: long-tail cast-on is equivalent to a loop cast-on plus a row of knitted stitches. Therefore, if you're knitting stockinette, the next row should be a purl one. But, you may say, stockinette curls, so, usually, I don't start knitting stockinette. That's right.
The rule is therefore not universal. For example, if you've used a different type of cast-on, this may not be true. It is definitely not true if you used a loop cast-on, in which case you must knit one extra row to obtain the same result as in long-tail cast-on. Note that this is not only more work, it is also looser, because in long-tail cast-on, the loops never go around the needle and are therefore tighter.
The universal rule is, if you prefer the look you get if the cast-on row is on the right side, then the first row you knit should be a wrong side one (which is kind of useless). As usual you should swatch and decide which suits you better. So in the end, it all depends on the cast-on method you use and your personal taste, but in general, for long-tail cast-on and other favourite ones, people prefer the look they get when they start knitting on the wrong side, hence the rule.
For sweaters, socks, gloves, etc, most people start knitting in a rib stitch. For ribbing, good results are obtained using long-tail cast-on and then starting with a wrong row. So the rule applies. Although, tubular cast-on gives better results for 1x1 ribbing.
There is also a variation of long-tail cast-on that creates purled stitches, instead of knitted ones. This will be more attractive when knitting in the round because you always knit on the right side. In addition, you can alternate the two methods to obtain a 1x1 ribbing cast-on. However this is a new technique to be learned and I'm still not convinced the results are worth the trouble.
The why: long-tail cast-on is equivalent to a loop cast-on plus a row of knitted stitches. Therefore, if you're knitting stockinette, the next row should be a purl one. But, you may say, stockinette curls, so, usually, I don't start knitting stockinette. That's right.
The rule is therefore not universal. For example, if you've used a different type of cast-on, this may not be true. It is definitely not true if you used a loop cast-on, in which case you must knit one extra row to obtain the same result as in long-tail cast-on. Note that this is not only more work, it is also looser, because in long-tail cast-on, the loops never go around the needle and are therefore tighter.
The universal rule is, if you prefer the look you get if the cast-on row is on the right side, then the first row you knit should be a wrong side one (which is kind of useless). As usual you should swatch and decide which suits you better. So in the end, it all depends on the cast-on method you use and your personal taste, but in general, for long-tail cast-on and other favourite ones, people prefer the look they get when they start knitting on the wrong side, hence the rule.
For sweaters, socks, gloves, etc, most people start knitting in a rib stitch. For ribbing, good results are obtained using long-tail cast-on and then starting with a wrong row. So the rule applies. Although, tubular cast-on gives better results for 1x1 ribbing.
There is also a variation of long-tail cast-on that creates purled stitches, instead of knitted ones. This will be more attractive when knitting in the round because you always knit on the right side. In addition, you can alternate the two methods to obtain a 1x1 ribbing cast-on. However this is a new technique to be learned and I'm still not convinced the results are worth the trouble.
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