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Hello and thanks for visiting my blog. I have been knitting on and off for 50 years and I recently learned to crochet. I love looking for wool bargains and making them into something useful. I mainly knit for charity. I occasionally knit for myself and family members if I find a really good pattern or if they ask nicely!!

Thursday 26 June 2014

How to knit a v neck on a circular needle.....updated tutorial


I posted this tutorial in January 2013 and it has received many visits and comments.  I revisited my original post yesterday with the intention of editing it.  I accidentally deleted it instead! Luckily, I had saved a copy of the text and photos on my computer.  So here it is again....an updated and improved version rewritten to address some of the queries that I received.  

This is a long and detailed tutorial.  Reading it takes longer than actually knitting the v section of the neckline. After the first round, you will find the instructions very easy to follow.

Stop press: I am editing this again to include a different way to knit the second decrease.  It took a different pair of eyes to see a better, safer and easier way.  Thank you, Ian Young!

Prologue
I spent many hours knitting an Aran jumper for my daughter. She chose the pattern and I wanted to do it justice. However, it had been translated into English from another language and had lost some detail along the way.
I knitted the front and back of the jumper and followed the instructions to sew them together at the shoulders. The pattern then called for knitting the edging to the v neck "in the round" on one circular needle. This is where my problems began because the pattern was very vague about exactly how to do this.
In short, I had to rip out 2 botched attempts and go for lots of calming walks.

I then performed an Internet search and found many different methods of knitting a v neck "in the round". I cast some stitches onto a very short circular needle and tried some of them but none looked good with Aran wool which shows up every stitch very clearly.

Eventually I went back to my original pattern and pored over it until I understood what to do. This took far longer than I was happy with. So, in case I ever knit another v neck jumper, I just want to record the detailed instructions here. If anyone else finds them useful, that will be a 
bonus.

Setting the scene
I was knitting with Aran wool. I had already sewn the back and front of the jumper together. My v neck edging was in single rib and I decreased 2 stitches on every row.

Lights, camera, action
By following these steps, I ended up with a neckline that looked good.
  • pick up the required number of stitches with a circular needle. The shaping looks better if you pick up an odd number of stitches and make sure one stitch is in the bottom centre of the v. For neatness, commence picking up at one of the shoulders.
  • mark the centre stitch with a safety pin or other marker. This is especially important on the first few rounds.
  • rib until one stitch before the centre stitch.
The stitch before the centre stitch is waiting to be worked


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  • with the yarn at the back of your work, slip the next stitch purlwise onto the right hand needle. (NB: when I use the term "purlwise" it is to imply that the stitch should be slipped without twisting it.)
  • slip the centre stitch onto a cable needle and keep it to the front of your work.
  •  remove the safety pin.

The centre stitch is on a cable needle at the front of the work

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  •  slip the last stitch from the right hand needle back onto the left hand needle purlwise.
  • ·knit together the first two stitches on the left hand needle. This is the first decrease.

Knitting two stitches together for the first decrease

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  • you now have to knit the second decrease. These were my original instructions.  You can either follow these or move down the page now to the "Ian Young" method which I can recommend as safer and easier.
  •  slip the stitch from the cable needle onto the right hand needle purlwise.

The stitch has been slipped from the cable needle to the right hand needle

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  • carefully pull the slipped stitch over the last worked stitch on the right hand needle. This is very fiddly as it involves removing the last worked stitch from the needle. But it is essential as it is the second decrease and gives the nice raised line of stitches up the centre of the v shaping.  If you are happy using a crochet hook, you could insert it from left to right through the slipped stitch and use it to grab the last worked stitch.  This would stop the stitch from dropping and disappearing.  Otherwise, carefully pinch the last worked stitch between finger and thumb when it is off the needle.
  • For extra clarity: you are pulling the original centre stitch (i.e. the slipped stitch) over and behind the last worked stitch on the right hand needle. The slipped stitch was your original centre stitch.  But it is now no longer on a needle. Therefore the last stitch on your right hand needle is now the NEW centre stitch.)


The slipped stitch has been pulled over and behind the last worked stitch
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  • put the safety pin back into the new centre stitch. This is optional after the first few rows. But I find it a useful reminder of where the centre stitch is.
  • carry on ribbing.

Replace the safety pin in the centre stitch and carry on ribbing

The "Ian Young" method 


  • The "Ian Young" method is to slip the stitch from the cable needle onto the left needle. Then slip the last stitch from the right needle onto the left needle.  Carefully pull the stitch that was on the cable needle over this last stitch. This is now your new centre stitch.  So, insert the safety pin into it and carry on ribbing.  I have tested this easier method and it works in the same way as my original method but is much safer and quicker. It is the method I will choose to follow the next time I knit this pattern.
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  • complete the number of rounds as specified in your pattern.
  • cast off. The decreasing process described above is also done on this cast off row.
  • ·I like to cast off ribwise. But it is also possible to knit all the cast off stitches for a tighter        finish.
Take a bow!

You have now completed your v neckline and should have a neat finish similar to my first photo above.

Boring but necessary: this tutorial is all my own work.  I am happy for you to refer to it and even to publish links to it. But please don't reproduce the text or photos on any other website or blog without my permission.  Many thanks.


4 comments:

  1. That's awesome.... I'm so tempted to start knitting!!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Hi Una, I just wanted to thank you for the v neck in the round tutorial. I have used it to great effect to do the neck of a fair use sweater in aran weight. Although I thought it was going to be hard, it's was easy, and looks perfect! I used the Ian Young for second decrease. Thanks again for sharing.
    Best wishes,
    Gillian

    ReplyDelete
  3. Thank goodness for this blog. I have what sounds like a similarly vague knitting pattern and have now torn my stiches out three times - I'm worried the wool has stretched and will be holey. I am going to give this method a try tonight. Fingers crossed!

    ReplyDelete

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