Working out Kinks and Fingering Yarn

In knitting there are really only two stitches. You knit and you purl. Everything is made with variations of these two stitches. The knit stitch puts a bump on the back of your work while the purl stitch puts the bump on the front of your work. Once you learn these two stitches you will be on your way to knitting whatever you want.

HOW TO MAKE A KNIT STITCH

Step 1

Cast on enough stitches to practice with. Try about 10 at a time to start. To learn how to cast on see Tutorial: Casting On

Step 2

Insert the empty right needle into the first stitch on the left needle. Your first stitch is the one closest to the tip of the needle. Place the point of the right needle into the first stitch from the front left side of the stitch, go under the left needle and come out the back on the right side of the stitch. This is the same way you insert the needle when you use the knitted cast on.

Step 3

Holding the right needle in place with your left index finger, wrap your yarn around the right needle tip in a counter clockwise direction. Imagine the clock is laying face up on your lap with the 12 on your knees and the 6 at your stomach. Your yarn should end up back on the right side of the needle.

Step 4

Use the right needle tip to pull the yarn through the stitch. This is where the technique changes from how you cast on. Do not keep pulling the yarn. Stop pulling as soon  as you are through the stitch.

Step 5

Gently push the first stitch off the left needle while making sure you keep the stitch you just made on the right needle. If you cast on 10 stitches you should now have 9 on the left needle and 1 on the right.

CONGRATULATIONS!

You’ve completed one knit stitch. Continue repeating steps 2 through 5 until you’ve knitted all 10 stitches. Then just move the full right needle to your left hand and go again. Knit every row for practice. Knitting every row is called garter stitch. Try to keep your stitches uniform. They should be not too tight to slide easily and not so loose they are sloppy. Most beginners have a problem with making their knit stitches too tight. Just relax your hands. Try to have faith that the stitches will appear like you want them too. If you need to in the beginning wiggle your just formed stitches a little to loosen them up. It is much easier to knit the next row if your stitches will slide a little. Using aluminum needles will also help. Wood, plastic and bamboo needles have more “grip” and yarn doesn’t slide as easily on them as it does on the aluminum ones. When you are more comfortable with knitting you can experiment with different types of needles before you buy your permanent collection.

To learn how to make a purl stitch see Tutorial: Purl Stitch

To learn how to bind off see Tutorial: Binding Off