Knitting Technique - Need 3 Strands of Yarn at Once? Try Navajo Knitting!

Do you know this new knitting technique forLucy Neatby, genius originator of this knitting
three strands of yarn? Before, if you didn't havetechnique, says these little links don't show much
three skeins, you'd make three balls with a scale,at all. Therefore there's no need to pull out a loop
calculator or guesswork. Or use two ends of onefrom here to eternity. You may make each loop
skein. While you knit, balls would roll, strands tanglean arm's length or whatever you (and your
and an intrigued cat added more trouble. Trycurious cat) deem most enjoyable.
Navajo knitting.Is This Series of Loops Like a Crochet Chain--on
Wait, Don't You Mean a Spinning Technique CalledDrugs?
Navajo Plying?Exactly. A crochet chain is a series of loops, each
Yes and no. People who spin yarn do Navajoone pulled through a previous loop. The size of
plying as they spin, which turns a single ply intoeach loop is determined by the size of your
triple-ply yarn without using three bobbins or forcrochet hook.
saturated color repeats. Navajo knitting uses theIn this case, there's no crochet hook, just your
same technique, except you create tripled yarnfingers. If you want super-sized loops, have
while knitting.someone hold your knitting while you run down
How Does It Work?the hallway as you make each new loop. It could
be good exercise.
1. Make a slip knot in your yarn and leave a loopWhat Are The Pitfalls?
big enough to put your fingers through.- You might knock over the cat or blacken the
2. Reach into the loop, grab your strand of yarneye of someone sitting too close as you pull out a
and pull out a nice long loop.loop.
3. If you hold your two loops of yarn like you're- You might experience dangerous stash
stretching out a rubber band, you'll see threeenhancement. How's that possible?
strands all along the way between your hands,Do you have a cone of yarn you stashed away?
with a little link connecting two of them.Maybe it's some fine-strand silk so gorgeous you
4. Knit a few stitches with this tripled yarn.couldn't resist buying it, but can't face winding it
5. When you come to the last little bit of the loop,into multiple balls for knitting?
reach through it and pull out another long loop.Well, now you can use that yarn or any other
6. Continue knitting and making new loops asnice, affordable knitting machine yarn for any
needed. Make your loops as short or long as younumber of delicious projects. Oops, do you
like, but making fewer links may be preferable.suddenly have more projects than you could knit
Do Those Links Show in My Knitting?in a lifetime?