Neck opening help

[mrrudd]

My pattern reads: Neck Opening: Next row (RS): K 49 (51, 53) sts (back); join second ball of yarn, dec 1 st, k to end (front). Working both sides at same time, work 1 row even. Rep neck dec for front on next 2 RS rows. – 46 (48, 50) sts for front; 49 (51, 53) sts for back. Work even until neck opening measures 7 1 /2", end with a WS row.


I am not a novice, but these instructions are confusing to me. what do they mean, by "join second ball of yarn"?? Do I work with 2 yarns at onec??Also, how do I work both sides at same time???

Maybe I am having a brain cramp, but these instructions are very confusing.
Somebody pleas help!
Mamie

[brightspot]

It sounds to me like you need to use 2 balls so that you can see when the neck is the right size. It is confusing.

[amy]

Welcome Mamie/ Mrrudd!

Those directions are indeed confusing. It would help if we had a visual idea of what it's supposed to look like. I'm trying to understand what they mean by "back." Please let us know what the front and back look like. Is this a standard sweater with a V-neck front, and a back that goes all the way up to the neck as usual? Or is it some kind of tank top that has a sloping V in the back too? ...I just want to make sure we give you the right instructions.

I can tell you this, though: they do want you to work with two balls of yarn at once. Usually you just knit with one yarn, two rows until you're back to the other yarn, then start using that one for two rows, etc., alternating between them. This is because you'll be working similar instructions for both yarns, so it's less thinking in the end. It could also be worked with just one ball, on only one side until it's complete, then join yarn and do the other side. But it's common to work both sides at once.

Amy

[skokielibrarydragon]

HI mrrudd,

Working both sides at the same time simply means that you knit the piece ACROSS instead of working one shoulder at a time. The pattern probably called for you to bind off the center of the neck, so you would pick up the rest of the piece with another ball of yarn (in the same color) at the other side of the bound off neck.

So, let's say you have 60 stitches across the front of a sweater. It would call for k20, bind off 20, k20. That would mean, after I bound off the middle 20 stitches, I would continue to knit the next 20 stitches with a second ball of yarn (in the same color). Continue ACROSS instead of up one side of one shoulder.
I hope this helps.