Purl When You Can

A couple of people asked for more details about the Purl When You Can (PWYC) technique I used for the Sashiko Jacket hem. You just know I'm a people pleaser that way. I learned this technique from Meg Swansen, who has graciously given me permission to quote her. This description is from the introduction to Sweaters From Camp:

"[PWYC] is a method whereby you can cast-on and launch directly into the color pattern without ribbing, garter-stitch or a hem.... When working a color into a stitch of the same color, purl it (when you can). When working one color into a contrasting color, knit it. This is purely subjective; you can do what you wanna, but because you have knits and purls in the same row, you'll produce a non-curling fabric.

Meg invented this and says, 'At first, I purled every stitch i 'could,' but gradually - thorugh further experimentation - I have found that a spurprisingly small number of purl stitches are required to tame the lower edge curl. Now I usually purl either the background or the motif stitches (when I 'can') and have found that sufficient. Caution: the purl stitches cause the finished fabric to be more square than oblong, so swatch first.'"

Conceptually, PWYC is an expanded and less structured version of corrugated rib. In her Wool Gathering #67 Giant Latvian Mitten Cardigan (see the picture at the bottom of the page), Meg extends this idea to a PWYC vertical cardigan border!

I use this hem treatment a lot. In the Sashiko Jacket I purled some of the blue background stitches. See also the first Acorn Sweater hem, for example. My camera is broken so I can't show you any others right now (part of a series of broken machinery around here: iron, microwave, and as of yesterday, car--is this what they mean by something being in retrograde????). 

Don't Miss This Opportunity

You might remember that I talked about Nancy Robert's incredible color-work technique--she knits plain yarn into swaths of fabric on a knitting machine, dyes it, and then unravels it to be knit into amazing garments. You can see some great examples at her website. Well, Nancy is offering a small workshop on January 7th and I think one space is still open. Rachael, Maia and I will be there!

Comments

[Christina]

Thanks for both information on the PWYC technique and Nancy Roberts! As an alternative to machine knitting and dyeing, you can dye roving in long lengths of colour, then navajo ply it.

[Maia]

I love when a technique is so self-explanatory. And, I hadn't noticed the purls in the Sashiko Jacket. Very intriguing.

I can't wait for the workshop with Nancy Roberts! I am making my family reschedule a get-together so I won't miss it.

[Janella]

PWYC!!! What a cool technique, I cant wait to try it.

[--Deb]

Such a nice, simple, obvious technique . . . I'll have to remember that one!

[CarolineF]

Thanks for the description, I've never sat down and actually read what this technique does. The photo of the jacket from the other day is beautiful, I love those blues. Blue and white, yum.

[vanessa]

you taunt me with the acorn sweater and a nancy roberts workshop!

[Lisa S]

Thanks Janine, as always you are a great teacher and I now understand what I was looking at and how one is able to begin a colorwork piece without hving to have a Prelude of two color ribbed stitches in order to have a non-rolling continuity of coor. Leave it to Meg, who was smart enough to be inspired by her mom's common sense approach to what is made to seem difficult. Thanks for sharing.

Now, on to you and things breaking...it always seems to happen to us when we are distracted and you have certainly had a lot on your plate to disctract you, poor kid. Let's get you all healed up and thanking Sister Moon that you don't need feet to knit...

Nice for Nancy to teach a workshop close by. Rebecca Younger, who was the first to publish this technique, used to live in the Bay Area. I knew her when she was still using that gorgeous dyeing, ripping and reknitting technique in a lot of her work and although she liked the West Coast, she found that the market for really original work like hers remained in the East and so she and her husband moved back. When we did our last juried shows together, she was experimenting with a lot of Discharge of dye...that girl is ever so innovative.