Ladders In Ribbing

[echan]

When I'm doing any ribbing, I get ladders at the switch from knit to purl, but not anywhere else. No ladders between needles, no ladders at the switch from purl to knit. This happens with any ribbing, 1x1, 10x2, any ribs I've ever knitted. Does this happen to anyone else? Are there any ideas or strategies for where it comes from and how to get

Comments

[divinebird]

It sounds like your purl sts are looser than your knit ones. I have this problem when I don't pay attention to my knitting. Try tightening up that first purl st and maybe loosening your knit sts a little.

When you do stockinette, does the purl side look almost furrowed? like, every few rows there's a slight break in the purl field? That was how I figured out that my purl sts needed work.

[dandelion]

You could try knitting or purling through the back loop (or both) at the switchover point where you're getting ladders and see if that helps.

[kightp]

How bad are the ladders? If it's just slight, handwashing and even a gentle blocking will help equalize things. If it's extreme, then yes, work on tightening up your tension on purls.

[knottie]

I have this happen to me, but only for the first few inches. I kept getting frustrated and ripping it out until someone told me it was normal; when I just kept knitting, the laddering was kind of absorbed and disappeared. So, how long a swatch of ribbing have you done?

[blakdove]

I get that, too. If I pay attention and knit the purl right after the knit stitches tightly, it gets better.