I knew that in my knitting journey, I would need to eventually conquer cables. It seemed so daunting – after all, some people buy a whole new needle just to work cables! It turns out that my own journey through cable knitting was not as scary as I thought it would be.

• Appropriate weight yarn
• The appropriate gauge needles (either DPN or circular)

Any Pattern Involving Cables by Anybody

The pattern that first turned me on to knit cables was the Business Casual Sock by Tanis at Tanis Fiber Arts! I know that it doesn’t have the traditional braided look that cabling often does, but the principle is the same – placing stitches in front or behind of others before working them. It also helped to have my previous crochet knowledge, because crochet cables are worked the same way.

Because there was only ever one stitch that needed to be moved in front or behind, I didn’t feel the need to invest in a cable needle. I don’t know about you, but the more needles I have to deal with, the clumsier I feel. In fact, I ended up using this tutorial to help me knit cables without the extra needle. It is mildly terrifying to drop “live” stitches, but with practice, I started to feel a bit more confident. It also helps to have a crochet hook handy, as it is easier to pick up dropped stitches with the hook than with a knitting needle.

As the tutorial suggests, I think I would default to a cable needle (or double-pointed needle) if the cable was a wider pattern. However, for these one or two stitch crossovers, simply rearranging the stitches seems to be the easier path! I’m sure that I will be using this technique more in the future, so I’m glad to have it in my arsenal.

Until next time, happy crafting!