Grafting Garter

Continuing my grafting series, we’ll talk about garter stitch today.

Grafting garter is fairly easy, but there’s a trick to getting it set up so that it works correctly.

Working on grafting BO edge to BO edge, you have to end one piece with a row that presents as a knit row on the RS, and you have to end the other piece with a row that presents as a purl row on the RS. (So working flat, end one piece on a RS row, and one piece on a WS row.) You’ll set up your needles with the purl row on your front needle:

FN: Insert as if to purl and leave on.
BN: Insert as if to purl and leave on.
*FN: Knit off, purl on. BN: Knit off, purl on.
Repeat from * across the row! Same steps on both needles, so it’s pretty easy to work!
At the last two stitches you will knit each off to end.

I have an (older) video here showing this:

Grafting a CO to BO edge would work much the same, but your setup steps will be different since you don’t have the “jog”. You’ll go into the front st as if to purl and leave on, then do the knit off purl on step on the back needle, then repeat the same steps above across all your stitches. You’ll end by dropping the last stitch on the back needle after working the “on” step.

So, grafting garter isn’t too difficult as long as you get the fabric set up correctly leading in to the graft!

Stay tuned tomorrow for an in-depth post and video on grafting seed stitch!

Until then, Happy Knitting!!