Changing yarn colors

We must have some skills of changing yarn colors if we want to knit a piece of knitting in different color stripes or other colorful patterns. There are many methods to do yarn color changes. Anyway, I am going to show you my way to change yarn colors. This method shows you how to change yarn colors without having to cut your yarns and weave in the tails.

1. To change a new color yarn, insert the right needle into the first stitch of the left needle. Remember to leave a new color yarn tail for about 2-3 inches and don't cut the old yarn as we will carry the old yarn up the side of the piece and join in after a few rows.

2. Wrap the new color yarn around the right needle.

3 & 4. Knit it off.

5. Now, wrap the two strands around the right needle and pull the strands through as usual. Continue to knit the next stitches until the end of the row.

6. There would be only a few double stitches after the first stitch. It would be insignificant. I like to hide the yarn tail into the piece with this method.

7. Turn your work and start to knit the second row with the new color yarn. When you meet the double stitches at the last few stitches at your left needle that you made just now. Just insert your right needle into the two stitches and knit as usual.

8. The two different colors yarn would meet at one end every two rows. Twist the two different colors yarn so that the old color yarn to be set on the new color yarn.

9. Continue your knitting with the new color yarn.

10. Pick up the old yarn and knit it as usual if you wish to change back the old color for your next row.

Now, let us see the difference between  the right side and the wrong side of my garter stitch knitting piece. (Garter stitch is created by knitting or purling every row)

Note :

a.) For narrow stripes, loosely carry the yarn up the side of the work and join in when needed. (The way that I showed you in the diagrams above.)

b.) For wide stripes, snip the yarn and rejoin the yarn for each new stripe. When your knitting is finished, weave in the yarn tails which are hanging along the side. To do so, you need to get a yarn needle or any large eye needle and thread the yarn tail through it eye. Then, weave the yarn tail in and out through the bumps or eye at the side or the back of your piece.



There is another method to join in a new color if you are doing an Intarsia (blocks of color) knitting pattern. If you are interested in Intarsia color work, please click here to visit the post about one of the intarsia knitting methods. I only use one method to join a new color for my Intarsia color work. It is easy, I use it to join a new color at the beginning or in the middle of a row.

First, insert the needle through the desired stitch on the left needle. Wrap the new yarn around the right needle and leaving a tail of yarn about 4 inches long. Normally, I will insert the needle through the stitch knitwise at the knit side and insert the needle through purlwise at the purl side. Then hold the both ends and pull the yarn out to create a stitch. Don't worry about the tail, just let it hanging there because you will finish off the tail by weaving it into the knitting piece after the piece is finished.