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This week we�re starting a new series that I�m calling Fancy Stitch Combos.
And in this series we�ll be taking the most basic elements, like simple increases and
decreases and some other techniques, and combining them together to make really different looking
and pretty fabrics.
In this series, I of course want to show you how to work the technique, but I also want
to show you what the fabric looks like, the fabric you�re creating, looks like from
the back as well as the front, to help you decide if you want to use this stitch in different
projects.
And I�ll let you know if the fabric�s going to lie flat, or if it�s going to curl
up when it�s done.
Because you certainly don�t want to make a scarf, or a dishcloth or something, out
of a stitch that�s going to curl up when it�s finished.
You want it to be flat.
And this week we�re starting out with the Purse Stitch.
And when you hear the name Purse Stitch, you might be thinking, okay, that�s a stitch
that�s not going to have any give to it.
It�s going to be a tight stitch with no give, you can make a purse out of it and load
it up with heavy things and it will hold fast.
That�s not the case.
It�s a totally stretchy stitch. I don�t know why it�s called the Purse Stitch.
But it�s a very cool stitch!
Let�s go ahead and take a look.
Here it is in a very bulky example.
This is knit with bulky yarn and size 10.5 US needles.
And it�s such a cool stitch! I love it when a stitch lies flat, and it�s identical on
both sides.
So this would be appropriate for scarves, dishcloths, placemats � anything that you
need to not curl, and lie flat.
And this is in a very bulky yarn.
You see that we have this horizontal stripe running through it, and these little knots.
And after I knit this, I was pretty excited to see it in different gauges.
And here it is in worsted weight yarn and size 7 needles, I believe.
And I�ll show you a little trick I did here.
I tied a knot to tell me the size of the needles I used. All I have to do is feel.
One, two, three, four, five, six, seven.
Yes.
I used a size 7 needle on this swatch.
And in this example it is a little bit lacier.
The needle and yarn size is just different enough where you can see the wholes in the
work a little bit better.
And, of course, again same on both sides.
And after I made this I thought, I want to see this in a small gauge, with a little bit
of a shinier yarn.
And look how pretty this is!
And this one is knit with a one, two, three size needle in DK weight yarn.
I really like the look of this.
Okay.
And I love it that it�s so simple!
The instructions for this stitch will be in the video description below, as well as on
my website.
We�re going to start off with a regular long-tail cast-on.
And if you need a review of the long-tail cast-on, I�ll give you a link right here.
Regular, normal cast on. You want to cast on an even number of stitches.
The first stitch is a selvedge edge, which is going to be knit one.
The next stitch is a yarn over. And all you�re going to do is pull the yarn forward between
the two needles and work the next stitch, which is slip-slip-knit, SSK.
And to work that stitch, you put your needle in as if to knit, slip that stitch over without
working it, put your needle in the next stitch as if to knit, slip that stitch over without
working it.
Then take the tip of your left needle, and put it into the front of those two stitches.
Okay. We�re now in position to knit these two stitches through the back loop.
And we have this yarn over. It�s going to give us a loop on the needle here as we work
this next stitch.
Okay, that�s the whole stitch combination!
It�s yarn over, SSK.
So I pull the yarn forward between the two needles, SSK.
And that�s it.
If you need a review, a slower review, of SSK, I�ll give you a link right here.
Yarn between the two needles.
Slip, slip, knit them through the back loop.
And you continue this all the way across your work, until you have one stitch left, that�s
the other selvedge edge, you�re just going to knit that stitch.
Then you turn the work, and do the same thing.
The first and last stitches are just knit, then it�s yarn over, SSK the rest of the
way.
Knit the first one, yarn over, SSK.
This stitch ends up going pretty quickly.
Meaning that it�s quick to work, and it builds fabric pretty quickly.
When you finish with this, getting it however big you want it, you will just do a normal
bind off, nothing fancy.
Whoops, I�m splitting the yarn here. Which is good, because it reminds me of a couple
of other things I want to tell you!
If you�re a really tight knitter, you�re going to benefit from super slick needles
to work this stitch.
After the first row, the SSK in the second and all subsequent rows, involve using the
yarn over in the SSK stitch.
You�re going to have a difficult time getting your needle in there unless you�re using
sharp, metal needles if you�re a tight knitter.
Even someone who�s not a tight knitter might benefit from those needles.
Also, this fabric � I showed you how it looks in a few different yarn/needle combinations.
But this takes on a much lacier look, the bigger the needle, the finer the yarn.
Just something to keep in mind.
Good luck.
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