Easy Trick To Catch Long Floats

This tutorial is designed to show you one easy trick for catching long floats when you're knitting stranded colorwork. As always, use whatever method works best for you! Happy knitting, my friends!
xoxo Courtney
www.flynnknit.com
flynnknit
www.etsy.com/shop/flynnknit

[@lisaprice4816]

This looks much easier. I have viewed many videos on stranded knitting and catching floats and this looks so much quicker and hassle free. Thanks so much!! I can’t wait to try this. 😊

[@melindaw3863]

That’s brilliant! Thanks so much for this great tip!

[@carenbryant8622]

🤯 Amazing! So simple! Thank you.

[@BeeGeeHikes]

Thank you, thank you!! I’ve been struggling with yarn floats for a long time, now it’s so much easier!

[@noriskern7385]

OMG much easier. I was at the point of giving up stranded knitting 🙏

[@dorothyrushforth888]

Strangely, before the days of KZbin, my instinct had me pick the bar up on my right needle and doing the same. I always wondered if there was a ‘correct’ way to do this but it seems it’s more or less the same. Great video 😊

[@princessagatha9991]

I’m knitting a sweater flat and I suspect this will be an easier way to catch the floats than what I’ve been doing, especially on the purl rows. Thanks for the tutorial!

[@barbarawood3209]

Wow! Great idea.. thank you!

[@vivianpowell1732]

Thank you so much! This is similar to doing a M1 stitch and then knitting it together with the next stitch, except you're picking up the M1 stitch from the float instead of from a bar. Maybe it could be called a Make 1 Float. I am now using this method exclusively to catch (or trap) floats in my stranded colorwork projects and find it to be the easiest way yet. It's very helpful to know that a long float is created on one row, but that it is not caught until the next row. You can plan ahead with less pressure. I also find that my stranded colorwork is easier with fewer mistakes if I write out a repeat instead of just referring to the chart. For example: [ 2W, 2B, 3W, 2B,1W ] means to knit 2 whites, 2 blues, 3 whites, 2 blues, and 1 white, for the repeat.

[@sally0404]

This was so easy to learn! Ty so much. I’m glad I stumbled upon your video early in my colorwork journey!

[@reneemorgan9320]

This looks so much easier!! The other ways seemed so confusing to me! Saving this video! Thank you!

[@sarahrobertson3571]

Would it be possible to see the backside of the project once you’ve caught the float on the next round? Thanks for sharing, I’ll definitely give this a try.

[@maggiepatterson7949]

WOW...love this method! Perfect!

[@kizzyb2871]

Ok, now I feel like I could have saved so much time lol. Thank you so much for this. Way easier than what I was doing. 👏👏👏

[@lvy_arts_4932]

So much easier than the insanity that I was subjecting myself to!

[@flynnknit]

Yay! I’m so glad you like it! I feel the same way about other ways to catch long floats. 🤣 But whatever works best for each knitter, right? 🥰

[@marjoriemillner9961]

The is a great method! I think it may use more yarn but then again, maybe not! At any rate, it would totally do away with my usual "fun" twisting the float color with the color I'm knitting with clockwise, and then twisting them counter-clockwise the next time I capture a float so I don't end up with two completely twisted-up yarn balls! To say nothing of all the time that takes, vs just knitting along uninterrupted on the initial row, and then quickly scooping up the float and knitting with the live stitch on the needle. I'm about to start a colorwork hat and I will try it!

[@NatjeToch]

I’m going to try this one. It looks so much easier. Thank you! ❤

[@karenbochinski]

Great technique. I have knit 5 of your beanies from your book. Love the book

[@flynnknit]

Awwww! Thank you so much! So glad you’re loving the book! 🤗

[@candicevee1]

When I’m knitting with 3 or more colors per row, I usually knit 2 passes down the row, with the first pass being with the color having the longest stranding. Then on the second pass I catch the long floats just like you do, using the next 2-3 colors of the following pass. 3-4 colors per row made MUCH easier!

[@monikasiekmann5773]

Oh wow, thank you so much, this looks so easy!

[@shereevaughn8355]

Perfect ~ I’m a thrower also! Working on my first sweater with color work

[@trishag7559]

Found your video this morning and thank you! I have been wanting to to knit color work but have been intimidated by these floats, You have now explained this so well that I am going to try now. Also watching how you manage the yarns also looks so much easier than other videos I have watched! I’m excited to try color work now!

[@flynnknit]

This makes me so happy! Yay! Happy knitting!

[@evaromain3199]

Brilliant and so easy ❤thank you for this excellent tip. 🇫🇷

[@marybaldwin391]

I love this! So simple

[@barbarawood3209]

Unbelievable! Thanks!

[@gailrollo7221]

I hate doing stranded coulor work! You have set me free 😅. Yippee...

[@flynnknit]

Ahhh! This makes me so happy! Yay! 🤗

[@cococreates26]

Omg this is GENIUS!!! Tysm ❤️❤️❤️

[@karenhenderson2624]

Can't wait to try this trick! Ty!

[@newday4936]

Thank you so much for this

[@bowling_with_yarn]

What a great idea 💡🧶

[@sallybrown9194]

So smart! Love your nails

[@redgatecrafts]

This is amazing!! 😍

[@garrixgirl18]

Thank you! So straight forward!

[@marywrigjt7614]

Thanks.!! 👍👍❤️

[@highwaytohealth1040]

Wow this is a game changer! Thank u!!! ❤🎉

[@anutk8751]

Thank you for showing this!

[@cindyf181]

Great tip!

[@shortcake180]

I love this idea. Does it work for sock knitting as well? It's a lot of work to have to constantly alternate wrapping floats so they don't show through when worn.

[@candywalker483]

Thanks for the trip. Seems like the project will be less stiff and thick. Which is going to be advantageous for a sweater I am getting ready to start.

[@candywalker483]

ps love the colors!

[@ndig7535]

FAB! makes perfect sense...

[@leannemcgratten8803]

Amazing, thank you!!

[@daisiesushitam984]

Great trick! Thanks for sharing:)

[@lillib1385]

WOW!!! Awesome

[@vlndfee6481]

great idea.... !!

[@DlbWisc09]

Brilliant, thanks.

[@SEMGAR1]

Super helpful, thank you 😊

[@GabrielaLtc]

Very helpful, thanks so much!

[@karenwoodhull]

Thank you!

[@constanzehancock8667]

Does this method also work in continental knitting?

[@user-dt1uh5dv5y]

Genius!

[@balgrantango460]

Thank you for sharing these great ideas. How do you do the double colour on the ribbed edge? Do you have a video for that?

[@flynnknit]

You’re welcome! This is my Spark Beanie. Pattern is available on my website, Etsy and Ravelry (links in profile).

[@sp-d6465]

🖌️

[@laurasharp7955]

Gosh, as simple as that.

[@joycezzz100]

I just love it. What is the pattern?

[@flynnknit]

Thank you! This is my Spark Beanie pattern. Links to my website, Etsy and Ravelry to purchase in bio. 🥰

[@susanna5252]

Nice!

[@laurapawuk9713]

This is fascinating! Does the color show through on the front of the work? Sometimes with various wrapping methods it shows through.

[@flynnknit]

It does not! 🤗❤️

[@laurapawuk9713]

@@flynnknit I will definitely try this!

[@RitaFlynn]

OMG…. YESS

[@GabrielaLtc]

Thanks! 🙂

[@sabineklaninger3607]

So, If I have very Long floats, Like 10 stitches, I could do IT also 2 times, or will the knitting tighten? But it is such a simple method, perfekt for Iceland Pullover!

[@flynnknit]

I haven’t tried it twice with one float, but you could definitely experiment and see how it goes! 🤗

[@lydiageric3580]

How do I do this on flat knitting

[@lindahandville9031]

Is the finished product flexible?

[@sabinekneidinger9478]

Großes Lob, die Mütze ist wunderschön. Ich bewundere das perfekte Stricken von Fair Isle Mustern. Liebe Grüße Sabi 😊

[@jennifergomez8260]

Cute toque😊

[@flynnknit]

Thank you! It’s my Spark Beanie pattern. 🤗🧶

[@lindadoremus1735]

Could you tell me the name of that pattern. It’s gorgeous. Love this technique.

[@flynnknit]

Yes! That is my Spark Beanie pattern available in my website Etsy and Rav. 🥰

[@kikkom2548]

I want to use this method on my sweater, which I am knitting now. But won't this method make a sweater less stretchy horizontally?

[@flynnknit]

As long as you leave enough slack on your long floats you should be good to go!

[@kikizag]

I'm confused about this trick, so I have to catch the long floats in the whole round and then in the following round I'm confused. It's like one round with floats and the other one not make nothing just catch the long floats from the round before? I'm so confused!!! 😟

[@flynnknit]

Hi there! So you just knit according to your pattern. When you come to a round with long floats, you leave them as is in that round. Then, in the next round, you catch them as you knit (as shown in the video). Hope this helps! xoxo Courtney

[@maggiepatterson7949]

That pattern you are using here...where can I get it? What is the name of it? Thank you!

[@glynnag1]

Thank you for this much easier way to catch floats! How do you avoid that ugly jog when doing Color-work? The jog that occurs at the beginning of each round that ruins the look of color work?

[@flynnknit]

Thank you so much! Check out some of my other videos on my channel focused on minimizing the appearance of jogs. 🤗

[@NYKnitter]

I think Patti Lyons has a video on avoiding the jog

[@EliseCharlotte]

Thank you for this! What about the wrong side? I'm trying to do the same but it isn't working.

[@flynnknit]

Hi there! I’ve only used this method when working in the round. Are you knitting flat?

[@EliseCharlotte]

@@flynnknit Hi!, Yes, I am!

[@Mspuddin67]

Great video. Question. I'm knitting a bottom up cardigan and It looks like 10 stitches of the minor color between the one dominant color. So should I catch the yarn every 5 stitches?

[@flynnknit]

Thank you! So you would leave the long floats across those 10 stitches as is in the round you’re working those floats and then as you work the next round you would pick up and knit those floats as shown in the tutorial. 😊

[@shaynaformity1384]

You could catch the float with the 5th stitch of each 10-stitch group, which would leave one 4-st float and one 5-st float. However, I would catch the float with the 4th and 7th stitches because I'm prone to snagging my floats when I wear anything that's colorwork! Doing the 4th and 7th leaves you with a 3-st float, followed by a 2-st float, then another 3-st float. I hope that makes sense!

[@marjoriemillner9961]

Forgive me if you already know this, but I also think the usual floatcatching rule would apply: don't catch the float on the same stitch each time around, or you will get a "ladder" with the float color showing through. So if you have several rows with long floats in the same place, change up where you catch the float so they don't all line up vertically. This may mean catching on the 5th stitch one time around, then the 4th (or maybe both the 4th and 7th if you wish,) then on the 6th, etc, keeping it random.

[@Mspuddin67]

​@@marjoriemillner9961 I'm thinking about catching floats on stitch 4 4&7 on one row and maybe do every other stitch on the next row.

[@shortcake180]

​@marjoriemillner9961 yes! This is what I was thinking about. Alternating that as well will be good for sock knitting

[@adelinechang6269]

Commen

[@paulinamenendez9624]

Quiero español

[@23Cinni]

Awesome tip!

[@cathyhawkins9264]

Great tip!