Unravelling your knitting, is a frustrating but necessary rite of passage for every knitter. Knitting mistakes are bound to happen. Sometimes the only way forward is to unravel the knitting and start again. It can be painful to watch all those beautiful stitches disappear with a simple tug. But once you’ve ripped back your knitting, a trickier situation arises: now that your ... keep reading >>
Techniques
M1R and M1L Knitting Increase
The M1R knitting increase is really similar to the M1L increase. In fact, they're two sides of the same coin! Both the M1R and M1L are techniques that will increase your knitting by one stitch. The only difference is the direction of the increase. The M1R slants to the right, while the M1L slants to the left. Sometimes a knitting pattern will simply ask you to "M1" (aka. "make ... keep reading >>
Alternating Cable Cast On for Ribbing
The alternating cable cast on is a beautiful invisible cast on that looks great with ribbing. The edges of the cast on elegantly merge right into the knits and purls, giving the illusion of no cast on at all. The alternating cable cast on is also quite stretchy, making it nicely suited for ribbing. In fact, I sometimes refer to it as my “ribbing cast on”! While this cast on is more ... keep reading >>
How to Tie a Slip Knot for Knitting
Before you can knit or crochet, you'll need to make a slip knot. It's the starting point for everything to come. Learn how to tie a slipknot, and you've got step one covered. Every knitting and crochet project begins with the slip knot. This little knot is like an anchor for your cast on or crochet chain. It can even be used to start a bracelet! In knitting, the slip knot counts as the first ... keep reading >>
How to Knit with Double Pointed Needles for Beginners
What are Double Pointed Needles? Double pointed needles are for knitting small things in the round. They usually come in a set of four or five needles. As their name implies, both needle ends are pointed, meaning that you can knit from either end of the needle. This makes it possible to join the needles in a round an d knit on and off of them. We’ll go through how to do it in this ... keep reading >>
How to Make a Pom Pom
Today I’ll show you how to make a pom pom without a pom pom maker! Pom poms add cheer and whimsy to every project. They make great accessories, and they’re the cherry on top of a knitted hat. Thankfully, making a pom pom is not hard. If you can use a pair of scissors, then you can make a pom pom. The secret to the perfect pom pom involves three steps: use lots of yarns when wrapping ... keep reading >>
Knitting in the Round with Circular Needles for Beginners
Knitting in the round is essential for going beyond the basics. You might think that it’s scary or complicated, but that couldn’t be further from the truth! Knitting in the round is one of the easiest techniques to master. And here’s the good news: once you learn it, you probably won’t want to go back to regular flat needles. I know I didn’t! In today’s post, I’ll show you how to master ... keep reading >>