The EASIEST Way to Alternate Yarn | Master the Yarn Forward Method | Knitting Tutorial

[@birchandlily]

How do you alternate yarn? Have you tried this method before?

[@tassiegirl1991]

I have knitted for 60 years and never knew this thank you.

[@orapronobis2149]

September 14, 2024: New to your channel and this was a perfect tutorial for a beginner such as myself. Thank you for sharing your talents and looking forward to many. Cheers

[@letwendyin]

I am eighty yrs old self taught-knitter and a so excited to learn this ❤❤❤❤❤❤❤

[@birchandlily]

Yay! Glad I could help!

[@sparkle5240]

This is helical knitting too. I know this isn't how people typically helically knit - the slipping of the stitches is only to make sure that the two yarns don't cross. And you do that by making sure you place it right. Thanks for the video, I don't particularly like slipping those stitches

[@helenmccarl3584]

I am gift knitting a summer sweater for a friend, and I have 2 skein of yarn with the same colors, but different speckle patterns. This technique is going to be great for combining the two yarns

[@emmatonoose]

Most helpful and saved to my knitting techniques playlist!

[@osmia]

Me too!

[@SharonCodyCowgirlCreations]

Where was this a month ago when I was using my hand dyed yarn for the second sweater I knit??! The seam wasn't too bad but this is really a great knitting help!! It was my first time switching yarns each round and it was a learning curve for sure. Thanks so much for sharing!! I will definitely be using this technique on my next top!

[@birchandlily]

You’re so welcome! Gotta try it the seam way once to fully understand how much better no seam is 🤣

[@teresaharp]

This is amazing! Great job explaining too. Thanks😊

[@birchandlily]

Awe thank you!

[@mendyelliott9495]

Awesome! Thank you 😊

[@24567423ify]

I was at the point of trying this for the first time on my current project when I saw you post it. Thank you.

[@birchandlily]

Ahh perfect timing! You’re welcome!

[@jamainekaessler4453]

Thank you so much for sharing ❤

[@eileennahan7830]

So amazingly simple, I so appreciate this tutorial.🌟💫

[@joannemoseley8994]

This is amazing! I don’t quite know how it works, but it really does. How did I not know about this? Thanks for the demo!

[@deelonnevik9397]

Great video! Casting on my summer tee using hand dyed yarn and realize alternating yarns will be necessary,, definitely will give this a try. Thank you for sharing.

[@birchandlily]

Hope it works well for you!

[@candicevee1]

Genius of an idea. Thank you.

[@birchandlily]

My pleasure!

[@adabee]

Thank you, this is so helpful!

[@annotlewski1104]

Great idea! I’ll be using this soon.

[@lindas5964]

This is great! Thank you!!!

[@KWargeh]

Needed this for my first sweater coming up soon. Thank you! Liked and subscribed 😊

[@birchandlily]

Thanks for subbing!

[@zoedoodle]

Neato. I've watched helical knitting and found it hard to grasp. This makes sense and seems easy. Now I'd like to find a cleaner way of alternating skeins in flat knitting. I do a lot of shawls and fading of one color into another. The sides are not as neat as I'd like. Thanks. I'll look for your tutorials!

[@birchandlily]

I haven’t learned a way yet either! If I do I’ll be sure to post a video. I usually just switch every 2nd row at the end of the row.

[@ljbryce]

Thank you so much for sharing this method. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

[@loismiller7742]

Wowzer. Thank you so much!

[@julianesiebert871]

A big thankyou for sharing this great idea! Best wishes, kindly

[@MrsKWheatley]

A great tutorial, very clear. Thanks!

[@marjoriebahm9239]

Easy. Thanks!

[@denisedejose718]

Thank you so much!

[@ruthswarthout1115]

Thank you so much that really helps me and you explained it so well. Can you show how you do stranded knitting. Also I am an English knitter but would like to learn continental knitting just to give my hands a rest at doing it one way. 😊

[@birchandlily]

I’m not sure I have the best technique for it haha. I have a really hard time with loose knitting and tension issues.

[@KnyttenGal]

Great video. I like this seamless method. Are the stripes jogless once you've done a few rounds? Can you do this same technique with three different coloured skeins of yarn?

[@birchandlily]

No, they aren’t jogless with two colors. For that I would recommend the helical knitting method: kzbin.info/www/bejne/rZ6XhYOErMaCgdksi=mdkMxPEQFixAQFek And no, you can’t do it with three as you would get a float running up the front of your work as one skein would always have to travel further in front.

[@SarahP_official]

I've been wanting to knit a sweater with handdyed yarn but pooling was what I was afraid of and the switching skeins sounded... scary hahaha. But this is such a clear tutorial and I really want to try it now. Thank you!

[@birchandlily]

You can do it! Hope it works for you! 💜

[@pamelawatkins1067]

Thank you I will definitely use this technique. Right now I’m knitting a sweater that has two rounds of contrast and six rounds of the mail colour will this technique work?

[@birchandlily]

I think you could use it during b the 6 round of main, but if you start carrying more than one row you’ll get floats on the outside of your work!

[@sylvanaire]

I’ve made a lot of socks and I was finding that the color pooled on the leg when I used variegated yarns so my local yarn shop clerk advised me to work with two skeins, alternating, which I did but the color still pooled around the calf area where I had increased the diameter of the leg. Do you know a way to avoid this? This technique looks great for avoiding seams, but I don’t think it addresses the color pooling problem. Thanks for any insight! 😊

[@birchandlily]

Alternating skeins should prevent pooling! If you’re increasing the diameter of your leg, the color placement within the skeins are going to shift because your stitch count around increases - I would recommend either: 1. Cutting and starting one skein in a new spot when it starts pooling (to hopefully counteract that pool) 2. Trying working from the inside and outside of the same skein to alternate instead of two separate skeins. 3. Trying a different dyer - it honestly may just be their dye technique and unavoidable.

[@aknitlife]

Hi Amanda: Great teaching technique podcast! Yes, I had a two sweaters where I had that telltale carrying/changing yarn problem. What was even worst is the jogs. I’ve tried to knit the first row and picking up the first stitch from row below to knit after I knitted one row in the new color and still the stupid jogs showed up right in the middle of back where the BOR are. As a matter of fact, a very popular and well known podcaster mentioned she had the same issue. I have been trying to overcome jogs with a second strip changing color tee, and again jogs showed up! 🥲 Both of these finished garments l’ve knitted with its ugly jogs showing up and not being frogged because it is for me and I don’t care. It does not look so professional and I would like to knit more stripes tees in the future. I just want you to learn how to avoid the jogs. Perhaps you might want to make a teaching video on this subject. I am sure I am not the only one with that has this problem. Do I change in the beginning of row from the middle back to the sleeve area so the jogs will not be so prevalent? I was thinking that I’ll try this the next time I’m going to knit stripes changing color tee. What do you think? I don’t have any knitting friends that I can learn from, nor can I afford knitting lesson to correct the problem unfortunately. I don’t live near a local yarn shop where I can ask either. Thank you for sharing and happy knitting! ❤

[@birchandlily]

I would try and hide it somewhere like under the sleeve, or if you’re knitting a raglan sweater in the raglan itself. That’s my go to. I find straight down the back is still too noticeable.

[@aknitlife]

@@birchandlily Thanks Amanda for the heads up! I am going to try that the next time when I am knitting stripe tees! ☺️☺️

[@clareplumbridge516]

Great tutorial! Could you use this method for intarsia?

[@birchandlily]

I’ve never tried it flat, but I’m assuming it may cause some issues because your “front” isn’t the same every row. If you give it a try please let me know though!

[@elwoodmr]

How is this different from Helical Knitting? Or can you do this method, instead of doing the 3 slip stitches for helical? Thanks

[@birchandlily]

Yeah that’s basically the difference, instead of the three slipped stitches you’re moving the yarn forward/backward.

[@carolr4871]

This is truly brilliant. Thank you for sharing it. I take it this works only for alternating every row, right? You couldn't do it for stripes that are 2 or more rows wide?

[@birchandlily]

Correct! Otherwise you’ll get An awkward float going up the front of your work.

[@carolr4871]

@@birchandlily Thanks. I did try it, and that's what I saw.

[@dooby8029]

this is so neat! is there anything different you have to do if you want to hold 2 yarns together but only alternate one strand of yarn?

[@birchandlily]

I’m not sure to be honest. But if you give it a try please let me know how it goes!

[@julietaylor4476]

I wish I'd seen this before I knit Andrea Mowry's Weekender. Because the right side of the work is reverse stokinette I have a seam going up the one side (which is actually kind of cute) but not the other. It's such a symmetrical sweater that the one side seam irks me.

[@blou5598]

Thank you for this! Question, does this work when you are knitting more than one row of alternating colors?

[@birchandlily]

You’ll end up with a float if you carry a strand more than one row. For that I would stick with the usual “twist” method.

[@judygrayson7896]

When would you use alternating yarn? When you have indi dyed yarn so colors don’t look different if you knit one skein then the other which could be a bit direct in color?

[@birchandlily]

Yes, hand dyed yarn is never the same skein to skein, so this prevents any strange striping or pooling. Also helpful to blend two different dye lots.

[@ruthdennisKnits]

Why didn’t I think of this‼️❓❓😂

[@oldmomma56]

Is there a version that easy for crochet?

[@birchandlily]

I’m honestly not sure. I don’t crochet very often, so I don’t know many tricks haha.

[@AlwaysYarnFirst]

I've used this method ever since I saw @professorpurl Easy Alternator tutorial video. Love it

[@birchandlily]

It’s literally the best!