Total knitting newbie

I’m so clueless, I don’t even know which forum this should be in . . .

I have a deep down desire to knit things. I just dipped into the BB sock submissions - wow. I’m inspired.

I went in what I thought was a knitting shop but it wasn’t, asked the wrong question and fled. Not a good start. It was probably a mistake talking about Tom Daley in a small shop in the Catskills - I’m guessing unless you’ve watched the UK coverage of the Olympics, you’re unlikely to know who he is . . .

Anyhoo . . .  Ideally, I’d sit down with my mum and she’d get me started, but she’s 3000 miles away . . . And although I’ve mentioned it, she’d rather I learnt to play bridge.

So I thought I’d ask you lovely people.

Where do I begin!

Socks look complicated . . .

(The ad at the bottom just said ” Ever since I found this site I've felt strange new needs.” - spooky!)

It doesn’t look like we’ve got a knitting forum yet. I’ve been knitting since I was five and still consider myself a beginner.  It’s relatively easy to make a simple fabric, but there are countless variations on a theme.
You could find an online tutorial video, but you’d be best off finding a local stitch and bitch club if there is one close to you. I guess you’ll be used to being in the minority with your parenting role, but Tom Daley is in the minority of men who knit in permies. Many knitting designers are male though. I quite enjoy it as an activity to do whilst listening to music, talking books, or watching videos. It’s also a very social activity, comparing projects and chatting about anything. Tea and biscuits are also often involved!
I would suggest starting with some cheap yarn just to practise on. You may find knitting needles and yarn and such in thrift stores, or possibly eBay etc. for people clearing out Granny’s attic. Be aware that this is one of the things where the Brits are divided by a common language from the US. Needle sizes and wool descriptions are both different.
Knitting is really just interlocking loops of yarn. Two stitches: knit and purl depending on whether the loop is through the back or the front of the fabric. Variations on skipping stitches or multiple stitches and combinations give you patterns, as well as colour variations in the yarns used. If you’re just interested in socks, you may get on better with a sock loom, which is like a giant ‘Knitting Nancy’ with pegs holding the loops rather than needles.

Welcome to the world of knitting! I recommend starting with a a few rows to get the hang of the basic knit stitch before you think about making a particular project. Then, once you get the rhythm down a little bit, start a simple rectangle like a scarf, hot-pad, or dishcloth.
The SKIP Badge Bit link below is a beginner-friendly project and has step-by-step instructions.  

https://permies.com/wiki/101122/pep-textiles/Knit-crochet-hotpad-PEP-BB

I have found this website a great deal of help as a beginning knitter: https://www.knittinghelp.com/

Thank you Nancy. I previously made some local enquires about knitting but didn’t get much response. I’m the odd ball Brit who walks to school with his kid, rides a cargo bike and planted vegetables where his lawn should be! So maybe gate crashing a stitch and bitch club would be expected. Or I could research knitting courses on Skye post pandemic . . .

Good to know about the common language or lack thereof. That doesn’t surprise me. Not sure I’ll ever get used to cups in recipes and I only just realised a pint here is 16 floz, not 20 . . .

Thank you Harmony - that skip project looks like just the thing to get me started. . . Christmas pressie ideas are forming.

A thought: If you are already an oddball, flaunt it! Anyone who you give veggies to, ask them "know anyone who can teach me to knit?" Or wander into a senior center, around here you'd have 40 women offering to help. Especially if you are offering fresh veggies in return!

I gave up long ago trying to not flaunt it, I don't do "normal" well, even if I try. I learned that people are startled, then helpful.

Try www.craftsy.com. They have good video classes on a variety of crafts. Knitting was one of the first and continues to be a major focus. Right now there is a special for new people and its a real steal: $3 for a membership that lets you watch anything on the site.  I have done some of the classes and they are very good.

There is also a website for knitting / crochet that is a great place for inspiration, assistance, etc. its kind of to knitters what permies is to … to … permie people..You can find it at   Www.ravelry.com

A bit late to the party here (as usual) but got here. Congratulations on deciding to learn to knit. Look online for tutorials if you can't find anyone to teach you. Begin with small flat pieces (I still give family members wash cloths and dishcloths for Christmas every year) until you are confident. Although I learned to knit aged about 4 or 5, the first "real" things I made were bootees and mittens for a cousin's baby when I was about 14. That was it, I was hooked. I've lost count of the things I've knitted now but socks aren't very high on my list as I like to knit on straight needles and tuck one under my arm and the best sock patterns use knitting "in the round" on 4 or 5 double pointed needles. Chunky (UK) or bulky (US) yarn knits up fastest and light colours make it easier to see the stitches when you are learning. Most of all, have fun.

Well, I’ve had mixed success!

I still haven’t completed either textile BB:

Knit or crochet a hot pd
Crochet or knit a dish cloth

I decide to knit the first one and crochet the second. I only need to do one for the badge, but figured it would be a good lesson in both crafts.

I finally got into a rhythm knitting but discovered some weird stitches after I was half way through. I then discovered that knitting is one big slip knot, so undid the whole thing and started again. I’m currently on my fifth of fifty rows, working at about 1 row of fifty stitches in five minutes.

I’m also halfway through crocheting the dish cloth. But I’ve discovered a problem.



I was dropping stitches (I think that’s the correct term for the first ten or fifteen rows.) I’ve fixed it but I don’t know if it will qualify for the BB. I could undo the whole thing but it took me eight hours to get this far. I’m getting much faster and have a rhythm of sorts. I think I prefer crocheting. The tutorials that accompany both BB’s are awesome and they are possibly the best BB’s I’ve seen for providing a walk through tutorial for which I’m very grateful.

My current goal is to finish these two projects. I’d like to be able to do either craft whilst listening to a podcast - I’m nearly there. I don’t think I’ll ever be able to do it and watch telly . . . (I have a sneaky and possibly sexist thought that only women can do this using their multitasking brain - I definitely only have one CPU).

It sounds like you are exactly on track in terms of your knitting and crocheting!! That's how it starts (beware!!!).
It takes a while, you make typical mistakes, you only realize when you're 6 inches in that you're adding extra stitches on your turns, that's learning by doing. Congratulations!

I taught myself to knit when I was living in Asia, with a book that I promptly threw out the window and then just sort of winged it til I was a confident knitter. It took me 15 years to realize I was knitting left-handed Russian, which was why my brioche stitch always failed. But up til then I was doing just fine, and knitting happy. If you want to know you're doing it right, you can go to a Big Box Craft Store where there are often classes and knitalongs. There are also fabulous tutorials online (Purl Soho has a site with some of the clearest explanations I've seen, as well as good free patterns). Or, just find something you need and make a dozen. I did this with mittens for my daughter when I was learning, and got pretty good at it.
Knitting is a wonderful skill- to make stuff, and to relax and keep your hands busy, if you are that kind of person who needs that. Also if you are subjected to boring/tedious/lengthy things (staff meetings, football practice, Champions League, etc). I hope you enjoy it!

Oh, I forgot to say, you will need a bigger house now to accommodate your stash of yarn. Some of us have so much yarn we will never be able to use it all in two lifetimes. I have just been checking my stash today to see if I have enough yarn to knit my siblings those fingerless gloves that have a mitten-type flap that folds over (part of their Christmas present). Silly question, of course I have enough yarn.

Ara Murray wrote:of course I have enough yarn.

And yet: I can always use more. I always think, well, some people collect shoes, or cats, or antique tractors, at least when things get out of control i can make some fancy blankets as presents (and then start the hoarding all over again).

If you're looking for a nice easy project that is actually useful, try an oven glove, the type which is joined up. It's basically just a scarf with the ends folded over and a pad put in, a crocheted pad would work wonders. I must be in a minority or maybe just to poor for a stash, I knit socks mainly but I have done jumpers, hotwaterbottle covers etc. but I think I only have 2 balls of wool in the house, the ones for the next sock project.

Told you I was a newbie!

This is attempt number six - I didn’t have much yarn left, hadn’t quite reached 10 inches, so decided to cast off anyway.



Then there was the big reveal! What had I produced . . .



A mutant!

I’m seeing a pattern here, similar to my crocheting. Clearly I need to work on my ‘turns’.



It’s about 9 by 16 to 24 inches!

I started with 50 stitches and finished with 80+

I think it’s taken me about 14 hours.

On the plus side, it’s only got four holes in it.

I think casting off might have been a mistake, as I can’t just undo the whole thing and start again. But maybe I should keep it as a reminder.

I’ll be back to the yarn shop tomorrow, book some lessons and maybe settle for 40 stitches and work out how to turn around at the end.

I’m not giving up! I’ve figured out how to watch telly and knit at least.

Skandi Rogers wrote:If you're looking for a nice easy project that is actually useful, try an oven glove, the type which is joined up. It's basically just a scarf with the ends folded over and a pad put in, a crocheted pad would work wonders. I must be in a minority or maybe just to poor for a stash, I knit socks mainly but I have done jumpers, hotwaterbottle covers etc. but I think I only have 2 balls of wool in the house, the ones for the next sock project.

I finally finished my 10 x 10 dish cloth. I was wondering what to do next, so thank you for your recommendations. Ultimately, I’d love to knit a pair of socks. I’m just dreaming of Arran Sweaters and Scandi Jumpers . . .

Edward, for a while it might help you to count your stitches at the end of each row.  If you have too many, knit a couple of stitches together in the next row.   When you have more experience,  you can unknit back to the mistake and fix it, but don't try that now.

You can also put stitch markers every 5 stitches.   If you have more than 5 stitches between the markers, you know right away there's a problem.   When you get used to working with 5 stitches, remove some markers so you have 10 stitches between the remaining markers.

Also, make sure you aren't splitting stitches.   This is how beginners  usually get extra stitches.   Stitch through the loops, not through the fibers.

When you can start with 40 stitches and end with 40 stitches, you'll be doing it right  ;)

Oops, sounds like you've mastered stitch count!  Congratulations!

Ellen Morrow wrote:Edward, for a while it might help you to count your stitches at the end of each row.  If you have too many, knit a couple of stitches together in the next row.   When you have more experience,  you can unknit back to the mistake and fix it, but don't try that now.

You can also put stitch markers every 5 stitches.   If you have more than 5 stitches between the markers, you know right away there's a problem.   When you get used to working with 5 stitches, remove some markers so you have 10 stitches between the remaining markers.

Also, make sure you aren't splitting stitches.   This is how beginners  usually get extra stitches.   Stitch through the loops, not through the fibers.

When you can start with 40 stitches and end with 40 stitches, you'll be doing it right  ;)

Great advice Ellen. I didn’t know about stitch markers. For my 10 x 10 square, I wrote down on a bit of paper a K or a P every time I finished a row.

I realise my problem was too many stitches was having the thread around the back rather than hanging down the front when starting a new row.

I’m now knitting a scarf using English Rib / Fisherman’s rib.



I have 23 stitches - 7x3 and 1 at each end. The way the stitches present them selves in groups of three with on slightly off to the side makes it really easy for a beginner. HappyBerry makes awesome tutorials and she explained the extra stitch problem in this one.

I’d love to be able to knit back and fix a problem. I see HappyBerry covers that in an another tutorial, so I’ll have to play that and follow along. My solution at the moment is to start again . . . Which I’ve done many times. Fortunately on the scarf, it was always in the first few rows. I’m now at least 10 inches along, so really don’t want to mess up.

You are doing well and, remember, there are only 2 stitches, knit and purl, so those socks, Aran and skandi  jumpers are possible. We all started off by knitting squares and rectangles whose stitch numbers varied in each row and somehow, now I can knit all sorts of things. Knitting can be a conversation starter so often, like the time I was knitting an Aran cardigan on a train and the boy opposite asked his mum "Why is that lady knitting with 3 needles?"  We then had a conversation about "travelling stitches". I have never used a cable needle for cables as the first time I knitted aran I didn't have one so my mum, who taught me to knit, showed me how to use a 3rd needle.  Happy knitting.

Edward,  you are really coming along!  After a few rectangular projects, you'll be ready for increasing and decreasing, i.e., sweaters!

Edward, stitch markers are a great indulgence of your permie/waste nothing talents-- what people use for stitch markers can totally be another thread. Those plastic bread closure tab things, twist ties, safety pins, pop tabs from aluminum drink cans... currently I'm using a bunch of rubber o-rings from spark plugs, because I've got a mechanic shop. I mean, of course, you could buy stitch markers, but.... why?

Ara Murray wrote:Oh, I forgot to say, you will need a bigger house now to accommodate your stash of yarn. Some of us have so much yarn we will never be able to use it all in two lifetimes. I have just been checking my stash today to see if I have enough yarn to knit my siblings those fingerless gloves that have a mitten-type flap that folds over (part of their Christmas present). Silly question, of course I have enough yarn.

BUT, but, but is it the RIGHT yarn...  the right weight, right color, right fiber, etc  somehow even with a house full of yarn it never seem like we have the right yarn.