Wednesday Question: How Can I Tell If Stitches Are Twisted?

All knitters have questions about the best way to do things, why different things happen while they are knitting, how to fix knitting mistakes and more.
Here is this weeks question  From Mary in Devon, UK  - I am just trying my first  circular knitting pattern and it says ensure the stitches aren't twisted before joining in the round to knit. How can I tell if my stitches are twisted?




Answer: If your knitting stitches are twisted when you begin to work in the round, that twist will stay in the knit fabric, causing a twist in the knitting rather than producing a smooth, flat fabric.

This can be used as a design feature, but usually a twisted look is not what you want in your knitting projects. Often you won't notice that you've developed a twist in your knitting until you've knit several rounds, especially if you are working with a lot of stitches, because it's harder to see what's going on on just a few rounds if your stitches are all bunched up. The bad news is there's no way to fix a twist beyond ripping out your work and being more careful the next time.

A good trick for ensuring your stitches aren't twisted is to lay the work down on a table after you've cast on and make sure all the stitches are facing the same way without a twist before you join in the round or start knitting. You can also knit a few rounds back and forth before joining in the round; then it will be simple to see there's no twist. You'll have a short seam to sew at the end, but it's not a big deal compared to the unpleasantness of having to rip out your work when you discover a twist.

If you have a knitting question for Knitting Galore, please email it to : dbjones5559@hotmail.co.uk  or  Please  post it as a comment here.  All questions will be answered, and many are selected and answered each wednesday here on the Blog.