Sprang project #5: lattice stitch (aka under-3 interlinking)

I've been feeling like I wanted to make some simple garters or a belt or something in sprang.  (plus bags, as always)

Anyway, I was noodling around on the 'net and found something posted in the Sprang Facebook group on June 4, 2024, by Marie Voipio.  https://www.facebook.com/photo/?fbid=25893897496890294&set=gm.3668821430000117&idorvanity=1657374241144856

She writes, "Sprang in Finland in the 19th century: “toispuoleinen viitelöinti”, one-sided or maybe “one-directional” or “single-directional” sprang. This is a variant of plain interlinked sprang, and seems to be more common than the basic version. It only has *one* row, the one that’s sometimes called a II-row in basic interlinking. Every row starts by picking two threads up from the lower shed, then one down, one up, one down…until at the end of the row you obviously have two down. The result is a fairly flexible band that one of the Finnish writers calls twill - every thread crosses two threads before the interlinking, instead of twining around the nearest available warp thread."

Sharon Frank Wichman commented, "Carol James calls this "under 3 interlinking" as each thread goes under three threads. In comparison, basic interlinking has each thread going under three threads. Peter Collingwood calls this "lattice sprang." I like this stitch a lot because it as almost as much stretch as basic interlinking but makes a much thicker cloth."  I assume that one of those mentions of "under three threads" should have been a number other than three, but the meaning is reasonably clear anyway.

Well.

That looked interesting!  So I grabbed some cheap acrylic and tried it.  I did the one Marie Voipio did, in pink and white -- when starting the band, the top threads are all white, and the bottom threads are 1 white, 6 pink, 1 white.  In other words, start and finish with 2 whites, but alternate pink and white for the rest, for 8 sets of elements or 16 total elements.

It's easy and cute, for sure.  Not as elastic as regular interlinking, I don't think, though I wasn't working with a lot of threads and I was trying to pack the elements fairly tightly.

It spirals like crazy, which is not atypical of sprang.  So it would need to be blocked vigorously to lay flat if that was desired.

This will be a fun one to play around with.  It would make good bookmarks or garters or a belt (maybe done one-ended) or a strap, or if worked on more elements, a bag.

It was hard to get a picture showing the elasticity.  I think it would have helped to have had three hands.  Or someone else to help pose the band.

What's next?  Not sure.  I still want to play around more with twill braids (the Skjoldehamn 12-strand and the Whitehorse Hill Cist probably-13-strand one).  I want to do more sprang, too, as well as the usual litany of fun things I write about on this blog.