Wouldn’t you like to learn how to spit splice? I’m sure you’ve been curious on how to join two pieces of yarn together without tying them in a knot. Let me end your curiosity right now with this fabulous video tutorial.
Do you feel any smarter?
Learn How to Join Two Pieces Of Yarn
Posted by in Felting | Knitting School | Techniques - (3 Comments)Learn How To Block Your Knitting
Posted by in Knitting School | Knitting/Crochet | Projects | Techniques - (5 Comments)
I knit this really cute scarf last year. I started it in February and finished it in December. It was my “purse project”. I kept it in my purse and worked on it whenever I was waiting somewhere. I used the chevron scarf pattern from Last Minute Knitted Gifts. I used some Noro sock yarn (color 95) that I purchased on my trip to NYC in 2008. I used one whole skein and worked from both ends to make the color changes.
When you knit something, chances are you’ll need to block it. But, what does this mean? Blocking is what you do to your knitted yarn to make it be the shape and size that it should be. There are several different methods but what I’m going to show you in this post is wet-blocking.
Get your knitting wet. My yarn is 100% wool so I want to make sure I’m using cold water and no agitation. I don’t want it to felt! I rolled it around in the water a bit to make sure it is all wet.
Next I wrapped up the scarf in this towel and twisted it. This got out a lot of the excess water. Now my scarf is completely damp and ready to be bent to my will! Mwah ha ha.
The next thing you want to do is find a flat surface where you can pin out your project. I used my daughter’s bed to pin out this long scarf. You’ll want to use rust-proof pins and use them liberally. There are blocking boards you can buy with measurements on them. These can be helpful if you’re blocking something that needs to be very precise. For a scarf? Meh. It doesn’t really matter to me. I just wanted to soften it up a bit and make it not roll up on itself quite so much.
I let it dry overnight. Unpin your work and wear it!
If you are blocking a project that needs seaming, you’ll want to do the blocking before you seam. It will make the seaming process so much easier. Trust me.
Oh, how I wish I had someone besides myself to take this picture. Anyway, you can see the finished project. It is a great scarf and now you know how to block your knitting!
Learn. How to Bind Off Knitting School Lesson 6
Posted by in Knitting School | Techniques - (1 Comments)If you’ve been following along with the knitting school, you should be ready now to bind off. This is our last lesson.
I should mention that for me, I prefer to have a longer cowl so I am adding rows at the end to make it longer. Adding about 10 more rows was perfect for me and I have enough yarn to do it.
I’m only including one video tutorial of the bind off. Left handed knitters should be able to figure out exactly how to bind off by watching the right handed tutorial.
Once you are done with your bind off, take a tapestry needle or crochet hook and weave in your ends. You’ll just want to wrap them around your finished stitches so they blend in with your knitting. Trim the edges and then enjoy!
Don’t forget to post pictures of your finished projects at the Share with ChristyNelson.Net flickr group.
Learn. How to Increase (kfb) Knitting School Lesson 5
Posted by in Knitting School | Knitting/Crochet | Projects | Techniques - (0 Comments)
If you’re knitting along with us for the cowl, you should have accomplished the following:
Cast on 40 stitches.
Join to knit in the round.
Knit 11 rounds.
Now you’re ready for the next step in the instructions. You’re going to knit 8 and then make 1 stitch. The following video shows you how to make a stitch by knitting in the front and back of your stitch. My video is for the right handed knitters.
This next video is for left handed knitters.
You will knit 8 and make 1 stitch. Do that five times total. Then, you should be at the end of the round.
Knit 12 more rounds and then you’ll have one more row of increases. This time you’ll knit 9 and then make 1 stitch another five times. Knit 6 more rounds.
Once you’ve accomplished this much, you’ll be ready for our next lesson– Binding Off.
Learn. How to Knit and Knit in the Round Knitting School Lesson 4
Posted by in Knitting School | Techniques - (5 Comments)
By this time you should have your supplies. You may have even cast on. This lesson is probably the most important one. You will learn how to knit and how to knit in the round on circular needles.
For this pattern, you cast on 40 stitches. When you have all of your stitches on your needle, you want to make sure they aren’t twisted. This just means that you want all of the loops to be on top all the way around with no spiraling. Then you’re going to scoot all your stitches around evenly on your needle and place needle with the yarn ball attached in your right hand (or left, if you’re a lefty).
Add a stitch marker. You can buy fancy stitch markers on etsy or you can just use a piece of yarn in a different color tied in a slip knot. Basically, you just need something that will fit around your needle and you can just slip around each time you start another row. You’ll want to place the stitch marker on your working needle (the one with the yarn ball attached).
All of these steps are probably the hardest you will encounter on this project. If you can get through that, you’re home free.
Now it is time to learn how to knit. Because I still don’t have a way to film my own tutorials, I went to find some online. You’ll want to start knitting using the working needle and inserting it into the stitch on your other needle. You’ll keep knitting around and around. You’ll get lots of practice with the knit stitch.
Right Handed Knit Stitch Video
This video includes another type of cast on. If you’d like to skip that and go straight to the knit stitch, go to the 2 minute mark. It also shows you how to turn around but since we are knitting on circular needles, you won’t ever do that on this project. You’ll just slip the stitch marker and keep knitting.
Left Handed Knit Stitch Video
This video also includes the cast on. If you’d like to skip that and go straight to the knit stitch, go to the 2 minute mark. It also shows you how to turn around but since we are knitting on circular needles, you won’t ever do that on this project. You’ll just slip the stitch marker and keep knitting.
Continental Method
This is a popular way to knit, as well. You are doing the same thing–just using a different method.
Left-handed Continental
Every time you come to your stitch marker, just slip it from one needle to the next. Don’t knit it!
You’ll want to keep knitting until you’ve gone around 11 times. The next lesson will be about increasing the number of stitches and you’ll get the rest of the pattern.
If you feel you need a little more help knitting in the round, check out this video.
Learn. How to Cast On Knitting School Lesson 3
Posted by in Knitting School | Techniques - (0 Comments)Know that you have your yarn and needles for our project, you should be ready to cast on.
I thought I would be able to make video tutorials of me making the project along with you but I haven’t had another person at home with me to film and my little flip on a tripod wasn’t going to cut it. Instead, I found some great videos online that I can share with you.
There are all types of cast ons in knitting. If you already know how to cast on, by all means, cast on how you were taught. For this project, I found the easiest cast on videos I could find for both right handed knitters and left handed knitters.
For the cowl, you’ll want to cast on 40 stitches.
How to Cast On Knitting Right-Handed
How to Cast on Knitting Left-Handed
Once you have cast on your 40 stitches, set it aside. I’ll be posting the next lesson (the knit stitch and knitting in the round) soon.
Learn. All About Knitting Needles Knitting School Lesson 2
Posted by in Knitting School | Techniques - (1 Comments)
image via flickr, copyright misocrazy
Very few tools are needed in order to knit. It makes it a great hobby to start because you can start with just a couple of sticks and some string. I don’t expect all of you to become obsessed with knitting like I did, but you should have at least a basic knowledge of the different types of needles out there and what they are used for. It will help if you plan to expand your knitting to include other projects.
Sizes
Needles come in all sizes, lengths, and varieties. The sizes are all rather standard. The US has a numbering system, which like our measurements, are totally not intuitive. The rest of the world measures the needles by millimeters. Many knitting patterns are written by non US designers so you’ll want to double check that you’re getting the correct needle size.
You can get needles as small as size 0 (and smaller) and they can go up to size 50 and beyond. The smaller the number, the smaller the needle. For worsted weight yarns, a needle size of around 8 is recommended.
When you are just starting out, I recommend one of three things:
1. Buy the needles called for in the pattern.
2. Buy an assortment of needles. You can get an interchangeable set like these using a 40% off coupon (or wait for a 50% off sale). This can be a bit of an investment and the needles aren’t the highest quality. But, for most projects and beginning knitters, this is a good option. In fact, I still use mine for a lot of projects.
3. Check thrift stores, eBay, your grandma’s closet, etc… You’d be surprised how easy it is to scrounge up some needles if you just ask around. They might not always be the sizes you need, but stash them away because chances are, you’ll have a project that calls for them soon enough.
Styles
Straight Needles
Straight needles are the most common and when you think of knitting needles, this is probably the image that sticks in your mind. You use straight needles for projects like scarves, dishcloths, baby sweaters, and any other small to mid-size project knit back and forth.
Circular Needles
Circular needles are just two needles connected by a tube. Circulars can be used on any project that straight needles can do and they are also used for anything knit in the round. Hats, sleeves, cowls, socks, etc… must be worked on circulars (or DPNs-see below). Because they are so versatile, I work almost exclusively with circular needles. It really is a matter of personal preference, though.
Double Pointed Needles (DPNs)
Double pointed needles are used for working smaller items in the round. Because they have points on both side, you can knit them either way and go around in a circle. I use DPNs for socks. There are techniques for using circulars for socks and other small in the round items. Again, it comes down to personal preference.
Materials
You’ll find needles made from plastic, bamboo, aluminum, wood dowels, birch, nickel, etc… There is no way of knowing which material you might prefer. If you shop at a local yarn shop, they may let you try them out. Or, you can decide based on what you think you might enjoy the most.
Remember– If you want to join the knit a long to make this cowl, you’ll need to purchase the following:
1 ball Rowan Big wool, 100% wool, 87 yards per 100g OR yarn to match yardage and gauge
—Chances are you won’t find Rowan Big Wool at your local craft store. A good option would be Lion Brand Wool-Ease Thick & Quick and it is on sale at Hobby Lobby this week (through 1/17). You can also check for coupons online or in the newspapers.
Size 13 (9.0mm) circular needle (16 inch length). This project is worked in the round so you’ll need circular needles. If you can’t find this particular needle size at your craft store, they are available here. I also found this set on Amazon. I can’t vouch for the quality as I have yet to try them, but they are a great deal!
The next Knitting School lesson will be casting on so you’ll want to make sure you have your supplies.
Learn. How to Choose Yarn Knitting School Lesson 1
Posted by in Knitting | Knitting School | Techniques | Tutorials - (0 Comments)
In the next few weeks, I’ll be rolling out a series that I’m calling “Knitting School”. If you’ve ever thought about learning how to knit, now would be a great time! Over the next few weeks you’ll learn all the skills you need to knit this project from start to finish.
Before you even pick up a pair of needles, you’ll need yarn. Buying yarn can be a little intimidating if you don’t know what you’re looking for.
Every skein of yarn will have some standard items on the label. They may be stated a little differently but they should always be there.
Clicking will make the picture bigger but I’ll type out what each item says here also. The first thing to look at is the yardage. Yardage is important if you are using a different yarn than the one specified in the pattern. You’ll want to make sure that the yarn you choose matches. For example, for the knit cowl project you’ll need 1 ball Rowan Big wool, 100% wool, 87 yards per 100g. You’ll want to make sure that the yarn you choose has enough yardage.
You also need to match gauge. Gauge refers to how many stitches per inch you should get when you knit a 4″ X 4″ swatch. For some projects, like scarves, gauge isn’t really important. When you’re making a sweater, gauge is more critical. For the cowl project, gauge isn’t critical but the sample was knit at 2 1/4 stitches per inch.
You’ll also want to make sure you buy enough yarn in the same dye lot. It is a good idea to buy enough yarn to finish your project all at once. You never know when a yarn will be discontinued or sell out. Remember to save your receipts. Most stores will accept returns of unused skeins within a set amount of time (usually 30-60 days).
Yarn comes in a few different weights. They are sometimes called different things but here is a good reference:
Lace/Sock/Fingering
gauge 6 1/2-8 stitches per inch
Sport/ DK or Double Knitting
gauge 5-6 stitches per inch
Worsted (the most common weight)
gauge 4-5 stitches per inch
Bulky/Chunky
gauge 2-3 1/2 stitches per inch
Fiber choice should match what is called for in the pattern or at least be tested in a swatch to make sure it will act like you want it to. Making a winter hat out of cotton isn’t going to give you the same effect as if it were knit in wool or at least a wool blend.
I’m a little bit of a yarn snob and prefer to knit with all natural fibers. I’m also a bit of a cheapskate so I know that this isn’t possible all of the time. There are plenty of acrylic yarns and acrylic blends that are soft and knit up nicely.
Once you have a yarn in mind, look at the label and see what needle size it recommends. If you are just starting to knit, chances are you don’t have a stash of needles in various sizes. Needles deserve their own blog post but for now, I’ll just give you some homework.
Purchase:
1 ball Rowan Big wool, 100% wool, 87 yards per 100g OR yarn to match yardage and gauge
—Chances are you won’t find Rowan Big Wool at your local craft store. A good option would be Lion Brand Wool-Ease Thick & Quick (check online or your newspaper for coupons).
Size 13 (9.0mm) circular needle (16 inch length). This project is worked in the round so you’ll need circular needles. If you can’t find this particular needle size at your craft store, they are available here. I also found this set on Amazon. I can’t vouch for the quality as I have yet to try them, but they are a great deal!
