Cast on stitches over the gap?

[peev]

Hello all. I'm knitting a scarf as a Christmas present, and am almost finished, but have come unstuck at the last hurdle. I'm knitting the Ribbed Keyhole Scarf and am at the point where the pattern says:

"Next row: Work ribbing for first 12 stitches, cast on 14 new stitches over the gap, join to stitches on other side of the gap and continue ribbing."

I have 12 stitches of rib on each needle - already knit on rhs, and am about to cast on the 14 stitches. However, I can't figure out how to do this. I assumed that I'd add them in front of the stitches on the left hand needle, then knit the whole lot onto the right needle. I tried that, and it left a loop of yarn across the stitches. I tried adding them at the end of the stitches I've already knitted on the right hand needle, but then the yarn is in the wrong place. I also tried casting on individual stitches and then passing them onto the left needle to be knit, but this doesn't work either.

Please help - once I've figured this out, I've only another 4 inches of ribbing to do. Many thanks in advance.

[Ingrid]

You can just do backward loop cast on on your right hand needle, or really any of the one-strand cast ons on your right needle, and then just continue ribbing from that point from your left hand needle.

[silveridger]

Go to Knittinghelp.com's Basic Techniques tab and review the section on single cast-on aka backwardloop cast-on. As usual, once you see what to do, you'll say "that's so easy!" With your 12 stitches of rib on each needle, you cast on the 14 stitches with the backward loop technique right over the 14 you cast off on the previous row and end up with your original 38 stitches.

[peev]

Oh my word, that was *so* easy. I feel like such a dafthead now. Thank you both very much for pointing me in the right direction. Once the scarf is finished, I'm going to knit myself a bit pointy hat with a 'D' on it.

[clairol]

I've been knitting a little over a year, abd I'm barely intermediate. I'm knitting my first pair of mittens. I got to the end of the thumb gusset (I think that's how you describe it) and didn't not know how to "cast on 5 sts over gap." It really threw me for a loop because I've only done long-tail cast-on--I didn't remember that it was also called double cast on and other sites said "use single cast on..." anyway it threw me for a loop. So I came straight to knittinghelp.com (which is where I've learned most of my knitting) and typed "cast on over gap" in the search and voila! I found the link to the backwardloop cast-on. I thought it sounded difficult until I saw the video and it was exactly what I was trying to do on my own. Thanks for asking the question first!

[peev]

I'm glad my daftness has served a purpose. :D

I never did get around to knitting myself a dunce's hat though...

[suzeeq]

Maybe you won't have to....

sue

[Shandeh]

NO DUNCE HATS ARE ALLOWED ON KNITTER'S HEADS!!!
We are ALL learning every day!