Diamond Swatch: Alternate CO/BO

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Instructions

After knitting my first Diamond swatch as part of the class exercise, I didn't like the way the alternate colors were visible on the faces of the fabric at the CO and BO edge. Mr. Post-Quinn suggested alternatives, so I knit another Diamond swatch using an invisible CO (in the vein of JMCO) and a grafted BO (separated k sts to needle1 and p sts to needle 2, then purled the back row before beginning Kitchener so that height of both sides would be the same). I love the invisible CO and BO, although I need more practice in maintaining consistent tension throughout.

Took photos and will try to upload them, here (but I don't see an option to upload images on this page - perhaps on the Preview page?). Will give it a try and see what happens when I press the Next button.

ETA: Yes, after pressing the Next button to Preview the project, there is an option to upload up to 6 photos (at least 1 photo is required). Note, however, that Craftsy does not like tall photos. After knitting my first Diamond swatch as part of the class exercise, I didn't like the way the alternate colors were visible on the faces of the fabric at the CO and BO edge. Mr. Post-Quinn suggested alternatives, so I knit another Diamond swatch using an invisible CO (in the vein of JMCO) and a grafted BO (separated k sts to needle1 and p sts to needle 2, then purled the back row before ...
Read full instructions »

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Difficulty:

Category: Knitting

Type of item: Functional

For: Other

Style: Classic

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Materials

Caron (R) Simply Soft (R) worsted weight yarn. Not the best choice for this class exercise as that yarn is very splitty, which made the DK manipulations more difficult. ETA: Forgot to mention that I used a set of US 6 (4.0 mm) DPNs. Would also note that yarn with a bit more elasticity would have been a friendlier choice while learning to DK .

What was your inspiration?

This was the first DK exercise for the class. My inspiration is simply my desire to learn Double Knitting and to follow the practice exercises as outlined by the course instructor.

What are you most proud of?

The grafted bind off. I think it looks nice and clean with good tension along the BO edge.

What needs more work?

Consistency in tensioning the front and back yarns and cleaner side edges. In the next exercise, I will try an alternative, no-twist slip stitch technique for the stitch pair at the end of the row to see whether that will help reduce the sloppy appearance of my side stitches.

What advice would you give someone starting this project?

If you aren't particularly thrilled with the look of barber poled yarn, then I suggest using an invisible CO technique (akin to Judy's Magic Cast- On) and grafted BO technique. Socks knitters will have an advantage, here, as JMCO is widely used for toe-up sock construction and Kitchener is widely used for cuff-down sock construction.