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Two-Color Double Chain CO/BO by Heather Storta
Learn Something New! Winter 2024–2025
I love finding cast ons and bind offs that match, and I have a beautiful pair to share with you today. These would make a great option for any of your colorwork items, especially ones that also make use of colorwork braids or other two-color embellishments.
I couldn’t find a bind off that matched as well as I liked, so I played around with modifying an existing one-color bind off to get something that almost exactly matches the cast on. I hope you like these!
Two-Color Double Braid Cast On
Also known as the Kihnu Troi Cast On, this cast on produces a decorative nested double chain of alternating colors.
The island of Kihnu, off the coast of Estonia, is where the troi (a knitted sweater) is worn by men and boys. Many of these sweaters feature a cast-on edge that was developed by the knitters there. As a result, this cast on is sometimes called the Kihnu Troi Cast On. However, Estonian knitters just call this a two-color or double braid cast on and tend to object to calling it Kihnu Troi (which just means a sweater from Kihnu). Therefore, I will refer to this cast on as the Two-Color Double Braid from here on out.
Anatomy of a Cast On
I fell down a bit of a rabbit hole in researching and working this cast on. I was struck by how similar it looks to the Double Chain Cast On. (Note, this is sometimes called the Chinese Waitress Cast On, which is another name that is problematic—I will call it the Waitress Cast On from here on out, only to distinguish it from the Two-Color Double Braid Cast On.) The Two-Color Double Braid CO is worked in two colors as opposed to one. In looking at the stitch anatomy of both cast ons, I have determined that these are structurally very close to the same cast on! I will present the traditional form of this cast on first; and at the end of this section, I will present my adapted two-color version of the Waitress Cast On with a crochet hook, and then analyze the two methods.
How to Work the Two-Color Double Braid CO
Make a slip knot with each of two contrasting colors, with short tails, and place both on the left-hand needle with the darker yarn to the left and the lighter yarn on the right.
Insert RH needle into rightmost st (the light color) and knit it with the dark strand, bringing that strand over top of the light strand.
Bring both strands to the front, and hold dark yarn in front to the right, then bring the light yarn to the back between the needles. Make a yarn over by wrapping the yarn opposite (the left leg will be in front), then knit the next stitch. You will now have three stitches on the RH needle (one in the dark color and two in the light color). You may want to tighten everything up at this point.
*Slip the last stitch on the RH needle back to the LH needle purlwise, then bring the light yarn forward between the needles. Hold it to the right and in front (on top of the dark yarn), then bring the dark yarn to the back between the needles. Make a backwards yarn over and then knit one stitch. Snug up the opposite color yarn (that is in front) to tighten the base stitch.
Slip the last stitch on the RH needle back to the LH needle purlwise, then bring the dark yarn forward between the needles. Hold it to the right and in front (on top of the light yarn), then bring the light yarn to the back between the needles. Make a backwards yarn over and then knit one stitch. Snug up the opposite color yarn (that is in front) to tighten the base stitch.
If working flat, repeat from * across for desired number of stitches. Slip the last stitch on the RH needle back to the LH needle purlwise, then bring the front yarn to the back between the needles and knit the next stitch (skipping the yarn over step).
If working in the round, repeat from * around for desired number of stitches, plus one. You will have two stitches of one color next to each other at the end; these last two stitches should be the opposite color as the first stitch. Slip the last stitch on the RH needle purlwise to the LH needle and move the yarn in front to the back between the needles. (Both yarns are now in back.) Slip the stitch back to the RH needle. Then slip the first stitch of the round to the RH needle purlwise, pass the second stitch on the RH needle (the last stitch from the cast on) over. Slip the last stitch on the RH needle purlwise back to the LH needle.
NOTE: This cast on mounts the stitches with the left leg in front. On the first row or round of knitting, you will need to knit into the back leg to keep the stitches untwisted. See my video tutorial of this cast on.
Pros and Cons
Controlling tension can be difficult. As a result, working this cast on can be slow and time-consuming. It is important to snug up each color (not too tightly, though) in order to keep the tension consistent.
The yarns can tend to twist around each other as well, similar to when working a Latvian braid. You will likely have to untwist the yarns at the end of the cast on if you are continuing on with the two colors and not dropping one.
Adapted Two-Color Double Chain Cast On
The standard form of this cast on (i.e., the Waitress Cast On) uses only one color and produces the double chain (or braid) look. I first tried keeping two colors to the back of the work and spiraling them around each other, as per the video referenced in the Bibliography section, but that doesn’t quite produce an exact match to the Two-Color Double Braid (see image below.)
The half-braid is too elongated. I determined that the yarns need to switch positions (front to back, back to front), as in the Two-Color Double Braid steps, in order to get the same look. The crochet hook needs to be in front of the knitting needle instead of in back, to allow for a left-to-right wrap onto the needle. Here is what I came up with!
How to Work the Two-Color Double Chain CO
You will need a crochet hook of a similar size (or slightly smaller) to your knitting needle for this version.
Make a single slip knot with both colors, leaving short tails. Place this on the LH needle. (This will get dropped later and does not count as a stitch.)
Hold the crochet hook in your right hand. (If you are left-handed, you can reverse these positions and make all the following steps in the opposite direction. The only difference in the finished product will be that your finished chains will point in the opposite direction.)
Hold needle and hook parallel to each other. Hold light yarn in front and dark yarn in back.
Setup: Pivot hook to be perpendicular to needle and in front of needle. Take dark yarn from right, to left under needle and hook, then counter-clockwise around needle and hook at the cross.
Continue around and wrap just the hook. Pull hook down, catching top strand and pulling past second strand on crochet hook. Move dark yarn at back to the front, between hook and needle, and hold to the left. Move light yarn from the right of dark yarn to the back, between the hook and needle.
Then, *pivot hook to be perpendicular to needle and in front of the needle. Take light yarn from right, to left under needle and hook, then counter-clockwise around needle and hook at the cross.
Pull hook down, catching top strand and pulling through loop on crochet hook. Move light yarn at back to the front, between hook and needle, and hold to the left. Move dark yarn from the right of the light yarn to the back, between the hook and the needle.
Pivot hook to be perpendicular to needle and in front of needle. Take dark yarn from right, to left under needle and hook, then counter-clockwise around needle and hook at the cross.
Pull hook down, catching top strand and pulling through loop on crochet hook. Move dark yarn at back to the front, between hook and needle, and hold to the left. Move light yarn from the right of dark yarn to the back, between the hook and needle.
Repeat from * until one less stitch than needed is on the needle (do not count the first slip knot stitch). Using next color, yarn over the hook only and pull loop through the loop on the hook.
Move yarn at front to the back, between the needle and hook. Place the loop on the hook knitwise onto LH needle.
RS is facing, work in pattern across the stitches. The last stitch (the first stitch cast on) will be twisted, so knit that one through the back loop. All other stitches are mounted correctly. On first row or round, drop the first slip knot stitch.
If working flat, simply turn and work flat. If working in the round, join and begin working in the round. Use the tail to hide the gap afterwards.
See my video tutorial of this cast on.
Pros and Cons
Using a crochet hook can make this cast on faster than the traditional Two-Color Double Braid version. I found that the tension wasn’t as difficult to keep consistent with this method. Crochet hook size can play a part with that; I found that I needed to size down my hook from the knitting needle size to keep an appropriate tension in the chain stitches.
The yarns will still twist around one another as you work this cast on; you may have to untangle if you are continuing with the two colors. The first row of stitches with this method have untwisted stitches (except for the very first stitch that was cast on).
Comparison of the Two Methods
There are two main differences that I see with these two methods, aside from one using knitting needles only and one using a crochet hook and one needle. Because one forms the stitches on the right-hand needle and one forms the stitches on the left-hand needle, the chains slant in the opposite directions (if the first row after turning the knitting needle method is a knit row). If you turned and then purled instead, the slants would be the same. The other difference is that the traditional Two-Color Double Braid CO has a twist in that topmost chain (if you turn and knit the stitches). I believe this is due to the backwards yarn over (which is a necessary step due to the position of the yarns.) The crochet hook method has a twist in the bottommost chain instead (if you knit across the stitches as a RS row immediately after casting on). The twist in both cases is very subtle. I may play around with both of these cast ons to try to remove the twist, but for now, I am personally happiest with the crochet hook method!
Note: for both versions of this cast on, if you work the first row after the cast on in the two colors and spiral the colors around as you work (do not maintain color dominance, but always bring the next color from under the other color), you will get a third row of nested chains on the wrong side of the work as well!
Two-Color Double Chain Bind Off
I initially had in mind covering the Latvian Braid Bind Off in this article, but that produces a single braid of two colors and not a double chain. If you know me, you know I love to try to find bind offs that match the cast on as closely as possible. So I wanted to find a bind off that produced the double chain, but in two colors. Since I determined that the Two-Color Double Braid Cast On was structurally nearly the same as the Waitress Cast On, I wondered if there were a way to work the Double Chain Bind Off (or Waitress Bind Off) with two colors. Here is the result! I won’t say I “invented” this bind off because I am sure it must already exist out there, but I could not find any original sources that showed this technique. If you know of any, please let me know! This bind off almost exactly matches the cast on.
How to Work
With both yarns at back of work, k1 with Color A.
*Reverse yarn over with Color A and take it to the back. Bring Color B over Color A, k1 with Color B, pass first two stitches over last stitch. Gently tension Color A.
Reverse yarn over with Color B and take it to the back. Bring Color A over Color B, k1 with Color A, pass first two stitches over last stitch. Gently tension Color B.
If working flat, repeat from * to end. Cut tail and pull through last stitch.
If working in the round, repeat from * to last stitch, ending with having knit a Color B stitch. With LH needle, pull up loop from first st that was worked. Repeat step for the next Color A stitch. Cut both yarns, leaving tails. Pull Color A through and place on tapestry needle. Weave Color A in as duplicate stitch to first BO stitch.
See my video tutorial of this bind off.
Pros and Cons
This bind off tends to flare and be loose, so you may want to go down a needle size or two when working it. The yarns twist around one another while working the bind off, but we most likely will be cutting both strands at the end, so that isn’t as big a concern here! It might be annoying if you have a large number of stitches to bind off, however.
Conclusion
This cast on and bind off pair is a great way to up your colorwork game! They make for a really nice start and end of your colorwork projects and are a good choice when you are also using Latvian braids and other braids in your project. Give them a try the next time you work colorwork!
Bibliography
Devantier, Sarah. “Kihnu Troi Cast On.” Knit a Bit of Whimsey.
Kezer, Mimi. “Chinese Waitress Cast-On Two Color.” Mimi at Pastiche Knitwear.
Brown-Reinsel, Beth. “The Kihnu Troi Cast On.” Beth BrownReinsel.
Sease, Cap. Cast On, Bind Off. Martingale, 2012.
Pattern Associated with Article — Checkerboard Hearts
Copyright 2025, The Knitting Guild Association, Cast On Winter 2024-2025, All Rights Reserved
