DIY Cast On Comb for Singer/Studio/Silver Reed Machines

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The Studio/Singer/Silver Reed line of knitting machines don’t afford the luxury of using a cast-on comb for their cast-on methods.  I much prefer the Brother method of casting on with the comb, so have made my own combs for my Studio/Singer machines.  I’ve made several sizes for each machine, two half the length of the full bed to cover the entire bed and a shorter one to cover about 1/3 of the bed.  They aren't real pretty but do the job just fine.

Tools needed are a couple cards of bobby pins, a length of wooden molding or ruler, hot glue gun and glue sticks (or glue of choice), a couple clamps and a pair of side cutting pliers.


(Click on Photos to Enlarge)

 

1.  Determine how long you want your comb to be and prepare enough bobby pins to fit on every other needle.  Spring the bobby pin open about half way and cut at the bend.  Cut toward the ‘crinkled’ side so there will be a little curl at the end on the straight side of the bobby pin.  You will be using the straight side and discarding the ‘crinkled’ side.

 

2.  With the needle nose of the pliers, carefully bend over the tip of the bobby pin with the rubber end attached.  Bend slowly as the bobby pin will break if bent too fast or sharply.  Bend in the same direction as the little curl at the other end.
 

3.  Bring out every other needle to just beyond the front of the needle bed.  Open latches and lay a blocking wire or any other stiff wire in the needles.  Then push the needles back far enough so the wire lays snuggly against the sinker posts. 
 

4.  Begin hanging the bent bobby pins onto the wire, evenly spaced on every other needle space.  Make sure the hook faces you.

5.   Place a piece of wooden molding cut to desired size or a ruler on the back side of the hanging bobby pins.  Clamp the end pins on each side in place against the wood so that there is about 3/4” of pin above the edge of the wooden strip.  Straighten and arrange the rest of the pins so they are spaced evenly in the every other needle spaces.  Start with a ‘dot’ of glue at the bottom of each pin, just enough to hold them in place while working.  When you’re happy with how they hang, add more glue making sure to get in all the crooks and crannies.  Keep the glue atleast 1/4 “ away from the top edge.  Let the glue cool until there is a good bond.  Then remove the clamps on the end and apply glue to the end bobbypins.  Let the glue cool and get totally set and remove from machine. 

Yarn Wreath

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Oh my, it's been over a month since I posted.  Guess it's about time. 

This wreath is so quick, easy and quite inexpensive to make.  Start with a wire clothes hanger and shape it into a circle.  Go to your scrap yarn bin and wind several balls with any color yarn you might have on hand, any size and number desired. Use a pair of pliers to take the clothes hanger apart at the top so there is an open end.  Then ‘skewer’ the balls of yarn thru the middle and feed them onto the clothes hanger in desired color sequence.  Reattach the wire at the top of the clothes hanger to enclose again.  Add a seasonal decoration, sprig or spray at the top and stick a pair of knitting needles thru a ball of yarn where desired.  Change out the decoration at the top to coincide with a holiday or season.  Hang by the hook at the top of the clothes hanger and enjoy.

E-wrap Cast On for Ribbing

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In search of a nicer looking cast on for ribbing, I ran onto this e-wrap cast on.  It looks really nice, as close to a hand knit cast on as I’ve seen and is just so easy and simple. If you can e-wrap, you can do this ribbing cast on.  It doesn’t flare, has elasticity to match the ribbing, goes back into shape after stretching and the back side looks as nice as the public side.  My first sample was knit with a lightweight worsted roving type yarn on my midgauge machine.  I think this cast on method will lend itself nicely to any ribbed band.  The second sample shows sock ribbing with sock yarn.

1.   E-wrap desired number of needles on the main bed.

2.   With ribbing tension, knit 1 row across on main bed only.

3.   Raise ribber and with a double eyed ribber transfer tool, transfer EOS to the ribber bed for 1x1 ribbing or for your desired configuration, i.e. 2x2, 1x3, 2x3 etc.

4.   Hang the cast on comb and evenly spaced heavy ribber weights.

5.   Knit desired number of rows at ribbing tension.

An afterthought....I should note that any e-wrap cast on should be preceeded by several rows of waste yarn and ravel cord.  This will give the e-wrap more stability and allow weights to be hung to give a nice even cast on.  Your carriage will love you for it and you will like the results.

Fingerless Mitts, Midgauge

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I love mittens but don't like not being able to use my fingers while wearing mittens.  So fingerless mitts are the perfect answer for me.  They can be knit plain to be practical or in nice patterns for a good looking mitt.  Here's my pattern.



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Machine: Brother KX350 or Silver Reed SK860 Midgauge
Yarn: Berroco Vintage or Classic Shades by Universal
Main Tension: 4
Ribbed Tension: 2
Gauge: 5.5 sts, 8 rows =1”
Size: Woman’s Med

Wrist Ribbing:
1.  E-wrap CO 42 sts with scrap and ravel cord.  (40 if Bickford type seaming)
2.  T2, K 18 rows, or length desired.
3.  Latch 1x2 rib.

Wrist:
1.  T 4, K  8 rows, or length desired.  COR.

Thumb Gusset:
1.  RC000.  T 4.
2.  Increase one st at the beginning of each of the next 16 rows.  (I use the 2 prong tool to move the sts out, then fill the empty needle with the ‘heel’  taken from the next st toward the center of the bed)
3.  Starting on the side away from the carriage, manually remove  8 sts from the edge of the needle bed on several rows of waste yarn, leaving the remaining hand stitches on the machine. 
4.  K1R across and remove the same number of sts on the other side away from the carriage.

Upper Mitten:
1.  RC000. 
2.  T4,  K 8 to 10 rows.  (Or length desired)
3.  T2 + one click, K 7 rows, or length desired.  (COR)
4.  Latch 1x2 rib on the 7 rows.
5.  Back stitch BO.  (I prefer from right hand side)
  
Thumb:
1.  RC000. 
2.  With purl side facing you and center thumbs neighboring each other, pick up and hang on the needle bed 16 thumb sts from each piece of waste yarn PLUS 2 full sts, one from each side of the body at the seam side. 
3.   T4,  K 2  rows.  (Or length desired)
4.   T2 + one click, K 6 rows (COR).  May need to knit 1 more row to move carriage to the right hand side.
5.   Latch rib in 1x2.
6.   Back stitch BO.

Finishing:
1.   Sew seams with mattress stitch or a Bickford type seam.  If using a flat Bickford type seam reduce CO by 2 sts.
2.   Weave in yarn ends.

Notes:
1.   Use your ribber to work the ribbing instead of latching the ribbed rows.
2.   Length of the hand, thumb or ribbing may be adjusted by adding or subtracting rows.
3.   Cables, fairisle, tuck or other patterning may be used in the hand portion, but keep in mind that most patterning may alter the gauge.
4.   You may omit the ribbing on the thumb and/or hand if desired, but the edges will curl unless treated otherwise, such as a crocheted edging.
5.   Make 2^nd mitt to match, unless using a pattern design on the back.  Then begin CO on opposite side of machine and reverse all shaping.
6.   Mitts may be knit in the round on machines with ribbers.  My trick to that is making the upper hand and thumb ribbings separately and grafting from the purl side afterward.
7.   The mitts may be worn over little knit gloves found at our favorite discount chain store.  But CO sts or tension may need to be increased to fit comfortably over the gloves.  They will be nice and toasty.

Dyed Sock Blanks

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As promised, here are a few sock blanks that I’ve painted with their resulting socks or mittens.  I did these with KoolAid and food coloring early on in my dyeing ‘career’.  I’ve since moved up to retail acid dyes but the techniques are the same.  Painting blanks can be addictive and it seems that even if I have reservations with a specific blank, I can usually ooh and aah in amazement at the finished socks or mittens.  I had no clue what I was doing when I painted my first blank and my socks turned out to be quite interesting, however amazing to see my blank transform into a sock.  There are absolutely no rules to painting blanks, so it’s a good craft to let the creative juices flow. 

I keep saying painting, but 'painting' a blank isn't limited to using a paint brush, as you might assume.  I've used sponges, squeeze bottles and various sized foam paint brushes.  I guess what I use to get the dye there depends on what effect I'm trying to achieve.  I have the most control with foam paint brushes but the squeeze bottles are quicker if I don't care that the colors bleed more.  Whatever 'painting' method you choose, saturation is the key to a nice solid color.  Less dye saturation will result in a heathered look which is nice too.

DIY Sock Blanks for Dyeing

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Another one of my addictions has been dyeing yarn for socks.  I started out a few years ago with sock blanks and let me tell you that painting blanks is definitely addictive.  I came up with a pretty good  recipe to make my own blanks on my knitting machines so I want to share with you.  I usually buy my sock yarn on cones so I use either a postal scale or fishing line meter to weigh or measure my yarn while winding it off the cone.  The standard skein of sock yarn is 100 gr (3.5 oz) or about 450 yards, depending on the yarn.  Besides being cheaper, another advantage of winding off my own yarn from a cone is that I can put more or less yarn in the blanks, depending on the size foot I’m knitting for...bigger foot, more yarn; smaller foot less yarn.   

When dyeing for socks or mittens that I want to match, I knit my blanks with 2 strands of yarn so I will have an identical cake of yarn for each piece.  If I’m making one article such as a scarf that doesn’t need to match anything, I only knit one strand of yarn in my blanks. 

So here’s how I make my own sock blanks.  I start out with 6 rows of waste yarn and then change to the 2 strands of sock yarn, each strand run through its own tensioner.  Knit the sock yarn, then end with 6 rows of waste yarn again.  Then I run the yarn tail thru the live stitches on the needles and secure.  Do not use a permanent bind off.  Starting and ending with waste yarn allows me to ‘play’ with my blank while painting, such as straightening or pinning it in place.  And it’s easy to unravel after dyeing.

I use my Silver Reed SK860 or Brother KX350 midgauge machines for most of my blanks.  For a 2 stranded blank, I divide the total yarn in half if I’ve wound it from a cone.  Otherwise, knit 2 skeins of 50 grams together.

Sock weight on midgauge machine:
T6 or 7, Scrap CO 60 sts, K6R with waste yarn. Change to sock yarn and knit as far as yardage will go. Scrap off with 6 rows of waste yarn. 

(Click on photos to enlarge)

Sport weight on midgauge machine:
T8, Scrap CO 60 sts, then same as above, about 120 rows for socks. 


DK weight on bulky machine:
T6 or 7, Scrap CO 53 sts, then same as above, about 100 rows for socks.
 

No matter what yarn or what machine is used, make sure that the blank is not knit tightly. If too tight, the dyes will not penetrate all the nooks and crannies between the stitches and white or lighter spots will be evident in the finished yarn.

Here’re a couple things I do depending on what I want my result to be.  Most always, I pull out every other or third needle to hold position and slip across for just one row, say every 10 rows or so. That way if I want to keep my dye application in a straight line, the slipped row will act as a guide to keep me straight with the rows.  I get better absorption if I begin painting on the purl side so it's easy to follow the slipped row.  Then I flip the blank over and make sure I have good coverage on the knit side also.

If I want more defined stripes, I add in about 4 to 6 rows of scrap yarn (cotton or acrylic work best cuz doesn’t take up the dye) between my striped areas of dyeing.  Note that the pink rows in this blank are scrap yarn.  The dyes won’t bleed into each other in the  stripes with the waste yarn in there. The blank gets longer but I get better stripes.  In this picture, I’ve only put 2 rows of scrap yarn between the colors and I did get some color bleeding so I added more rows of scrap yarn on subsequent blanks for stripes.

After my blank has been dyed, rinsed and air dried, I then remove the waste yarn and unravel the dyed yarn into 2 cakes, ready for knitting.  Don’t worry about the kinks, they won’t be noticeable when knit. 

In my next post, I’ll show some of the blanks I’ve dyed and the resulting socks and/or mittens.  Pretty much fun and gratifying.   

Socks Made to Fit

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Any yarn and any machine may be used to make socks.  The key to any good sock is the fit.  No matter how beautiful or how expertly made, it won't be a good sock if it doesn’t fit.  This is my guide to getting a good fitting sock for me.  It may require a bit of tweaking for individual feet but this usually comes pretty close to any I’ve made by it.  Swatch your yarn to obtain gauge and follow these calculations.

Measure Foot:

*Around ankle (just above the ankle bones) -AND- around the arch.  If there is a lot of difference in the two measurements, use the smallest one in the formula to calculate number of cast on sts.

**Length of foot from end of toe to end of heel (standing on a ruler on the floor).

*A good rule of thumb to determine number of cast on stitches is by using the ankle measurement in inches times the number of stitches in your gauge per inch.  Subtract 10% if you prefer a tighter fitting sock.  Make sure it is an even number by rounding up or down.  You will be happy with your socks if they fit snugly but are not tight as most socks will stretch with wear.

**A shortrowed toe and heel for an adult sock will each be approximately 2” long, depending on the yarn and size.  Therefore, subtract 4” from foot measurement to determine how many rows to knit between the heel and toe.  I have found that reducing the length by 5 to 10% will give a satisfactory fit; i.e., my foot is 10” long, minus 4” to allow for the toe and heel, minus 1” (10%), times the number of rows per inch in my gauge = number of rows to knit for the foot section.  Multiply the number of rows by 2 for circular knitting.

                                                                         Example for a 10" foot

                                                               and 8.5" measurement around ankle:   

                                                              (10" long, minus 1" from total length)

 

 



Midgauge Socks in the Round

(Click on photos to enlarge)

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Machine:  SK860 Midgauge with ribber
Yarn:  Berroco Vintage Colors, 1 skein
            50% acrylic, 40% wool, 10% nylon
            Machine Washable, 217 yds per 3.5 oz
Tension:  T5
Gauge:  5.5 sts and 8 rows = 1”
Size:  Woman’s 8

Socks made in the round but may be made flat and seamed

Divide skein of yarn in half, either by weight or yardage

CUFF: 
1)  Double bed e-wrap 44 sts in 1 x 1 (or desired) rib.  K1R to left and hang CO comb and ribber weights.
2)   RC000, T2/2 K20R.
3)   For a seam up the back of the ribbing, transfer main bed stitches to the ribber bed.
4)   T6, K1R across.
5)   Lower ribber and remove CO comb and ribber weights.  Hang 4 claw weights evenly across.
6)   Transfer the right hand 11 stitches to corresponding needles from ‘0’ to R11 on the main bed.
7)   Transfer the left hand 11 stitches to corresponding needles from ‘0’ to L11 on the main bed.
8)   Unravel the row of stitches on the carriage side to have yarn in proper knitting position.
NOTES:  If a side seam in the ribbing is desired, transfer half the stitches opposite the carriage to corresponding needles on the main bed.
      Transferring stitches may be accomplished by scrapping off stitches to be moved with several rows of waste yarn and rehanging to the main bed or by using a garter bar or Decker type tool (comb). 

ANKLE:
1)   RC000, T5/6, raise ribber and set machine for circular knitting and K50R.

HEEL:
1)   Lower ribber bed one notch.  On the main bed and with main bed carriage, shortrow the heel down to 8 sts and back out til all needles are in working position.
2)   Transfer purl bumps from the main bed to the ribber bed at each side to prevent holes.

FOOT:
1)   RC000, raise ribber and return carriage and all settings to circular knitting and K88R.

TOE:
1)   Repeat shortrowing as for heel but decrease down to 6 sts instead of 8.  No need to transfer the purl bumps on each side.
2)    Cut yarn, leaving enough to graft the toe seam.
3)    Scrap off stitches on each bed with several rows of waste yarn and remove from machine.

FINISHING:
1)   Seam ribbing.
2)   Graft the toe seam.

NOTES:
1)   For a longer sock, use contrasting yarn for the heel/toes to allow for adding more rows in the ribbed cuff and/or ankle.

2)   I use a strand of Wooly Nylon run through its own tensioner in the heels and toes for added body and reinforcement for longer wear.  If not using Wooly Nylon, I reduce the tension in just the heel and toe by one full number.

3)   Be sure to swatch yarn as gauge may vary with different colorways even in the same brand.

4)   Ribber tensions usually run differently than main bed tensions, so always run a test swatch and set ribber tension to match the main bed gauge while knitting in the round.

Christmas Stocking, Standard Gauge

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(click on photos to enlarge)

This stocking is made from cuff down, knit flat, with the seam on the side.  I designed the fairisle patterns and motifs in DK7 but can easily be made on a punch card machine.  The motifs are a couple rows wider than a 24 st punch card but duplicate stitches can be added later to complete the pattern.



Machine:  Standard Brother KH965i

Yarn:  Tamm 3 Ply Astracryl

Tension 4

Gauge:  8.5 sts and 12.5 rows = 1”

Size:  Approx 6.5” wide at cuff and 20” long

CUFF: 

1)   CO 104 sts with scrap and ravel cord.

2)   T4, RC000, K42R for lining of cuff.



3)   Knit 42 more rows, placing fairisle patterns at desired spacing.  Lettering will need to be flipped both horizontally and vertically in DAK.

4)   Hang hem, K1R at T6 with CC from R to L.  Start w/COL for DAK patterning.

LEG:

1)  T4, change to main color yarn and knit a total of 124 rows after the cuff and to the beginning of the heel, placing fairisle pattern 24 rows below cuff and evenly spaced on the sides.  Run a lifeline before starting the fairisle pattern and take note of RC.  The fairisle pattern will need to be flipped upside down in DAK.  

2)  Decrease down to 84 sts by using a 3 prong tool to decrease 1 st at each end of every 12^th row 10 times.  (At RC 96, 108, 120, 132, 144, 156, 168, 180, 192, 204)

3)   Knit even to RC208 total; this includes the cuff row count.  (COR)

HEEL:

1)   T4, change to contrasting yarn and place left half of sts (42) into HP.  Heel to be worked on R hand side.

2)   Shortrow down to 14 sts by:

               a.  At carriage side, pull 1 ndl in to HP til the same number of ndls on each

                    side and the ndl next to the carriage is wrapped.  COL.  (14 sts on ea side

                    in HP)

               b.  Do not knit across, but put the 1^st ndl opposite the carriage into WP and

                    then K across.

               c.  Repeat til all ndls are in WP.  Be sure to wrap the needle next to the

                    carriage on each row.  COR.

FOOT:

1)   T4, RC000, change to main color yarn and knit a total of 56 rows. 

2)    Using a 3 prong tool, decrease down to 74 sts by decreasing 1 st at each end of

        every 10 rows 5 times.  (At RC 10, 20, 30, 40, 50)

TOE:

1)   Working on right hand side, repeat shortrowing as for heel, work down to 13 sts.

      (12 sts on ea side in HP)

2)   Scrap off.

FINISHING:

1)  Graft the toe seam from purl side.

2)  Mattress stitch the side seam, picking up 2 ladders instead of 1.

3)  Lightly steam to block.

4)  If desired, tack a piece of fine nylon tulle over the back of the fairisle motifs to cover the yarn floats.

I-Cord Hanger (If desired):

1)  From the inside of the cuff, hang 4 sts at the top of the cuff, centered in the middle of the heel side.

2)  T4, knit a 4 st I-cord for 4” long (60 rows).  

3)  Bind off and sew to beginning of the cord at the cuff line.







Placement of duplicate stitches

Covered floats



 





Mock Ribbed Edging

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This mock rib makes an excellent flat edging on the sides of blankets, scarves and even on garment armholes, hems and cuffs.  You may want to lower the tension if using it for hems and cuffs on ends of knitted fabrics.  It’s a fine substitute solution for machines without ribbers to add a nice ribbed edge that won't curl.  It’s worked during knitting and not as an add-on technique after the piece is knit.   The ribbing is worked on stockinette work only, not patterned knitting such as lace, tuck or fairisle. 

Depending on how wide you want the edging, drop the stitches on the third needle from the edge and every other needle after that.  Then using your latch tool, go under every other ladder and pull thru the stitch on the latch tool.  This can be done every 20 to 30 rows or wait til the entire piece is knit, then work the full row.   The edging around the vest is worked on needles 3, 5 and 7 from each edge.  The scarf is worked on needles 3 and 5 from each edge.

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