Knitters? How do I

[grasukdesim]

Cast off 7 stitches in the middle of a row and then knit the rest?

I have 41 stitches. Pattern says knit 13, cast off 7, knit 20.

When I get to the cast off part I then don’t have enough stitches on my needle to knit 20.

What am I doing wrong?

Umm it should work if you have 41 to start with, bumping for you really as can’t see where you are going wrong !

How are you casting off- as there are a couple of methods?
Could it be that?

After you cast off are you turning the needles and trying to knit the first 13? Don't turn!

I’m a returner to knitting so trying to remember it all. Did this pattern last year and it worked so not sure where I’m going wrong.

Looked up casting off on you tube and used the method where you knit one, do a twiddly bit with next one and pass over. Did that for each of 7 stitches and I think that meant I maybe used 2 stitches per cast off stitch and hence why I didn’t have 20 remaining afterwards?

I pulled it all out and have now got to that bit again and daren’t try it again in case I have to pull it again. Find it really tricky to pull it and retread it without dropping stitches.

So sorry for the quality of the diagram.

Basically knit 13, then you want to knit 2 and use the first of those to cast off the second. Knit again, cast off ..... until you have cast off 7 that will leave 20.

Ah @PsychosonicCindy maybe that’s what I did....??

Thank you for the diagram @TorysSuckRevokeArticle50! Right I’m going in!!!

It worked!!

Phew.

Thank you everyone

Just a tip that I learned annoyingly late in the game. If you have a tricky bit coming up in a pattern, just run a line of spare wool through your stitches using a wool needle, then move on an try the hard row. That way if you need to unravel and get back to that point you don't drop a heap load of stitches and your work is saved.

Right well I now have another question!

And yes have googled this before asking. I now have to purl 21 and cast on 7. I’ve done the purls and tried the cast on but I think because I did it my usual way (thumb method) it has knitted them so resuming purl stitches afterwards didn’t work. The only tutorials I can find are telling me to wrap the wool around my fingers in a very complicated loop the loop way.

Any further assistance?

When you have purled your first set of stitches, turn the work around and use a cable cast on to add the seven stitches, turn the work back to the wrong side and purl the 13 sts.

If you don't know how to do a cable cast on, go onto YouTube, if you can garter st, you can cable cast on.

What lattelady said. A cable cast on is: insert right needle between the last two stitches on the left needle (the two closest to the tip). Pull yarn through to make a loop and put this on the left needle. One stitch cast on. Repeat for the number you need to cast on.

great tip, Torysuck, thanks

Thank you so much - done!!

And great tip, @TorysSuckRevokeArticle50. But something else to learn. How do you do that - thread the different coloured wool through the stitches on your needle? In that way I suppose it means you never pull back further than you have to - but doesn't stop you buggering the stitches up whilst trying to re-thread them?

Leave them on the needles don't try to move them.

Thread a yarn needle with a bit of waste yarn and thread it through while they're on the needle then just keep knitting as usual.

If you get through it ok then you can just pull the waste yarn out and into ones the wiser. If it goes wrong then you can unravel and it stops unravelling when it gets to that row.

Like this

www.mybluprint.com/article/genius-saves-for-knitting-mistakes-read-this-before-you-rip-back

Use cotton yarn for the lifelines as it's nice and slippery. If you're working with a lace yarn (lifelines are vital if you're doing a huge lace shawl....!) dental floss works really well

MaidofKent78, the dental floss idea is brilliant - thank you from a relatively novice lace knitter and older vintage Kentish Maid (defining 'maid' loosely)

That is genius, thank you :)

@theThreeofWeevils you're welcome! And if you use the minty floss, it makes your knitting smell minty fresh too!!!

That would be a bonus: might even keep the cat out of it