The Easiest Ways To Prevent Laddering When Knitting

One of the peskiest things to deal with when you’re trying to produce a quality knit is a ladder. Laddering generally happens when you’re knitting in the round. Laddering refers to when stitches are stretched too tightly, and you get too much separation between your needles. There are a few ways to help you avoid this. Learn the easiest ways to prevent laddering when knitting by reading below.

Pull Your Second Stitch Taut

Sometimes, people find that they can fix this issue by pulling the stitch of the new needle so it’s tighter. However, pulling tighter on the second stitch can better prevent laddering, as it helps to even out the tension. Laddering can also occur from tight tension. This happens because when you pull the first stitch tightly, it gets just a bit too tight between the needles at the join. Try to focus on making the tension more even if you’re getting a ladder and pulling tightly on the working yarn.

Avoid Pulling Too Tightly Before Moving To a New Needle

This issue happens specifically when you’re using the magic loop in your knit. This involves using cables that are thinner than your needle tip when using circular needles. When you tighten the working yarn before working on the needle that’s closest to you, the stitch gets tightened to fit the cable and not the needle tip. This is where you’ll need to make sure each stitch has the same size and tension rather than pulling too tight on the first stitch, as we mentioned above.

Keep Your Stitches Close Together

It’s important to try to keep all your stitches close enough together. If you find that a large gap appears where you are knitting the next stitch, you can close it by pinching the back cable to meet the new needle when you start to knit it. If you’re using double-pointed needles, keep the old needle and new needle close together when changing over to a new needle. A good way to keep them close together is to hold them at an angle as you knit.

Try Opting for Using Wool

This is one of the easiest ways to prevent laddering when kitting. Using the right fiber can make a world of difference when knitting. Cotton is an example that makes it hard to prevent laddering because it doesn’t stretch well. You want a material that can easily spring back to where you need it. Wool has a springy forgivingness to it, which makes this task easier.

To make sure your knits come out as perfectly as possible, make sure to use quality tools. At Lindley General Store, you will find some of the highest quality knitting accessories from Canada to help you create beautifully intricate and durable products.