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Cap Sease, the author of Cast On, Bind-Off, says that this bind-off is good for projects made with non-stretchy yarns like silk or cotton because it doesn’t require you to lift one stitch over another other stitch, and therefore it might be easier for you to control the stitch size.
She also says this bind-off works nicely if you are going to work a crochet border into the edge after you finish binding-off.
I recommend that if you do this bind-off you use a crochet hook that is one size smaller than called for on the yarn because this bind-off can tend to flare out a bit.
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Standard Bind-Off
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Even if you’re an immediate knitter, I suggest that you review the tips and the video for this bind-off, because you’ll learn the correct technique that you’ll need to apply to the other, more complex bind-offs.
This bind-off will roll if you use it on Stockinette stitch unless you block it.
This bind-off also has three variations.
- Front Variation (Default): The chain of stitches appears along the front. To do it, knit every stitch.
- Top Variation: The chain of stitches appears along the top, and is reversible. To do it, alternate between knitting and purling your stitches as you bind off.
- Back Variation: The chain of stitches appears along the back. To do it, purl every stitch OR turn your work around and do the Front Variation on the WS of the work.
I would consider all three variations of this bind-off “required reading” for beginning knitters.
Practice getting this bind-off smooth and even, especially the part where you lift one stitch over the other and off the needle. If that’s hard for you to get right, practice it on a long swatch until the movement is smooth and even and the stitches are not too tight or too loose.
In this technique you will learn an abbreviation which will be used throughout the course:
- BO 1 means “bind-off 1” — pass the second stitch on the right-hand needle over the second stitch and off the right-hand needle.
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Even if you don’t have trouble with your tension, you should learn this bind-off because it uses a basic technique (the “suspended” bit) that is used on some more complex bind-offs, namely the Frilled Standard Bind-Off and the Frilled Decrease Bind-Off.
This is called the suspended bind-off variation because this is a variation on the Suspended Bind-Off. I’ve chosen to teach you the variation instead of the original because the variation comes out the same and it’s easier to do.
