second ear warmer band

I knit an ear warmer band out of what was left of the twentieth skein when I knit my fifth hat.

The hat was a good fit so I cast on the same number of stitches for the ear warmer band. I knit K1P1 in the round on double pointed needles until most of the wool was gone.

For the length of one needle, I bound off stitches while catching up the corresponding stitches on the other edge to join the edges and double the thickness. I bound off the rest of the stitches by themselves. This makes for a wide band around most of the head and a narrow band behind the head for comfort.

If the wind is strong, the band can be doubled all around for more warmth.

I produced ladders again where the needles met. I pulled my second stitch tightly and managed only to create one laddered run and a line of tight stitches.

I stopped producing ladders when I took a tip from a knitting book* and worked an extra two stitches at the end of every needle. This way the loose stitch was offset in a spiral around the band as I went.

I almost ran out of wool. Catching up stitches and knitting them together took uncomfortable effort, so I really didn't want to undo that work. Fortunately since the edges were knit together, the loose yarn from the cast on was in the right position for me to use it to bind off stitches. I eeked out it and the working yarn until they met.


*I think the book was Elizabeth Zimmermann's Knitting without Tears.