Arwen: The Hem
I'll do just about anything I can do lessen the amount of finishing on a sweater. So I knew I'd be doing the hem a bit differently. The pattern instructs you to sew the hem to the inside of the sweater when you're done.
Instead, I cast on provisionally...
knit the hem, the purl turning row, and enough rows to match up with the hem.
To make it easier to knit the hem, I pin it together so I'm not fighting the curl of the stockinette, and thread a smaller needle through the yarn holding the provisional stitches.
Then, I knit together one stitch from the front with one stitch from the bottom of the hem, as if I was doing a k2tog*.
A pic of the front and back...
It doesn't look any different, but I've skipped a couple hours of finishing. That sure feels different.
*edited - originally i wrote ssk but that's not what I do...I was writing this post a little too late at night!
Comments
You are very wise! Hmmm...going to have to remember that tip!
Posted by: Christie | November 20, 2006 10:23 PM
That's similar to what I did with the Hourglass! Altho, I think I just did a longtail and picked it up. In a class I took last spring, Anna Zilboorg reported that her new provisional cast on is to do the longtail and simply pick up. Very freeing!
Posted by: Chris | November 20, 2006 10:37 PM
It looks so clean; I love that. And that yarn...drool.
Posted by: isel | November 20, 2006 11:30 PM
This is a great tip! I'll be keeping this in mind for the future!
Posted by: Jodie | November 21, 2006 12:31 AM
LOL... that is exactely what I do as I don't do finishing :) Still waiting for my yarn to get here. Hope it comes this week.
Cheers Eva
Posted by: Eva | November 21, 2006 12:40 AM
Quite clever! Have to remember that one.
Posted by: Jessica | November 21, 2006 06:19 AM
Very useful! I am copying you with my next project!
Posted by: Mary Beth | November 21, 2006 07:01 AM
I'll echo Chris and say that when I do the picot edge socks, I do a long tail cast on and then just pick up each stitch and k2tog on the seam row.
Good tip either way!
Posted by: Christy | November 21, 2006 07:32 AM
interesting.. you knit them together like an SSK. most of them i've seen it done with k2tog. do you like the way the knitting looks better with SSK?
Posted by: gleek | November 21, 2006 08:15 AM
I also do a longtail and pick up the stitches as I do and k2tog... but that might be because the provisional cast on hates me, and also because I love the rhythm of it.
Your hem looks so tidy. I love your choice of yarn.
Posted by: Heather G. | November 21, 2006 08:53 AM
chris, christy, and heather g - i wish i could do that, but i always struggle with starting in the exactly correct place, or picking up an extra stitch or something. so the provisional is better for me because i have the exact right number of stitches and i don't have to think about it.
truthfully i wish i could do the longtail pickup better, but it's just not working for me!
Posted by: jody | November 21, 2006 08:59 AM
That is how I do my hems also - much easier then trying to sew it up!
Posted by: Stacey | November 21, 2006 09:04 AM
That's so funny, I thought of doing that too!! :) I decided not to though because I want to seam the fronts to the back and then do the hem as one piece all around so the hem will look smooth at the seam area. I go through the same debates with sewing too. Sometimes I coverstitch hems down before sewing the side seams to save time, and sometimes depending on how I think the finished garment will look, I do it the old fashioned way and do the hems last.
Posted by: Jen | November 21, 2006 10:19 AM
Oh damn. That IS clever.
AND it avoids that whole 'just-how-tight-should-i-yank-this-yarn' issue when sewing the hem. fantastic.
Posted by: Kellee | November 21, 2006 11:56 AM
That's one of my alltime favorite techniques. I posted a similar tutorial back in early 2005
http://marniemaclean.com/words/2005/01/no-sew-hem.html
And the really funny thing is that NonaKnits posted about it recently too
http://nonaknits.typepad.com/nonaknits/
It's epidemic! ;)
Posted by: Marnie | November 21, 2006 12:42 PM
I love using this technique and it looks great!
Posted by: diana | November 21, 2006 04:47 PM
I love it too! So clever :)
I sometimes cast on provisionally for big projects anyway...I can always bind off later and sometimes I need to see the whole piece before I decide on the finishing treatments!
Posted by: Debi | November 21, 2006 08:59 PM
you are a clever, clever dame. i'm with you - anything to lessen finishing time!
Posted by: brenda in toronto | November 23, 2006 10:52 AM
Very smart hem plan!! Who wants to sew if it's not necessary? I love your yarn choice - much nicer than what the pattern called for. I'm not crazy about the sleeve either, and am planning a raglan or set-in b/c it's more flattering. I also like the idea of some waist shaping. I'm doing a long, collared (love the reversible cable) version in Manos rust...
Posted by: theresa | December 2, 2006 09:56 PM