Sock knitting help please?

[gempud]

I'm knitting my first pair of socks on DPNs. The instructions state to ssk. The glossary says this means to slip 2 stitches and then knit the 2 together. How can I do this if I have slipped them to the working needle? What is the point in slipping them if I'm just going to knit them together anyway? Does this make sense to anyone?

[Guest]

This is the SSK (slip, slip knit) decrease. It's a left-slanting decrease, while the K2tog (knit two together) decrease is a right-slanting decrease. Have a look here. It explains it really well.

[Lucy-Lastic]

SSK means slip one stitch knitways then the next knitways, pass them back to the left needle (basically you have twisted them) and then knit them together. As Hectate says it gives the opposite slant to a K2Tog - mine are never as neat though:suspect:

[turra21]

When I do a ssk, I slip the first stitch knitways, then slip the next stitch knitways, then instead of slipping them back to the left needle, I put the point of the left needle into the first slipped stitch(that's the second from last stitch on the right needle) in a right to left direction and knit the two stitches together. It's so much easier to show someone than describe it.

You will find your own preferred way after a few attempts. Good luck though and we DO expect to see the piccies:D

[gempud]

*Salutes turra* Yessir! Pictures will be shown!

 

Thanks for the help everyone. I didn't realise that slipping the two stitches would twist them, I get it now.

[medusa]

Isn't it hard to explain what you mean when you can't show someone with the work in front of you? Practical advice is always so much easier when you can see what people are doing with their hands and the yarn.

[beansforyou]

might be helpful?

[AmelieB]

If you don't like working an SSK, then you can knit the two stitches together through the back of the loop instead, as this gives a left slanting decrease too.

[turra21]

or slip 1, knit 1 then pass the slipped stitch over. That was the left decrease my mum used to do.

[Guest]

This reminds me of when I was trying to learn the Kitchener stitch (something which I still have a bit of a mental block about; I always have to refer to my crib sheet even now). I had an excellent article from Knitty, clearly illustrated with lots of photos, but it wasn't until I watched the video at Knitting at KNoon (link in the Recommended Links section), that I really got it.

 

My first point of call with anything new is always KnittingHelp.com; the videos there are very clear. There are also some excellent instructional videos on YouTube - thanks to beansforyou for pointing me in their direction. I hadn't thought to use that site until she sent me a link.