Nalbinding Next Steps, Tips, and Tricks
Baroness Tyra Filppusdother
Contact me: tyra@westkingdom.org Facebook: Kristin Guy Instagram: T_rah1984
This document is intended to aid the crafter in taking their knowledge of making a chain of stitches and moving to the next step of creating an item by understanding methods of joining, increasing, and decreasing in order to shape their work. Additionally tips and tricks I’ve learned during my nalbinding journey are shared to hopefully assist you in creating your pieces.
Starting the next row (joining the end to create a loop). Some examples of use would be the cuff of a mitten, or making a hat from the ‘bottom up’. (oslo, needle tension)
Front of the work lies against your thumb
Back of the work faces the inside of your hand
Starting the next row (joining the end to create a loop). Some examples of use would be the cuff of a mitten, or making a hat from the ‘bottom up’. (continued) (oslo, f1, needle tension)
Make sure the piece is not twisted. The front of the work will wrap around under your thumb (1). Insert the needle through the top of the end loop from front to back (2). This connection is referred to as ‘f1’ because it joins from the front through 1 stitch.
Starting the next row (joining the end to create a loop). Some examples of use would be the cuff of a mitten, or making a hat from the ‘bottom up’. (continued)
(oslo, f1, needle tension)
Finish the stitch as normal (1, 2). The ‘tail’ will be under the working end (3). The stitching continues from left to right (for right handed, right to left for left handed). Double check there isn’t a twist after two or three stitches.
Starting the next row (joining the end to create a loop). Some examples of use would be the cuff of a mitten, or making a hat from the ‘bottom up’. (continued)
(oslo, f1, needle tension)
Oslo uses an ‘f1’ connection (1) it’s called this because it joins from the front through 1 stitch. Mammen uses an ‘f2’ connection (2). You pick up the next stitch (like in oslo) then also pick up the previous stitch (one new, one old). Make sure you only pick up one new stitch to keep the stitch count correct or you’ll create a decrease in every stitch.
(mammen, f2, thumb tension)
Doing a round start. Some examples of use are a hat from the ‘top down’ or mittens from the fingers down. There are several ways to achieve this, this is my preferred method.
(mammen, thumb tension)
Start with 10 - 12 stitches (usually), with the long tail at the start threaded on a darning needle (1) go through the bottom of the row of stitches from the working end to the tail end (2, 3). Pull the yarn all the way through. It should have formed a loop through the bottom of the row (4).
Doing a round start. Some examples of use are a hat from the ‘top down’ or mittens from the fingers down. There are several ways to achieve this, this is my preferred method. (continued) (mammen, f2, thumb tension)
Pull the tail until the row forms a tight spiral (1). Put the working end back on your thumb and start the next row of the spiral just like you would for a regular connecting method (2, 3). The general way to increase (similar to crochet or knitting) is to add an increase in every stitch for the second row (4), increase every other in the third row (inc, single), every 3 in the 4th row (inc, single, single), etc. Because we don’t have a set gauge in nalbinding, sometimes this increases too quickly or too slowly. If you notice the work beginning to ruffle or ‘cone’ you need to increase more or less to keep the work flat.
How to decrease (oslo, f1, needle tension)
When you pick up the connection stitch, pick up from the next two stitches (two new stitches). Complete the stitch as normal.
How to increase (oslo, f1, needle tension)
When you pick up the connection stitch, pick up the same stitch (or set of stitches) again. Complete the stitch as normal.
How to get the piece back on your thumb the correct way.
Picture 1 the working end is under the loop. If you slide it over your thumb facing this direction, the working end will be on top of the loop and coming off the outside of your thumb (2). This is incorrect. Picture 3 the working end is over the top of the loop, this is the correct way to put the yarn back over your thumb. The working end will be between the loop and your thumb on the inside of your thumb (4).
Picking the right needle, yarn, and stitch for your project.
In general needle preference is up to what you like the feel of. The only times it specifically matters is if you intend to use the needle to gauge your stitches. Here’s some of my needles made from various materials (bone, horn, wood).
Picking your yarn should be based on the final look you want, feel, color, availability, etc. All of these pieces are mammen stitch tensioned to my thumb. They have slightly different end results in thickness and overall look.
Picking the right needle, yarn, and stitch for your project. (continued)
All of these examples use the same yarn, tension, and number of stitches. You can see how they create very different finished pieces in thickness and density. Stitch selection is one method of creating a finished product that is the thickness you want.
Picking the right needle, yarn, and stitch for your project. (continued)
The other factor in finished thickness and density of a piece is tension. These two examples are the same yarn and stitch (oslo). The top is tensioned to my thumb, the bottom is tensioned to the needle. This yarn was thin enough that with oslo stitch the finished product would be thinner than I wanted and have little holes. I wanted to use this yarn and stitch, so I tensioned to the needle to get my desired result.
Tensioning to the needle. (oslo, f1, needle tension)
To tension to the needle, begin the stitch as normal (1). Slide the loop off your thumb and down the needle towards the end (2). When your stitch is near the end, pull the working yarn end to snug the loop down to the size of the needle. The stitch will make an ‘x’ (3). Pinch the stitch between your fingers and slide off the needle (4). Put the loop back on your thumb.
Stitches cannot be tensioned smaller than the widest part of the needle or you will not be able to do the next stitch. Also take care to put the loop back on your thumb the correct direction. See the previous slides if you need to be sure how to do that.
Description of Nalbinding stitches (what the heck do we call it?)
There are MANY naming systems out there for nalbinding. I am going to touch on a couple to help you understand what they are if you run across them in other places.
The common stitch names are based on the place they were discovered. Examples: oslo, mammen, york, etc. They don’t tell you anything about how the stitch is constructed or what it looks like, but they’re easy to remember and I think that’s part of why they’re so commonly used. Some stitches also have several common names.
Hansen Notation uses a series of U and O to describe the course of the yarn within the loop and letters and numbers to describe the connection stitch. See the picture for what that looks like. This is also a popular way to describe stitches since it tells you exactly how the stitch is made.
Another naming system you may run across uses the stitch ‘family’, the number of thumb loops, and number of loops you pick up behind the thumb to describe the stitch. An example would be Finnish 1+2, meaning it has two changes of direction, 1 thumb loop, pick up 2 loops behind the thumb (aka mammen or korgen stitch)
Creating a swatch for your project
Nalbinding has almost no stretch along the row. Because of this it is really important to size items correctly when making them. The length/size of a single row will be bigger than once it has been bound with other rows. You can see the size difference from picture 1 to picture 2. To create a swatch do a row of stitches, connect it in a loop (make sure it’s big enough to work with, but it doesn’t need to be the full size of your finished item), and then bind 3 full rows. Once you have 3 rows you have one row that’s been bound on both sides and this will be how much shrinkage you can expect (assuming even tension is used for the whole piece). Measure the new size and this will give you a percent of shrinkage for that stitch and your gauge.
Swatching is important for projects that are started from the opening (like the cuff of a mitten, brim of a hat, or top of a sock) to ensure that they are not too small to fit once you have several rows completed.
Making a matched pair
Keeping track of how you’ve done increases and decreases over the course of an entire mitten or sock can be really challenging. Keeping a sheet of notes with details of each row is time consuming and can still be confusing. My best advice is to bind both at the same time.
I still keep brief notes so I don’t have to switch back and forth after every row. I typically work on one until I need to add a new piece of yarn or when I’ve done a big change in the piece (like starting to increase after a bunch of even rows) and then switch to the other.
Putting large amounts of yarn on the needle
Once you are confident making stitches it will seem like you go through your piece of yarn VERY quickly. It is possible to put more yarn onto your needle so you don’t have to add new pieces as often. I typically make my yarn about 5 or 6 times as long as my arm. I then fold it (back and forth, not in a loop!) to be the length of my arm, thread one set of ends through the needle and then you’re ready to go! When you need more yarn you can either pull the working end or take the needle off one bunch of ends and move it to the other. I typically do the second so that I don’t have as much length to pull through on each stitch. You want to be sure you don’t use so much yarn that the loops are tangling or binding up when you make your stitches.
Other useful tools
All you NEED to do nalbinding is a length of fiber and a needle or other rigid tool to weave through the stitches. There are lots of items that make nalbinding a lot easier though! Here’s some things I like to keep in my crafting bag.
- Notepad and pen. I ALWAYS write down what stitch and tension (and connection if it’s not the typical for that stitch) so if I set a project down for a few weeks (or months) I don’t have to guess what I was doing.
- Measuring tape
- Metal darning needle for weaving in ends
- Stitch markers
- Spray bottle for joining yarn
- Small bag with my needles and random yarn pieces.
Adding a new piece of yarn
There are many methods of attaching two pieces of yarn together. My preference when working with wool is ‘spit splicing’. But who wants to actually spit on their hands and project? So I use a little spray bottle to wet my yarn.
1 - work until you have a short piece of yarn left.
2 - with ripped ends (never cut ends, they don’t splice together nicely), pull the ends/ply apart on both the new and old yarn. Spray a couple of times.
3 - overlap the fibers neatly
4 - rub vigorously back and forth in your hands until felted together. Give the pieces a moderate tug to be sure they are felted tightly enough to not fall apart when you begin working again.
Messy starts
After you have completed several inches of stitching you can go back and remove any beginning loops or stitches that look messy. Often the first loops are too large or have holes since they are not bound on the other side (1). You can undo the stitches (or cut off if there are a lot) that you don’t like until it has the look you want (2). The beginning of nalbinding will always have this ‘step’ or ridge since it’s done in a spiral (3). Some stitches are more prominent than others. It’s also possible to snug down the first couple of stitches once you have done the next row, but I find it challenging and it’s more a ‘feature than a bug’.
Finishing off the end
To get a nice ‘slope’ at the end (5) you want to tighten the previous 2 or 3 stitches (1). Pull from the top of the furthest stitch until it tightens down (2). Continue with the next stitch (3) until you get to the last loop (4) and then pull the working end snug. You then weave the tail into the top row.
Undoing mistakes
When you want to undo stitches the easiest way is to grasp the lower edge of the thumb loop (2) and pull the working yarn end all the way through. Grasp the top of the work (similar to how I’m holding in 3) to keep it from bunching up. Fuzzier/high loft yarn or pulling a lot of stitches may result in some sticking/felting. Be patient and gentle and you may have to pull the yarn in sections (part of a stitch instead of the entire stitch at a time).
Before undoing stitches ask yourself a couple of questions: Will this mistake hurt the overall design or look of the piece? Is the mistake many stitches or rows away from where I am? It’s possible you may decide to cut out a section instead of undoing it, or leave it and ultimately you’ll never notice. Many of my pieces have small mistakes and I now can’t even find them without REALLY searching for them.
Adding or changing color
You can add in color by splicing a different color, like adding on a new piece of yarn. You can also do spirals with multiple strands working at the same time. I know where to find some good tutorials for spiral colors if you’re interested in trying it.
Resources
Books: There are several books available in English. Amazon sells some, including the two I own, pictured to the right.
Needles: I have purchased most of my needles from Etsy. a search for ‘nalbinding needle’ will bring up a multitude of options. You can also find them for sale on Amazon.com and some crafting websites.
Yarn: You can find suitable yarn in any yarn shop. Craft stores will often have some nice options as well. One of my favorite places to buy (affordable!) yarn online is knitpicks.com. They have some really lovely bare/natural wool and a large selection of dyed wool yarns as well. Some favorite brands besides knitpicks: lamb’s pride, alafosslopi (Icelandic wool), and malabrigo.
Facebook Groups I belong to: Nålbinding and US Nalbinding
Website: https://www.en.neulakintaat.fi/1 This is my favorite website! I use it for understanding stitches, names, and she has links to some really fantastic videos she’s made.
Instagram: Karin_byom is the main nalbinding account that I follow. She has really excellent stitch-alongs/tutorials and also does a live/youtube live on Saturdays where they do nalbinding and generally act silly.