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knitting
Louise Nova asked:


I wanted to set out some basic knitting instructions as a refresher so here it is. All knitting instructions use basically two stitches, the knit stitch and the purl stitch. Once you know these two knitting essentials you will be able to follow most knitting instructions which are just combinations or variations of these two stitches.

Knitting Instructions for the Knit Stitch

Once you have cast on, hold the knitting needle with the cast on stitches in your left hand. Push the point of the right knitting needle in between the front of the first and second stitches, pointing the knitting needle to the right to feed the point through the first stitch keeping it under the left needle. The knitting yarn should be at the back of the work. Loop the knitting yarn around the right knitting needle from back to front, letting the knitting yarn rest between the needles. Catch the knitting yarn on the end on the right knitting needle and pull it through the first stitch to the front of the work. Slip the old stitch off the left needle. The new stitch is now on the right needle. Now you are getting the hang of the knitting instructions. It is a good idea to keep the knitting yarn draped over the right forefinger, this keeps it to the back of the work too. Repeat this process until all stitches are on the right knitting needle. Now count the stitches, if they are all there, turn the right knitting needle around and put it in the left hand. This is the first row from your knitting instructions. The knitting yarn will look like it is at the front and you will now take it to the back and start the second row of transferring stitches to the empty right needle.

Knitting Instructions for the Purl Stitch

The Purl stitch will also be in any knitting instructions. Start with the knitting needle with the cast on stitches in your left hand. Your knitting yarn will be hanging in front. Push point of right knitting needle into the front of the first stitch from right to left. Wrap the knitting yarn around the tip of the right knitting needle, crossing over the two needles and hanging once again in front. Slide the right knitting needle down and back taking the new loop of knitting yarn from front to back, through the old stitch. Slip the old stitch off the left knitting needle. If you have followed the knitting instructions you now have a stitch in purl on the right knitting needle and the yarn is hanging, once again, in the front. Repeat this process until all stitches are on the right knitting needle. Now count the stitches to make sure you haven’t dropped any and turn the work around putting the knitting needle with the stitches on in your left hand to start the next row.

I hope you could follow my basic knitting instructions. I have a lot more information about knitting on my Knitting Instructions blog so please join me there to learn more.



IRVIN
knitting
kevinallen2691 asked:


I’ve been all around the internet and I can’t seem to find a brand name that still makes knitting machines today. I would like a Brother or Singer but they don’t make knitting machines anymore.
Any other good machines that I can buy new that you know of?

WILLIAMS

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knitting
Diane Palmer asked:


Learn to knit, and get those creative juices flowing… I can still remember the moment I learned to knit. I was 6 years old, and my grandma sat down with me while my mother was busy with my new baby brother.

She taught me to cast on, and knit, and I was so excited I took my knitting everywhere.. it was all uneven and horrid, but I was excited that I had learned something new, and still love to knit to this day!

I am left handed, and always found many crafts hard to do because of it, such as crochet. But knitting can be done easily whether you are left handed or right handed.

Learning to knit as a child is a great way, but if you never did learn to knit, and would like to, then why not get started now!

Take it in little steps. Learn to cast on one day, and then learn to do the basic garter stitch the next day, and PRACTICE. That is the biggest part of knitting, is practicing. Once you have mastered the garter stitch, then you can try to purl, which is going through the back of the stitch.

Once you have mastered basic knitting, then you will need to learn to cast off. Continue to practice and make lots of blocks of knitting. (you can always make them into a quilt later!).

There are many books, ebooks, and videos on the market that will teach you how to knit, learning from an experienced knitter sitting right beside you, will still always be the best way, like my grandma did. But the next best thing I feel is a video. One where you get a real good close-up of what the teacher is doing, not something far away.

With a video, you can play it over and over again, and if you sit there with your needles and yarn, you will get this new skill. Its good for the brain to learn new crafts and skills, it gets the creativity flowing and keeps the brain alert.

It is never too late, and you are never too old to learn something new! Try it, knitting is good for relieving stress, as many men are finding. Knitting has become popular amongst celebrities and many professional men.. to help with stress and become creative.

So, get yourself some knitting needles and yarn, and maybe a basic pattern to get started with, once you learn your basic skills.

Try it, you may like it, so watch a good video and learn to knit…

learn how to knit



SAM

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knitting
Knit Picks asked:


Alpaca

Hailing from South America, the alpaca belongs to the camelid family that also includes camels, llamas, guanacos and vicunas. They are a docile breed whose fleece spins into luxurious yarns. More than three quarters of the world’s alpaca population resides in Peru.1 In centuries past, the alpaca was an incredibly valuable animal, even more so than precious gems! Clothing created with alpaca was restricted for use by royalty. The alpaca has been domesticated and is treated as one of Peru’s national treasures. England has the double decker bus, the U.S. has Mt. Rushmore, and Peru has their alpacas. What a diverse definition of treasure!

Alpaca fleece is a “protein fiber”. This doesn’t mean knitting with it will make you stronger, it merely indicates that the fiber comes from an animal- namely, the alpaca. Alpaca fiber is strong, warm, and comfortable. Each fiber is hollow which makes it incredibly lightweight. Even the most delicate alpaca garments are warm for this reason. Perhaps alpaca’s greatest feature is that it can be worn next to the skin comfortably. The explanation for this is the behavior of the scales on the exterior of the fiber itself. They all lie flat in the same direction, making for a smooth surface. Less expensive than cashmere and with the strength of mohair, alpaca is highly desirable and functional. As with most natural fibers, alpaca needs to be handled with care when it comes to water exposure. Be sure to read and heed the washing instructions on your yarn or sweater.

While there are 2 breeds of alpaca, Huacaya and Suri, the former makes up a whopping 95% of the population.2 Differences between the two are numerous and as you may have guessed from the percentages, the Suri is harder to come by. Suri qualities include fleece that grows downward like human hair in wavy or curly locks with a silky texture. Huacaya fleece is coarser and grows straight outwards, at a right angle to the skin of the alpaca.

When alpaca fiber is processed, it is evaluated and sorted into one of several categories based on its micron count (in layman’s terms: the softness quotient). Micron count is a technical measurement determined by studying a sample of alpaca fleece and calculating the average diameter of the shaft of each fiber. Baby alpaca might have a micron count in the high teens whereas superfine alpaca would fall in the mid-twenties. The lower the number, the finer the fiber. *Please note that baby alpaca is a classification group, meaning it doesn’t always come from young alpacas. It merely refers to any fibers from an alpaca’s fleece that fall within said micron count. While fibers become coarser as an alpaca ages, it is possible for older alpacas to continue to produce fibers that fall in the baby alpaca micron count range.

If all of this jargon confuses you, then you might relate better to the methods used by Peruvian women who hand sort all of the fibers and determine their classification based on how they actually feel.3 The finest and softest feeling fibers are tagged as baby alpaca, and so on for fine and superfine yarns. Fiber from various parts of the animal can have different feels.

SMOOTH OPERATOR

Knitted garments made of alpaca have some interesting properties. You should know that alpaca yarn is pretty stubborn when it comes to elasticity. It’s not that it won’t give, it actually has a tendency to be too generous. If you knit dense stitches and patterns or hang heavy embellishments on it, it will become distorted with no hopes of regaining its youthful figure. This is due to the aforementioned smoothness of the fibers. Since the scales lie flat in the same direction, the plies or strands of an alpaca yarn slide past each other instead of clinging and gravity can take its toll on the fabric. Gravity, as we know, can sometimes cause an undesirable elongating effect. So make those 100% alpaca projects light and airy, or use a blend for greater resilience and elasticity.

Speaking of which, all blends happen for a reason. There are ways to make alpaca yarn work for every project and that is by blending it with complimentary fibers. Blended yarns are not created arbitrarily. Wool, for instance, is a highly crimped fiber and therefore offers some elasticity. Since alpaca fibers contain only shallow waves, mixing in some wool makes an otherwise unyielding yarn a little more forgiving. Suri Dream is a hand knitting yarn innovation exclusive to Knit Picks. Imagine wearing a mohair sweater that wasn’t scratchy. Having trouble? By combining the super soft feel of Suri alpaca with a touch of wool and winding it around a strong nylon core, we have created an elegant alternative to mohair that causes zero discomfort. Sounds like a real dream to me!

Sources:

1“A Shaggy Business” The Economist. Vol. 377, Issue 8455, p. 38. 12/3/2005.

2Quiggle, Charlotte. “Alpaca: An Ancient Luxury” Interweave Knits. Fall 2000.

3Lavan, Cindy. “Evaluating Alpaca Fleece” AlpacaNation – Alpaca Industry’s Central Marketplace. June 2002. http://www.alpacanation.com/articles/AlpacaFuture_Oct02.asp



GEORGE
knitting
princesspink asked:


I have tried searching online and didn’t find anything. If there is no such thing, what is the largest size (gauge) or circular knitting needles available and where can I get them?
Hobby Lobby and Jo-Ann’s didn’t have them.

EMMANUEL

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knitting
Muna wa Wanjiru asked:


Knitting is the art of turning threads into piece of cloth. Knitting is done by looping those threads, into each other by stitching. Knitting may be hand made or machine made. By hand there are many styles and ways. There are so many different fibers and needles that are used to make those different varieties of cloth pieces such as table cloths, handkerchiefs and etc.

There are different knitting patterns, such as lace knitting, loop knitting, loom knitting, we will briefly discuss lace knitting, lace knitting is not that strange, Anybody can do lace knitting, they are able to form threads, by using the help from the charts or any other link, you can create beautiful patterns of cloths. It does not require any special or inborn talent to start knitting.

It will just take a time, to learn and get experience. Knitting becomes interesting automatically. Knitting is an art from ancient times. There are many designs that your mind can create such as natural scenery, flowers, birds, or aquarium beauty, anything is suitable, in your convenience. These ideas come for each person different, depending on there nature, but all these designs will surely turn into memorable creation.

Lace knitting is the relatively a new, hardly two hundred years old. This became a new profession for people who lived in villages, or rural areas. There are number of traditions of it like Orenburg and Unst which came from Russia. Laces are provided from Iceland and Estonia. In fact the oldest patterns of lace knitting were made by the fisherman, and they are very strong can not be ripped. These patterns were graceful, compared to its economy, originality and terminology. They were like made by true artistic vision and intellect.

Types of Lace

Lace may be illustrated briefly with two characteristics:

1. which kind of ground it is worked, if

- it is garter stitch that is every row is knitted.

- Or stockinet stitch that the knit and purl rows alternated-

2. frequency of patterned rows, if

- it is every row

- or only every right side row

Garter stitch lace look symmetrical, both ends are similar, but stockinet lace, has a specific right and wrong side. As we know by lace knitting we can interlace Shawls. Since most of the lace knitting is utilized into shawl, stoles scarves. Stoles look beautiful when you wear them on traditional “kurties” and western jeans. They give you a stylish plus modern and unique look.

Scarves and stoles all are available in rectangular shapes, while in shawls you will get variety such as circular, triangular.

The majorities of shawls are composed of main center piece and surrounded bye borders of many different patterns and then there is a final piping around it. There are many variations here if its scarves or stole. Lace knitting needs extensive stretching, to look at its best, inflexible cast on bound off edges should be avoided as possible. Knitting may move several directions within one piece.



GLEN
knitting
Lalabooziboo asked:


I like to knit but in the summer I’m too busy so whats a good way to store all of my knitting stuff thats bug proof and not too bulky? I don’t have much space so I’m not sure where I can put it so any creative solutions would be appreciated.

RANDOLPH

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knitting
Bella Mclaine asked:


Knitting is very interested thing that any woman like to do as man don’t much prefer to do ladies work and also because of woman can be easily used to handy-craft work. Generally, knitting work is more seen in housewives. Knitting requires essentials like Yarn, Pattern and Needles to complete the task perfectly. The work does not get complete just by shopping for right knitting needles or best quality of knitting yarn. Although, their significance is not to be ignored but one should always remember if someone wants to carry out an experiment then the person should be ready with apparatus & material to make it successful.

If you are an intermediate or a beginner then you are on the phase to learn knitting. Of course, it is rightly said anything learnt never becomes squander. After some period of time, a learner with some innovative changes and creative ideas is always going to be rewarded. The first step for a beginner is to use both knitting needles and knitting machines with simplicity. To become a good or professional knitter, a learner with a good knitting kit should work out properly with sincerity. When equipped with knitting materials, the first step to walk on is to practice with basic knitting patterns. You can get knitting patterns either paid or free on internet. Primarily knitting books can be your guideline to work on. A beginner’s mind can be conceptually clear to start with knitting patterns.

Beginner’s knitting kit is easily available in the market. Initially, a learner should opt for using needles according to the type of yarn. Using acrylic yarn will solve your purpose.

But it is quite seen in many cases that the people lose all their zeal and passion, when they start facing hurdles or problems and feels to quit learning knitting. A dynamic beginner should not step back from the work and with the keen interest move ahead. Just keep on practicing and learn to get your hands into the rhythm of this hobby. Basic knitting patterns will help you to a great extent instead of trying out the difficult one. Knitting pattern then done is sure to produce some finest work of yours and possibly a learner may start his knitting business too.

The best teacher for a beginner can be any one from your family members, relative or friends. If not, then you can even get free knitting patterns from the internet. All the way is to keep practicing seriously with hard-work. In beginning, don’t try to make complicated knitting patterns as unnecessarily confusing yourself. Making simple knitting pattern will serve the best to achieve your goal.

Thus, a beginner should learn knitting skills also if want to reap sweet fruits. The work done with personal efforts along with using application of mind in a right way will surely make you an expert or a professional that you are worthy of.



VINCE
knitting
My Horse Dawn asked:


Like, my grandma can knit a scarf in a week and when I tried knitting it took me a good two months to 2 inch by 2 inch square! Also, they can sew dolls and clothes and everything, so why is this?

GAVIN
knitting
? Arch Angel ? asked:


I want to make a fashionable scoop-neck or V-neck sweater for myself. It can’t be ugly or old lady-ish, because I’m only 14. I’m a pretty good knitter, but not really great at it, so I need a kind of basic pattern that does not involve a lot of sewing or confusing knitting. Does anyone know where I can find that?

Thanks.

ALONZO

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