Problems with making stitches

empro · 10-20-2010, 04:19 PM

Hi! I'm new to the forum and realtively new to knitting. I have attempted to make some leg warmers (very 80's, I know!) and to increase the stitches, the pattern says to M1 by picking up the thread in between the two stitches on the previous row. However, when I do this I have holes in my piece! What have a done wrong? Or is this just something that will happen? TIA for any advice!

suzeeq · 10-20-2010, 09:29 PM

When you pick up the strand knit it through the back loop so it's twisted and that will close up the hole.

MerigoldinWA · 10-21-2010, 07:27 AM

There are two ways you can pick up the strand. If you pick it up from the front then knit it through the back loop as Sue said, but if you pick it up from in back you will want to knit it in front. Either way you want to work it so it gets twisted to close that hole you are talking about.

empro · 10-21-2010, 09:20 AM

Brilliant, thank you both, I will do this on the next one! Is there anyway to fix these holes without undoing the whole thing?

Becky Morgan · 10-21-2010, 12:25 PM

Kind of. It involves doing a little hand sewing with part of a strand of yarn on the back and pulling the yarn together. Since all of the holes are probably on the same row, it might be easier to do than it usually is.

If the holes seem to be part of the pattern, I'd go ahead and do the other one the same way. No one will mind as long as they match. You *could* frog it and knit it again, but consider how much you really mind.

suzeeq · 10-21-2010, 01:29 PM

You can knit to where you're over the st, drop it down to where you made it, put a twist in it and bring it back up. There's videos that show how to drop a stitch and bring it up on the Tips page under Fixing Mistakes.

Boyzo · 10-21-2010, 01:45 PM

Hi

I was looking for the self-same thing just yesterday and found this good video
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zmUSinUjZbE

On the right on the page there are links to other videos on making stitches this way.

There's also a video here on knittinghelp under increases.

Best of luck!

MerigoldinWA · 10-21-2010, 06:49 PM

Sue,

Quote:

You can knit to where you're over the st, drop it down to where you made it, put a twist in it and bring it back up. There's videos that show how to drop a stitch and bring it up on the Tips page under Fixing Mistakes.

I was thinking the same thing. Only I tried it on a sample and I couldn't figure out how to do it.

It is not a simple matter of bringing up the stitch like the video will show. I tried some twisting manuevers but none of what I tried closed the hole.

I still believe it is possible hypothetically though.

Have you actually done this? Can you describe what you did in detail? It would be the neatest fix if it could be executed.

empro · 10-21-2010, 07:24 PM

I can't do the twist as I have already completed the one leg warmer and didn't spot the holes 'til I finished it! I might just leave them as use them to put ribbon through may be, as long as they won't cause the rest to unravel?

suzeeq · 10-21-2010, 07:30 PM

Yep, I've done it. If it's a std 'lift the yarn and ktbl' m1 and you didn't ktbl, you just drop down to where you did it, turn it and use a hook to bring the sts up, same as if it was a regular stitch.

empro, they won't unravel as long as it wasn't a dropped st in the first place. But you can take a short piece of yarn and close them up on the inside.