Need help with knitting/purling problem (newbie question)

[Marylizah]

So I'm a very new knitter. I knit myself a scarf without following a pattern and just alternating rows of knit stitches with rows of purl stitches. It was easy.

Now I'm trying to make a scarf for someone and I thought I would fancy it up a bit. I'm trying to follow a very simple pattern. It's basically K2 P2(however many times), then the following row it's P2 K2.

For whatever reason when I try to knit and purl on the same row my rows come out looking horrible. I've tried about 10 times to make a test swatch and I can't seem to end up with anything other than a weird looking clump of yarn. What could I be doing wrong? There aren't any videos on Knitting help that show knitting and purling on the same row (except one very short video demonstrating speed knitting, which is not helpful!).

Oh, and another question. When I cast on, I end up with a stitch (the one at the very bottom) that is super weird and loose. I've been combining it with the next stitch, but I'm not sure what I'm doing wrong. No one I know knits, so I can't get help in person. Any advice?

Any advice, or links to videos, would be greatly appreciated.

[Think of Winter]

Can you post a picture?

Are you ending up with the same number of stitches you started with, or more? If you're increasing your number of stitches, make sure you bring the yarn forward for purling and back for knitting between the needles, otherwise you'll add stitches by inadvertently doing a yarn over.

It's most likely a tension issue, though. It's tricky learning to keep the tension even for ribbing. It just takes practice, but you could try snugging up the yarn when you switch from a knit to a purl and back. Ribbing ends up looking a lot looser than stockinette.

I don't know about the loose stitch when you cast on. I do snug up my end stitch when I start a new row. That might help. And give the yarn end a tug to make sure that's nice and tight.

[Marylizah]

I'll try to post a picture tonight.

I think you're on to something with the inadvertent stitch adding. I have a feeling I'm not adjusting the yarn properly, the stitches seem to cross over one another.

And it looks very twisty. When I knit a row, all the stitches line up neatly. When I try to knit then purl, the stitches seem to be all over the place on the first row, then clumpy on the second.

It definitely isn't loose-- it's way tighter than the stockinette stitch I did previously.

Thank you so much for your help!

ETA: I just tried knitting some rows. I'm pretty sure I'm increasing. How do I keep from doing that?

[Think of Winter]

Check out the ribbing video: http://www.knittinghelp.com/videos/knitting-tips. After the knit stitches and before you start purling, you need to bring the yarn forward so that it's in the correct position for purling. After the purl stitches and before you start knitting, you need to bring the yarn to the back so it's in the right position for knitting.

You may also want to check that you're wrapping the yarn around the needle in the right direction. If you're doing it in reverse, it may cause some funny looking stitches. Each stitch looks like a V (the right side of a knit row and the wrong side of a purl row.) The V should be open at the bottom, not crossed.

[Marylizah]

Oh my gosh, that's the problem.

Thank you so much.

I missed that video, somehow.

I wasn't moving the yarn around at all. No wonder it was such a mess!!!

Thank you.

[Think of Winter]

You're welcome! I'm so glad I could help. Hope your scarf turns out great!

[Marylizah]

Well, it looks great. I was able to knit about 10 rows last night and the ribbing looks beautiful! :::

Thanks again, I knew I was making a really simple, basic mistake, but I couldn't figure out what it was.