How to Use the "Groovy Plus" Bobby Pin Garter Bar

Step 1:

While holding the fabric back against the bed, push all the needles out to holding position with the side edge of your garter bar. Pull up slack in yarn and move the carriage to the left side. Pick up the yarn that is now laying on top of the needles and let it hang below the needles.

Place green cards against needle butts, overlapping one card with the next so that at the end, they can be scooped up quickly in one continuous motion.

STEP 2:

Check to see that all latches are open. Line up garter bar with needles by holding it straight up and sliding it on the needles right above the pins where the grooves are the widest. You will know if just one of the latches has closed because it will seem as if the spacing of the pins is wrong. When they are all open, the pins will easily settle into the needle hooks.

STEP 3:

While holding the bar level with the needles, push fabric from needles to bar prongs beginning at one edge. Slide your arm behind the fabric as you continue pushing the fabric across the closed latches onto the prongs. If you are moving 112 stitches, you may want to stop and push the second half of the stitches to the bar from the other edge. Sometimes stitches will transfer easier if the bar is lifted just a bit higher than the needles. If a stitch is left in needle hook, reach around the bobby pin with your latch hook tool and lift it up out of hook and over the pin.

STEP 4:

With garter bar hanging on needles, push stitches down over pins where needed. Now hold onto both ends and push bar forward, this will open all the latches. Lift bar straight up and out between needles.

STEP 5:

Turn bar around so that the knit side is now facing you and the yarn is on the same side as the carriage. Holding bar by both ends, line it up with the needles as in the picture below:

 

STEP 6:

Holding bar at right angles to the needles, line up the first needle with the groove of the first prong carrying a stitch. Then check and see that one of the center needles is also lined up with a groove, preferrably that it is in the center of two straight pins. It is not necessary to check that all the needles are lined up, but you can glance over at the other end to see if the last needle is also lined up with one of the grooves.

It would look like this if you were viewing it from across the needles. The needles aren't really laying on their sides, but it's hard to draw what it actually looks like and still show details. Besides, I'm not much of a draftsman either, sorry!

STEP 7:

Lay bar down over needles and while applying light pressure with your thumbs on the bar towards the center of the bed, pull it back towards you.

 

Tilt bar towards you as you get to the end of the needles. Check and see if each needle has picked up a stitch and whether there are any split stitches. If so, push bar forward and down on bed again and repeat the pulling back motion. Sometimes it helps to apply pressure to just one part of the bed if that is where the split stitches are.
The fabric on the bar will look like this.
The bar has been turned around and the right side of the fabric is facing you.
If all else fails, push bar forward, releasing stitches and bar from needles and start by lining up the needles with the grooves again.

STEP 8:

Once you can see that all the needles have picked up a full stitch, tilt the bar towards the bed. If you can't easily move it a bit from side to side, check and see that each needle is INSIDE one of the grooves - now and then one will be stuck on the outside and you'll need to move the bar forward again to put it back in its place.

STEP 9:

Pull bar towards bed behind fabric, releasing it from the stitches. Pass it back to the front and lay it across your lap. Scoop up the green cards by putting your fingers under the last one on each side and sliding them together towards the center. Put aside.

Using the long side of the bar, push all the needles back to working position again.

STEP 10:

Pull up slack in yarn, and knit across the bed. Yeah, you're done!! Hmmm...., well, at least with that row..........:)

You have come to the row where you will need to remove your stitches to the garter bar. Let's assume the carriage is on the right side.

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This page was last updated on 4-October-1999