Nice to see you.
Shall we talk about knitting? We haven't done that in a while...
In Chapter 2, after her explanation of stocking stitch, Mary Thomas talks about ribbing. I've skipped the bulk of that part of the chapter, mainly because I think it's pretty safe to say that anyone who knows how to knit and purl will most definitely bump into ribbing pretty quickly. So I didn't feel that it was necessary to swatch things like 1x1, 2x2, 3x3, and 5x5 ribs (the "Even Ribs") and 1x2, 3x2, and 5x3 ribs (the "Uneven Ribs"). She concludes this section with the Knife Pleating, which I've already talked about, which is perhaps one of the coolest ribs I've ever seen. I hope you agree.
The last part of her section on ribbing is Broken Ribbing. She gives a couple of patterns and some variations of those patterns.
A broken rib is basically when you knit a ribbed fabric for a number of rows and then switch the placement of the knits and purls.
The first example Mrs. Thomas gives us is the One and One Broken Rib (p. 14) in which you (k1,p1) for four rows, and then (p1,k1) for four rows, and repeat.
Of course, you can break a rib of any width, like a 2x2 rib, but Mrs. Thomas advises increasing the number of rows between breaks. So for the 2x2 rib, you would (k2,p2) for 6 rows before you (p2,k2). But the concept is quite the same, and interestingly, creates a much different looking fabric.
I cheated a little bit on this swatch, and knit all the broken ribs together. What I especially like about the 2x2 broken rib (the one in the middle of the swatch) is that it has a lot of dimension. It creates fabric that is almost bumpy, but without the extra pain of making bobbles or nupps, and not as pronounced. And, of course, it's got quite a lot of elasticity.
As I mentioned, Mrs. Thomas offers a couple of variations of broken ribbing, too.
The variation she includes with the One and One Broken Rib is called the Macaroni Rib. I love patterns with funky names. Just that alone made me want to knit it up. It's basically the 1x1 broken rib broken up with a couple of rows of stockinette at each break. Personally, I like the variation better than the original, one of the main reasons being the variation creates the illusion of horizontal lines, as the stockinette rows sink a bit, allowing the "macaroni" to pop up more. It has a lot more visual interest than the 1x1 broken rib, and looks cleaner to me. If that makes sense.
And of course, these are all double sided fabrics--always a plus!
You can really see the differences in texture in this shot:
The macaroni rib is on the bottom here (I accidentally flipped the swatch), but you can really see how there is a clear horizonal movement between each rib.
I think it might be fun to use this kind of rib in replacement of a regular one. Perhaps a simple sweater in stockinette with a wide band of this at the hem? Or as a waistline? It might be interesting. The 2x2 broken rib could be a very fun and simple cowl, especially in a chunky yarn on large needles--I am guessing that at a higher gauge, it would really accentuate the "pop" in the texture.
On a completely different note...are any of you fans of Alexi Murdoch? I recently discovered his music and can't stop listening to it. He reminds me a lot of Nick Drake, who I'm also a huge fan of. I just thought I'd mention it...
Until next time!
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