Intarsia is a colorwork technique for creating large isolated blocks of color — picture knitting, bold geometric shapes, vertical stripes — without carrying yarn across the back of the work. Unlike stranded (Fair Isle) colorwork where unused yarns float behind all stitches, intarsia uses a separate yarn supply for each color section. There are no floats.
Intarsia vs Stranded: When to Use Which
Choose intarsia when:
- A color block is larger than 5 stitches wide. Floats longer than 5 stitches are loose and uncomfortable to wear.
- You have large isolated areas of a single color (the "picture" in picture knitting — a deer, a star, a large motif).
- The colors don't alternate — you have solid blocks of color rather than a repeating pattern of 2–3 colors.
- You're working vertical stripes of 10+ stitches each.
Choose stranded (Fair Isle) when:
- The pattern repeats every few stitches in a regular sequence.
- No single color spans more than 5 stitches without interruption.
- You want the double-layer fabric density that floats create (stranded fabric is thicker and warmer).
Intarsia is typically worked flat (back and forth), not in the round. Working intarsia in the round requires a workaround (wrapping and turning) because each color section's yarn ends up on the wrong end after completing a round. Flat knitting is strongly preferred.
Managing Yarn: Bobbins
Each color block needs its own yarn supply. For large sections, wind yarn onto a bobbin (small plastic or cardboard bobbin, or just a small butterfly wound with your fingers) so the yarn feeds from a compact, controlled package rather than a tangled ball rolling around on your lap.
Wind enough yarn for your color section plus 30 cm extra for weaving in. For a small accent color (the nose of a deer, a small star point), a butterfly of 1–2 meters may be all you need. For a large background section, a full bobbin or even a small separate ball is appropriate.
Bobbins dangle from the back of the work. This is normal — the tangle management is the main logistical challenge of intarsia. Let them hang freely, untwisting them whenever they wind around each other (which they will, especially at color changes). Some knitters work on a flat surface and keep the bobbins laid out in sequence; others work in their lap and periodically unwind the tangle.
Twisting Yarns at Color Changes
The critical technical move in intarsia: at every color change, you must twist the two yarns around each other before picking up the new color. Without this twist, you'll have a hole in the fabric at every color join — the two sections simply aren't connected to each other.
On a knit (right-side) row: when you reach the color change point, drop the old color yarn. Before picking up the new color, bring the old color to the left, and bring the new color yarn up from under the old color. Then knit with the new color. The twist locks the two sections together.
On a purl (wrong-side) row: same principle, but you're working from the wrong side. Drop the old color, bring the new color up from under the old color, and purl with the new color.
The twist should happen on every single row at every single color change — both right-side and wrong-side rows. If you miss a twist, you'll see a small hole when you look at the finished fabric from the right side. You can often close small holes during finishing by working a small duplicate stitch over the gap.
Reading Intarsia Charts
Intarsia charts are read the same way as any knitting chart: right to left on right-side rows (odd rows), left to right on wrong-side rows (even rows), bottom to top as you work up the piece. Each square represents one stitch, and the color of the square tells you which yarn to use.
Unlike stranded charts, where you always have 2–3 colors active across the whole row, an intarsia chart may have a background color for most of the row with a motif color appearing only in a central section. Set up your bobbins to correspond to the sections you'll encounter as you read across the row — one for each independent color island.
Use a sticky note or ruler to mark your current chart row, and tick off each row as you complete it. Losing your place in an intarsia chart is easy and recovering it is time-consuming.
Common Problems
Loose stitches at color joins: This is the most common intarsia complaint. The first stitch of each new color section tends to be looser than surrounding stitches because the yarn needs to travel across the join. Knit or purl the first stitch of each new section firmly — give the yarn an extra pull after completing it. After a few rows this becomes automatic.
Puckering at color joins: Usually caused by inconsistent tension on the twist. The two yarns at the join should be worked at the same tension as surrounding stitches. Pulling the twist too tight puckers the join inward; leaving it loose creates a hole. Practice the twist on a swatch until the tension feels right.
Yarn tangling: Unavoidable in intarsia with multiple bobbins. Manage it by untwisting bobbins regularly, and consider working with fewer, larger sections rather than many small ones when the design allows.