I’ve been thinking about helical knitting.
A LOT.
I’ve been aware of helical knitting since I published my first pattern in June 2009 (Spiralling Socks, The Knitter, issue 7), and the sense of magic it inspires in me isn’t really matched by any other knitting technique. I am very partial to a neat tubular cast on, colourwork is a joy to do, and cables and lace make me feel clever, but helical knitting is just pure magic. The time finally came this year to sit down and explore it further. Much further.
The technique itself is completely simple. It’s just knitting (or purling, or anything else), along with a bit of slipping stitches. That’s it. There’s no complexity that might cause people to worry about making mistakes and not being able to fix them (brioche, I might be looking at you here!). If you can knit in the round, you can do helical knitting. That’s it. No more. Even the slipping stitches isn’t to do with any fancy slip stitch pattern. It’s just leaving a few stitches to work later and picking up where you left off. And yet, there are so many possibilities opened up by helical knitting.
So why am I telling you all this?
Well, our next project is imminent, and it’s going to be an ebook all about helical knitting. Something New to Learn About Helical Knitting will be released in four chapters (in fortnightly updates), and will take you through all the skills you need to explore helical knitting in depth, and it will go on sale next Friday (28th September). So brace yourself, we’re about to get seriously helical!
What is helical knitting? I’ll get in to that tomorrow…