Re: Sock heels

Here's something I've never understood. It seems to me that people steek because they want to knit in the round. They knit in the round mainly because they don't like sewing up seams. But if they steek, they have to sew/baste on either side of the steek line. What have they gained? I have no problem with sewing seams, but I hate basting and never do it, even when I'm sewing. Also, cutting is one of my least favorite chores when sewing. I've never tried knitting in the round and steeking, but I think I prefer knitting flat and sewing the pieces together.

I knit in the round because sewn seams in knitted garments feel lumpy and (when I've done them) look wonky. I have never examined the instructions for a steek-built sweater to see if the arms are sewn in or picked up and knit down in the round. If it's the former, I'm just not interested, and the steeking issue is moot.

There are a gazillion (ok, many) ways to knit a sweater in the round without steeking. I've done top down and bottom up. (I knitted a sweater side to side once, too, but that may have involved a seam.) Raglan sleeves, drop shoulder sleeves, sleeveless, cardigan and pullover.

Georgia

One can save a few minutes knitting in the round and then steeking. For the contract knitters that were so poorly paid, every minute counted.

I have so far never tried steeking, but since I am getting into stranded colorwork, it appears to be something I will need to do in the future when I move on from hats to sweaters. Doing colorwork in the round seems the best way to go. That will require steeking.

BB

Working colors in the round definitely does not require steeking. I have made several Icelandic-style 3-color sweaters from the top down, with nary a steek. The only photo I have is the little boy's sweater most of the way down here, on the left:

Georgia

How would you create the front of a cardigan or the armholes for set-in sleeves without steeking?

Georgia,

I love the color work you have done! I can see how you could knit a pullover without steeking, but I had in my head a cardigan when I wrote that. Thanks for clearing that up :)

My first attempt will probably be a cardigan for Baby B. She's going to be quite useful for me to learn new techniques.

BB

Speaking for myself, I'd knit back-and-forth for a cardi, and there's a very slick method of creating a fake set-in sleeve in EZ's book Knitter's Workshop - no seams required except for a little one at the top of each shoulder :D

For a cardigan, I knit back and forth on circulars (and I hate it--purling is so much more work than knitting), bind off at the underarms (if knitting bottom up) or biceps (if knitting raglan-style top down), graft the shoulder seams (if I'm knitting bottom up) or join at the armpits (If knitting top down) and pick up stitches around the armholes for the sleeves when I'm all done with the body--or before if I get bored. The teal colored Aran-style sleeveless cardigan at the bottom of my page has no seams.

Thanks, BB. I think if I was going to challenge myself to knit a steek sweater, it would be least stressful to do a baby sweater. Good idea!

Georgia

Both; different people do it different ways. Some instructions say to knit the sleeve wrist-up and sew it in, more others say to pick up stitches and knit down to the wrist.

=Tamar

Were there contract knitters in Scandinavia too? The English and Scots say they never did steeking until the immigration of many Scandinavians in WWII. Even when they do it, they still don't call it that in Shetland; they call it "extra stitches."

=Tamar

I read a not-very-convincing discussion of this by Elizabeth Zimmermann. What do all of you feel about why we don't just learn to knit in both directions in order to avoid purl rows?

I despise purling but I do it when necessary. I'll knit back backwards when I'm knitting stockinette back and forth, however. That means I throw left-handed but I've gotten pretty good at it...

I'll be starting applied garter stitch border on a shawl within the next day or two (knock wood). I have every intention of purling back backwards rather than turning the work every 9 stitches!

OK, so you are not knitting cardigans in the round.

I don't find purling to be more difficult than knitting. Knitting backwards, on the other hand, is something I have not mastered.

Good luck! I tried to purl backwards while knitting one of Iris Schreier's patterns. My hands just would not cooperate so I did a LOT of turning. Probably, I gave up to soon.

If it's colorwork I do. Steeks don't scare me :D

My problems with purling are that while, when focusing, I can accomplish each knit stitch in essentially two motions, for purling I still need three, and with purling I lose the tension more easily (continental style) and have to rewind the yarn on my finger more often.