Irritable Bowel Syndrome Message Boards

Your dad is funny. YO is when you decrease.

If you want a ribbed affect, it's "K1, P1, K1, P1" all across the row. On the next row, you K the Ps and P the Ks. Got it?

My suggestion is to check out one of the free patterns online. I "subscribe" to several yarn companies: Lion Brands Web Page , PatternWorks Web Page , Ram Wools Web Page and KnitPicks Web Page -- and a few others I can't think of right now, and most of them offer free patterns online. I know Lion Brand has a very cute baby afghan, because I printed it for a friend who wanted to make a baby blanket.

It's more than just knitting up a square; you need to finish off the edges when you're done, and patterns will tell you how. If you don't, the edges will curl up on you if you've used certain stitches, such as the stockinette stitch.

An alternative to the ribbing that you mentioned is a similar stitch that looks really nice -- the same on both sides -- is easy to do and doesn't curl up on your finished product. You do the first row as you would ribbing, but the second row you do just the opposite; e.g., K all the Ks and P all the Ps. Another stitch that I like quite well is no P at all; you K everything. Simple! But the finished look is real nice. It's kinda like a ribbing with horizontal ribbing-looking rows.

Alternatively, you can run out to WalMart and invest in a very inexpensive knitting book with patterns. Even the supermarket or drug store will have the latest "Vogue Knitting" or "Women's Day Knitting" magazines, and they will have an instruction sheet in the front which tells you how to knit the various stitches.

I hope I haven't confused you, but you need a little help getting started. Check out the websites I gave you, and let me know if you have any more questions. Knitting is a lot of fun, and people always appreciate a hand-knitted garment more than any other gift.

Let me know how you make out.

Bev

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<img src="http://home.comcast.net/~letsrow/smily3481.gif">Bevvy

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