CABLE CROSSING

THE CABLE HAT
Lesson 3 -Strip 2 - Bobbles!

IN THIS LESSON WILL MAKE THE NEXT STRIP FOR YOUR HAT (NUMBER 2 OF THREE!).

IT WILL BE MADE ENTIRELY OF THE TRINITY STITCH.

BEFORE YOU BEGIN, YOU WILL LEARN ABOUT BOBBLES!

BOBBLES  ARE BASICALLY A CLUSTER OF STITCHES THAT HAVE BEEN KNITTED ON SEPARATELY FOR A FEW ROWS, AND THEN DECREASED BACK INTO THE MAIN KNITTING.

BOBBLES  CAN BE KNITTED IN A DIFFERENT COLOR THAN THE BACKGROUND!

BOBBLES  CAN BE USED FOR DECORATION, TEXTURE, OR EVEN STUFFED WITH A LITTLE FIBERFILL AND USED AS BUTTONS!

METHOD 1:  KNIT ACROSS YOUR WORK. WHEN YOU COME TO THE SPOT WHERE YOU WANT A BOBBLE, WORK SEVERAL STITCHES INTO THE NEXT STITCH BY KNITTING (BUT NOT LIFTING OFF), PURLING, KNITTING, PURLING, ETC. INTO THE SAME STITCH.

WHEN YOU HAVE AS MANY INCREASES AS YOU WANT, THEN YOU CAN TURN AND PURL ACROSS JUST THOSE STITCHES.  TURN AND KNIT ACROSS THEM, THEN CONTINUE TO WORK BACK AND FORTH ON THEM FOR AS MANY ROWS AS YOU WISH. 

YOU WILL THEN DECREASE BY KNITTING ALL THE STITCHES TOGETHER, OR BY WORKING A COUPLE OF REGULAR DECREASES ON ONE BOBBLE ROW, THEN KNITTING THE REMAINING STITCHES TOGETHER.

IF YOU WANT A BOBBLE OF A DIFFERENT COLOR, YOU CAN BEGIN THE BOBBLE WITH SOME OTHER YARN, WORK THE ENTIRE BOBBLE WITH THE CONTRASTING COLOR, THEN WORK THE DECREASE WITH THE MAIN COLOR.

TO USE THE BOBBLE AS A BUTTON, STUFF A LITTLE POLYESTER FIBERFILL, OR COTTON BALL, INTO THE CENTER OF THE BOBBLE BEFORE YOU WORK THE DECREASES.

METHOD 2:  ANOTHER WAY TO MAKE A BOBBLE IS TO WORK YOUR DESIRED NUMBER OF DECREASES INTO THE STITCH WHERE YOU WANT THE BOBBLE.  MAKE SEVERAL, BECAUSE YOU WILL NOT BE WORKING ROWS ON JUST THESE STITCHES. YOU LIFT THE SECOND-TO-LAST INCREASE YOU MADE OVER THE LAST ONE, THEN LEFT THE NEXT ONE OVER, THEN THE NEXT, UNTIL ALL OF THE INCREASE STITCHES HAVE BEEN LIFTED OVER THE LAST ONE.

METHOD 3:   THIS IS THE METHOD WE WILL LEARN IN OUR STRIP.
WITH YOUR HAT YARN AND YOUR NEEDLES, CAST ON 12 STITCHES.  

ROW 1: (WRONG SIDE)  KNIT ACROSS.
ROW 2:  (RIGHT SIDE)  PURL ACROSS.
YOU WILL PURL ACROSS ALL RIGHT SIDE ROWS!!!!!!
ROW3:  KNIT 2, M3 – {MEANS “MAKE 3” BY MAKING THREE STITCHES INTO ONE: K1,P1,K1 IN THE SAME STITCH}, P3 TOG., M3, P3TOG, K2.

ROW 4: PURL

ROW 5:   K2, P3TOG, M3, P3 TOG, M3, K2.
{THIS IS JUST LIKE ROW THREE, EXCEPT THAT YOU PURL THE M3 THAT YOU MADE LAST TIME, AND M3 INTO THE THREE YOU PURLED TOGETHER PREVIOUSLY!!}

REPEAT ROWS 2 – 5 (PURLING EVERY RIGHT SIDE ROW!! – YOU MAY WANT TO PUT YOUR MARKER ON THE RIGHT SIDE ROW??)  UNTIL THE PIECE IS 20 ½ INCHES LONG (SLIGHTLY SHORTER THAN THE STRIP 1.

FRONT SIDE

NOW GO ON TO LESSON 4!