Provisional Cast-On Tutorial

Sarah

As promised, here's a tutorial on the crochet provisional cast-on method. This is a really useful technique, applicable to any number of project types: making a bottom-up sweater, but you don't know what type of edging you want? Use a provisional cast-on and you can easily pick up your stitches and work the bottom edge when you've finished the rest of the knitting. Want to knit toe-up socks? Use this method and work a short-row toe. Interested in knitting a shawl? Many, like the Flower Basket, ask you to start with this cast-on to create a tidy top edge. I could go on, if I didn't have a nasty cold making my brain not work good. Anyway, I hope you find this useful!

Steps 1 & 2: Make a crochet chain using waste yarn -- preferably, something smooth and in color which is readily visible against your working yarn, in approximatley the same weight. To make your chain, just grab the strand of yarn with your hook...

...and bring it through the loop. Always make the chain several chains longer than the number of stitches you need to pick up, so you have some room for error.

Step 3: When you're done making the chain as long as you need it to be (plus a few extra) cut the yarn, bring it through the last loop, tug gently to close (gently! You're going to have to undo that later) and tie a knot in that end, to remind yourself that this is the end you'll be "unzipping" from later on. Now flip your chain over and take a gander at the bumps -- they kinda look like purl bumps, right? -- on the back side (assuming the front side is the "v's" you see as you are working the chain.) You are going to pick up stitches through these bumps.

Step 4: Start picking up stitches through the bumps. I "pick" at stitches to pick them up, wrapping each one around the needle...

Step 5: ...and bringing it through. (Leave a long tail so you can weave that end in later.)

Step 6: Hooray! You have picked up your stitches. Now you can do whatever the heck you want to do -- work a short row toe, knit your sweater front, whatever.

Step 7: I was boring and just knit a few rows of stockinette and bound off.

Step 8: Remember how I mentioned in Step 3 that you should make a little knot so you will know from which end to unzip your cast on? Don't you feel smart for doing that? Pat yourself on the back, and maybe go pour yourself a glass of wine to prepare yourself for the next steps, which involve stitches being all naked and loosey-goosey.

Step 9: Take the end with the knot in it and bring it back out through the loop you drew it through to close your chain -- thus re-opening your chain. Now give that end a tug (a gentle tug, just in case there was some snaggage when you picked up your stitches.)

Step 10: I told you there would be naked stitches.

Step 11: You might want to put them on a needle, for decency's sake.

Step 12:  Yay! All done. You now have a whole whack of live stitches, ready to do your bidding!

Comments

[Mardi Andrews]

Your instructions are the best of many, many that I have read explaining provisional casting on. thank you.

[Ashley Farmer]

I was just wondering if I could link your wonderful tutorial in a pattern I plan to sell? Thank you!

[Gramma E]

May I suggest different colors for your tutorials. Please use light color yarns and a dark background. It will help see the stitches that are demonstrated.

I have been looking for a provisional for some time, but haven't found one that I could figure out. Yours is great. I knit premie hats for hospitals and want to knit one that has ribs. I plan on grafting the CO and BO ends together for a better look.

Gramma E

[wendy]

Here we are in 2010 and yours was the first tut i tried on Google! and what a laugh , I took your good advice on the wine too. I hate ribbing and as I want to make a fair isle pattern am not sure about the ribbing at this stage, so this leaves me heaps of time to see what will be best after knitting all the pieces. Thanks :)

[pam]

such perfect instructions and pictures--thanks!

[Freddy]

i'm in the process of learning how to knit and have a few projects under my belt but i never really understood how to do a provisional cast-on until now. your instructs rock very very hard. thanks for being awesome! http://www.mediafiretorrent.com

[Meghan]

thank you! this is the best tutorial for crochet provisional cast on i've seen. it's the only one i managed to understand.

[deegee]

This is the BEST method I have seen for this method of casting on. Thank you so much!!

[Bridget]

Thank you!

[Karen]

Thank you! This was very easy to follow.

[Patricia Behrens]

Thanks for your clear concise instructions. I will pass these on to my knitting group. Yes! a wine wouldn't go amiss.
Posted by Patricia Behrens
Nelson, South Island NZ

[Junior's mom]

I got lost at Step 7 - "I was boring and just knit a few rows of stockinette and bound off" Did you bind off after a couple of rows of stockinette because this was just an example, or do we always have to bind off before continuing to knit our piece?

[Esther]

Just what I was looking for! Delighted!!