WINTER KNITTING

New Zealand Listener, Volume 2, Issue 51, 14 June 1940, Page 42

WINTER KNITTING

By

L.J.

S.

| ONG winter evenings are here and with them the inevitable knitting. Successful results depend to a great extent on the smaller details, so here are a few hints which will ensure quicker knitting and a professional finish. Unravelled wool should be washed before re-using. This is easily done if the wool is wound into a skein, tied once or twice, and then washed in lukewarm water, when the twist will disappear. New wools also benefit by this treatment, as they are then proof against shrinking in the made garment, Cable silk will be easier to knit if it is soaked in hanks in warm water, wrung gently in a towel, and hung in the breeze to dry. A ball of wool is much easier to handle, and also keeps cleaner if used from the centre. All that is necessary is to leave the end free when winding, and then roll in only two directions, keeping the end loose. Eye strain may be avoided by using needles in contrast to the wool-white or yellow needles for the dark wools, and black needles for paler colours and all pastel shades. Casting on with needle and thumb gives a firm, neat edge, so that it is unnecessary to knit into the back of the stitches, a task that is always tiresome on a difficult second row. And if the first stitch of every row is slipped and the last knitted throughout, seams will be neater and there will be no curling edges. Incidentally, when making up-machining gives a firmer finish and squarer shoulders-a tailored effect will be gained by joining the sleeve and side seams in one, Cast off in pattern, if possible, and the edge will then be as elastic as the cast on edge-an important point where cuffs are concerned.