Invisible Provisional Cast On

How To

Western Method

Cast On

  1. Holding the waste yarn and project yarn together, create a slip knot and place it on the needle.
  2. Holding the needle in the right hand and both strands in the left hand, insert the left thumb and index finger between the strands, spread them apart, and turn them up to wrap the waste yarn around the thumb and working yarn around the index finger. You may need to place your right index finger on the slip knot to hold it in place. This is the starting position.
  3. Bring the needle forward and under the waste yarn then over the working yarn. Bring the needle behind the working yarn and underneath both strands back to the starting position. This creates a ‘knit’ stitch.
  4. Bring the needle behind and under the working yarn, and then up between the strands. This creates what looks like a yarnover.
  5. Repeat steps 3 and 4 until you have the required number of stitches. Do not count the slipknot as a stitch. Turn, wrap the waste yarn counterclockwise around the last stitch, and hold it in the left fingers.
Tutorial Video

Remove The Waste Yarn

Pick up the stitches being held by the waste yarn. Every other stitch will be twisted – reorient the stitches while putting them back on the needle. The stitches created between a knit and a yarnover will be twisted, and between a yarnover and a knit will not. Remove the waste yarn and undo the slipknot.

Tutorial Video

Tips & Tricks

  • The waste yarn needs to be long enough to hold all of the cast on stitches and have enough on the ends that the yarn will not pull out of the stitches easily.
  • Knotting the ends of the waste yarn together is an effective way to avoid stitches falling off while the project is being worked.
  • Use a smooth, non-pilling, non-felting yarn for waste yarn. Cotton, acrylic, and even polyester cording is great for waste yarn.
  • To avoid picking up stitches, a spare interchangeable cable or circular needle can be used as a substitute for waste yarn.
  • Since this cast on is effectively creating two rows of stitches at once, it can be helpful to cast on with two needles held together.
  • When picking up stitches, some knitters prefer to pick up all of the stitches from the waste yarn first and then remount the stitches on the needles.