VIDEO Tutorial Tuesday – Double Cast On Knitting

Posted on March 1, 2011 by Melissa Dunworth

Let me start by saying that I am a visual learner. I probably own 15 knitting books and well over 100 magazines and those little hand drawn images that you are supposed to learn from…well I can’t!  I need either a live person or a video. Someone really special in my life, Sally, taught me how to do the double cast on method in knitting. Sally passed about two years ago, but she lives on with me every time I knit. I am going to attempt to pass on some of her vast knitting knowledge to you through a series of video tutorials. The first of which is the double cast on method.

If a picture is worth a thousand words, than a video is worth ten-thousand words.
Reasons why the double cast on method rocks:

  1. It acts as a first row of stitches (but I never count it – my preference, you can if you like!)
  2. It is incredibly secure – very unlikely to unravel (great for sweaters and projects for kids)
  3. If your tension is held even while casting on, there will be no gaps in your stitches and it will help maintain your gauge
  4. Once you have mastered it, it is faster than the basic single cast on method
  5. It looks cool when you are doing – you will be a hit on the subway, knitting during your daily commute!
Watch Me!
Step one: make a slip knot, leaving a long tail

For the rest of the steps I have screen shots:

Step 2: Make an “L” with your left hand
Step 3: Wrap the yarn around your fingers
Back view of your hand
Front view of your hand
Step 4: Slip your needle under the yarn around your thumb, through the two pieces
Step 5: Grab the yarn on the pointer finger
Step 6: Pull the yarn back through the yarn on the thumb

Step 7: Release the yarn that is wrapped around your thumb
Step 8: Use your thumb to tighten the stitch
Congratulations! You have now made your first stitch using the double cast on method. Repeat until you have cast on all the stitches your pattern calls for.
Stayed tuned for my next video tutorial on knitting the continental way!

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5 Responses to VIDEO Tutorial Tuesday – Double Cast On Knitting

  1. Sunni says:
    March 1, 2011 at 6:17 pm

    I L-O-V-E this tutorial. You did such a great job, Melissa.I might actually try this and have something started for your next video tutorial!!

  2. MontanaMuse says:
    March 1, 2011 at 7:30 pm

    I know this cast-on method as a German Twisted Cast-on and I love it. I use it almost exclusively especially when I want more stretch in my cast-on edge. You two are doing a fabulous job!

    I wish I could watch it on my iPad. I don't see the video?

  3. Melissa says:
    March 1, 2011 at 8:26 pm

    MontanaMuse, I am sorry the video is not showing up on your iPad. Are you using Safari or FireFox? I know it is working in FireFox on a PC. Sunni's Mac is down, but she should have her new one next week and we will trouble shoot the issue and see if we can't get the videos working on both platforms. Thanks for letting us know!

    Melissa

  4. Bright Angel says:
    March 2, 2011 at 4:55 am

    I love this video!!! You know that I think you are an awesome teacher (you taught me how to make all those lovely baby hats!)… and having a video makes it so easy to learn for a knitting newbie like me. Thank you!

  5. Sandra Leigh says:
    April 1, 2011 at 12:27 am

    This is fascinating. I think I do the same cast-on, that is, I cast on with a long tail, but I use two hands to do it. I think I'll use your method on my next project — thank you.

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