Another couple of questions I've been asked a lot relate to what to do with a yarnover on the next row, and particularly what to do when a pattern asks you to drop the yarnovers.
When you come back to a yarnover on the next row, it won't look quite like a normal stitch, because it's not attached to the stitch directly below it. Instead, the front leg of it is attached to the stitch on the right, and the back leg of it is attached to the stitch on the left, which causes it to sit at a pretty sharp angle on the needle. However, if you need to knit or purl it, you do this exactly like you would work a normal stitch -- insert your right needle in the front leg in the appropriate direction, and pull the new stitch through. It's not any different, so don't be going and trying to make it difficult.
What about when you're asked to drop it? How does that work? Again, it's much simpler than it sounds. You can readily identify which stitches were yarnovers by their different appearance, as described above -- a loop of yarn, not attached to the row below, sitting at a sharp angle. When you come to one of them that you've been directed to drop, just push it off the tip of the left needle, and let it go. That's it! Once it's no longer wrapped around the needle, it will just be an extra-long bar between the stitch to its right and the stitch to its left, which produces an elongated stitch. This can be used to beautiful effect in patterns such as seafoam stitch, where multiple yarnovers create drops of different lengths.
Speaking of which, how do you do multiple yarnovers? It's simple; you'll end with the yarn behind the right needle, so simply bring it forward between the needles again, and then flip it over the right needle to the back a second time (or a third, etc., if you're asked to do more than two). There's no need to do a stitch in between; if the pattern wants you to do that, it will say so.
Im working a lace shawl and you saved me with your in depth information concerning yarn overs.... thank you so much for taking the time to share. Hope you are well.. you havent posted in quite a while... would love to see more. Really... Ive searched for hours and your help here was the very best. Maretta
Posted by: maretta | June 11, 2011 at 05:58 AM