Hands Occupied

Colorful knitting, crochet, latch hook and macrame from craft book author & designer Heidi Gustad.

Old Norwegian Sock Cast On

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Learn how to cast on your knitting with the German Twisted Cast On, also known as the Old Norwegian Cast On. This is very similar to the Long Tail Cast On, but adds some useful stretch.
I think it’s pretty fitting that the first tutorial I’m putting out this year is a cast on tutorial. Every cast on is a fresh start, and it’s a new year! This tutorial is for one of my favorite cast ons, the Old Norwegian Sock Cast On. Here’s the thing about this cast on. I’ve always called this the Old Norwegian Sock Cast On, but it’s got a couple other names too. There’s also the Old Norwegian Cast On (no “sock”), the elastic long tail cast on, and the German Twisted Cast On. Just a heads up in case you’ve heard it by another name. :)

This knitting cast on is similar to the widely-used long tail cast on, but includes an extra twist that provides added yarn to each stitch of the cast on, resulting in a stretchier cast on edge. This cast on is great for socks, mittens and sweater sleeves – really any edge you would want a little stretch for!

I’ve always found video to be the best medium for teaching a cast on, short of an in-person lesson. The video tutorial for the Old Norwegian Sock Cast On is embedded here, but you can check it out on the Hands Occupied YouTube channel too.

Learn how to cast on your knitting with the German Twisted Cast On, also known as the Old Norwegian Cast On. This is very similar to the Long Tail Cast On, but adds some useful stretch.

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Comments

  1. This is my favorite cast on too; so quick but stretchy! In my experience, this cast on doesn’t stretch out over time as much as the regular long-tail does. I have two hats I use regularly, one with a regular long-tail CO and one with the German Twisted CO, and the one with the German Twisted CO never slips off my head.

    Thanks for the refresher!

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  3. Okay your video was SO good! It totally made sense to a complete newbie and I didn’t have to constantly pause to keep up. Just wanted to tell you that you’re awesome and you’d be proud of me I made my very first knitted project woohoo. I can’t wait to go back through your blog now that I have a knitting bug :)

    Reply

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