Cordsmith Basics
Are you thinking of getting yourself a Cordsmith? Or maybe you already have one. It's an awesome tool, but does have a bit of a learning curve. Which is what I'm here to help with.
The Cordsmith is an ingenious tool designed and created by a maker for makers. It makes the job of creating i-cord a cinch. One could even say enjoyable. It has been designed to be comfortable to hold by as many different hands as possible, and my exclusive handle design comes in the best color. Cordsmith allows you to create 3 stitches in one movement, and it can be used to create standalone cord, or for an i-cord bindoff.
Cast On
To get started with your i-cord create a slip knot in your yarn, and slip it over the hooks so that it is on top of the outer hooks, and under the middle hook. Tighten the loop and slide it past the latches, making sure they're all open. Wrap your yarn over the hooks, in front of the latches. Hold the tail below your slip knot and keep the other end in place (but not too tightly), and pull the slipknot forward and over the hooks. This will close the latches, and as the knot slips off the Cordsmith it will create your stitches. Pull the tail back to the previous position to open the latches, and repeat this until you have as much i-cord as you'd like.
The first few sets of stitches can be a bit fiddly, but it gets very easy once you have a longer tail to hold on to.
Change Colors
To change colors, all you have to do is start creating stitches with the new color. Leave a bit of tail of each color, and when you're done with your cord (or an inch or two away from the join), you can twist them together a few times and weave each end inside the corresponding color's cord.
Bind Off
To end your i-cord, you pull the tail of your yarn through your current stitches. You can do this with a darning needle, or directly off the Cordsmith. For the latter, I work one stitch at a time as if I were still creating the cord, and just pull the tail through the stitch.
Dropped Stitches
It happens, just like it happens with knitting, but it's really easy to fix. Gently pull out a couple of rounds of stitches so that you have distinct live stitches and the tail on whichever side it has been ending up after each round. From here, you can slide the stiches back onto your Cordsmith. I like to pull gently on each of the stitches, starting from the live yarn side, to make them bigger and make this easier. Another option is to use a crochet hook or tapestry needle to help. Once back on, tighten up the stitches if necessary, and pick up where you left off.
Applied Bind Off
This is easier than you think! Place the first three stitches of your edge onto the three hooks of your Cordsmith. Work these stitches the same way as when creating cord. Slip the next stitch of your edge onto the closest needle, and work the three stitches on the Cordsmith. Continue this way until you run out of stitches (much faster than ever before), and bind off the same way as with plain cord.
Cast On Edge
Cordsmith will not create live stitches to start a project from, but I still find that creating an i-cord with the Cordsmith and picking up the stitches from it is much faster than casting on an i-cord edge with knitting needles.
You can also find a lot of information on the creator's website, including may FAQs about how The Cordsmith came about: