Bind off mid-row

[knitqueen]

I had to bind off mid row on the tank I just finished - had to do it for both the back and front neck lines and screwed it up both times . I had to re-join yarn here and there....it wasn't a pretty picture :rollseyes: .

So now, I'm about 3/4 of the way finished a poncho for my niece and I'm seeing this direction "Bind off center 4 stitches" again and believe me it is striking fear into my heart!! :?eyebrow:

I need some step by step directions on how to do this properly.....please????

[Mer]

Did you join a new ball of yarn for those bind off stitches? That is the only suggestion I have--I didn't know to do that the first time I saw those directions and it didn't work too well!

[KellyK]

Can you just pass the previous st over those 4 center sts and then keep knitting? Why would you need to cut the yarn?

[Mer]

If you don't join a new ball or cut the yarn, you'll have a long string across the back of the piece that either pulls too tight or is too loose and messes up your stitches around it--in my experience, anyway.

[knitqueen]

I think I do need to join a new yarn because I'm working the two sides of the neck shaping seperately. This is exactly what it says:

"Bind off center 4 stitches. Working each side of neck separately, at each neck edge, decrease 1 stitch 6 times. Continue working until piece measures the same as back."

It's a tad bit vague.

[ekgheiy]

Yep ... I agree ... if you bo mid row, you'll need to join a new ball on the next row to continue working both sides of the bo. Just start knitting with the new ball when you finish working the first half of the next row. The first couple stitches will be loose, but don't worrry ... you can tighten them by tugging on the tail.

[KellyK]

Well, that's a good lesson for ME to learn, too! Thanks!

[knitqueen]

So, just to be clear now on how I would actually DO the bind-off....this is what I'm thinking:

So I would knit the first half of my row, up to those 4 center stitches that I'm going to bind off...then knit the first two of the center 4 (ie. leave the first half of that row completely out of the bind-off....that's where my mistake happened on my tank, I think I accidentally bound off the last stitch of the first section of the row rather than the first stitch of the middle section...whew, sorry run on sentence), bind off the first one, etc. until I have bound off four stitches. Then in my mind I can't visualize where my working yarn will be at that point. It will become clear when I actually do it I think.

[knitqueen]

I did it and it worked great!!!

I knit the first 25 stitches, then joined a new ball of yarn and put the first 25 that I had just knitted onto a stitch holder. I carried on with the new yarn and cast off the center four, then knitted on to the end of that row completing the other half - 25 stitches. It worked exactly as it should....now to remember this for next time! .

[ekgheiy]