Two colours, ribbing, double rows

This uses ribbing and two colours.

The colours are used in pairs of rows, like the stocking stitch pattern. But the rows are knitted as described below.

I have not done a left-handed version of this. If you are left-handed, imagine the pictures as after you have turned the knitting round, to start the next row.

Here is how to introduce each ball of wool. As it is ribbing, all rows use the same stitches, alternate knit and purl, (regardless of which colour is used).

Colour in knitting

Make sure that you don't get the wool of the different colours muddled up! They are rather apt to get twisted round each other if you aren't careful.

Both front and back look the same. This is because ribbing has vertical lines of smooth and knobbly. The knobbly tends to hide inside the lines of smooth. The result is that you only see the smooth lines (and the knitting looks narrower). The same happens on the back as well, although which stitches are smooth or knobbly swaps over. The effect is the same, though.

The example above was ribbing x 1 - that is, one stitch of knit followed by one stitch of purl, throughout. You can have ribbing x 2 - two stitches of knit followed by two stitches of purl. Not only are the lines of smooth (which you see most) wider, but the lines of knobbly (which get hidden) are also wider. They are still hidden, but not by so much, so it is possible to see the messy junction between the colours. However, since this is inbetween the lines of prominent smooth, this isn't very noticeable.