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The provisional cast on is a great way to start a knitting project when you are going to want to work from the cast on stitches again. For example you might work a scarf with a lace motif you want to make sure goes in the same direction down each side of the scarf, or you might want to seamlessly sew the beginning and end of a project together.
Provisional cast on is easy to do and once you know how to do it your knitting life will be that much easier.
How to Work Provisional Cast on
A provisional cast on is worked with waste yarn, and it is best to use yarn that is smooth and light colored so it’s easy to see and pull out later.
You’ll need your knitting needle that you want to cast onto as well as a crochet hook is the coordinating size. Here I’m using a size 8/5mm knitting needle and a size H/8/5mm crochet hook. The yarn is Lion Brand Heartland, a scrap of a different color used on the body of the project.
To begin, make a slip knot and put it on the crochet hook.
Pick up your knitting needle and place it behind the crochet hook.
Take the yarn behind the knitting needle and grab it with the crochet hook.
Pull through the loop on the hook. Now there is a loop on the knitting needle (one stitch) and a loop on the crochet hook.
Repeat as many times as you need for the number of stitches you need to cast on. Make sure you take the yarn back behind the knitting needle before making the next stitch.
Once you have all the stitches you need on the needle, chain a few more stitches with the crochet hook. Cut your yarn and pull it through the last stitch.
These extra chains help you know which end to pull from when you are ready to remove your provisional cast on.
Removing the Cast On
Work your project as needed (here I’m adding an I-cord edging to a blanket). When you’re ready to remove the provisional cast on, have a knitting needle handy to pick up the stitches.
You’ll need to pick out the last chain you made by hand, but once you get it going you can pull on the yarn end to release the extra chain stitches and the cast on.
Go slowly so you can pick up each of the stitches as you go.
When complete the yarn you used for the cast on will be removed and all the stitches will be on the needle.
Then you can continue to knit from those stitches or finish off the project. In this case I just needed to graft the beginning stitches to the ending stitches.
Provisional cast on is a great cast on method to know. Though you may not use it very often, it’s super handy to know when you need it!
