My (Current) Favorite Stitches

In my quest to take up knitting, I've been honing my skills with a lot of scarf projects - almost a dozen already - and discovered some wonderful stitches that knit up flat, fast, and fluffy, the perfect combination for winter's wicked winds and frigid temperatures. 

It's really only fair that I share these super stitches with my fellow knitter-wannabees, so that is exactly what I will do. Right now. Besides the odd yarn over or slipped stitch, which sound scarier than they are, these stitches are relatively simple and a nice step towards more complex patterns.

Easiest - Seed Stitch

Wool Ease Thick & Quick Yarn in Fig

Shall I count the ways I love this stitch? Although extremely simple, it's just alternating knit and purl stitches, the end result is impressively knobbly and plush. It also lays flat so you won't have to overcome annoying rolled edges that plague even the most chic of cowls. 

To get started: Cast on an odd number of stitches. K1, p1 - continue to end of row. Repeat this row until scarf is desired length.

Note - Some directions call for an even number of stitches, alternating k1,p1 rows with p1,k1 rows. However, as a beginner, I prefer eliminating any possibility for confusion and stick with the simple directions above. 

As Easy - Scrunchable Scarf

Wool Ease Thick & Quick Yarn in Apricot

I found the Scrunchable Scarf on Ravelry* and immediately fell for it's rustic and handmade look. However it was the basic combination of knit and purl stitches that made me finally give it a try myself. 

To get started: The pattern is available online here, however I prefer to add on two additional stitches (end result - multiples of 3 plus 2) which allows me to slip the first stitch purlwise and knit the last stitch to create a crisp, clean boarder. 

Note - For great visual help look up "how to slip a stitch purlwise" on youtube. Once you get a visual, it's really not that difficult. 

A Tiny Bit Harder - Wrapped Stitch

Wool Ease Thick & Quick Yarn in Oatmeal

About a month into knitting I discovered The Weekly Stitch, an incredible site that features a new knitting stitch each week! Scouring the entire site, I found the Wrapped Stitch which has a very modern look with it's geometric lines. 

To get started: Cast on multiple of 2 stitches, plus 2. You will work this stitch over two rows and learn how to knit a yarnover (yo).

Row 1:  Purl all stitches. 

Row 2: Knit 1 *YO, K 2, Pass the YO over the two stitches just knit*  Repeat from * to last stitch, K 1

Note - the pattern looks difficult, however there is a fabulous video explaining everything here. Trust me, you can do it!

Using these stitches, I've managed to keep busy for a couple months working up new scarves. Hopefully I'll be able to tackle some more complex patterns moving forward and share them soon!

Lessons Learned: My First Few Month Knitting

My scarf collection is growing a bit too rapidly

Taking up knitting was something I did on a whim. Driving to my friend Jen's house that Saturday morning I had absolutely zero intentions of taking up knitting - I'd been promised an afternoon of "knitting and bitching" and was looking forward to gossiping with the gals more so than learning anything new. 

Thank goodness for borrowed needles, and yarn, and hands on instruction - the girls basically placed the needles into my hands and then started moved them in some awkward marionette type situation. I'm such a lucky girl. 

Now of course I'm completely in love with knitting and can't wait to try more and more complex patterns and stitches. A couple months since that first knitting session here are a few things that I've learned so far...

It's ok to be a beginner

Embrace the basics and nail them down before trying to get into anything more complex - trust me, it'll save you from pulling out your hair in frustration. I spent a couple weeks sorting out my knit and purl stitches, using scrap craft yarn and borrowed needles, before looking at a pattern or buying pretty supplies and I'm grateful for it. Jumping in over your head will only turn a wonderful hobby into something you despise. 

I'm Talking About Practice

I've made six scarves in a month and have no desire to attempt anything else anytime soon. The reason? I like scarves, I can wear or gift scarves, they are easy to make, and are a great way to play with new stitches. If you pick something straightforward and make, like scarves or dishcloths, and make a few before moving onto something else, you'll start to recognize what works and what doesn't. An example, I've recognized to look for stitches that work up flat because I hate curling edges and a nifty trick for clean borders (slip the first stitch of each row).

Keep on Knitting, Keep on Knitting

The day will come when you need to rip out everything you've done, many, many times. Either because you've made a mistake or you don't like how it's coming together, pulling your project apart is heartbreaking but worthwhile - the last thing you want is a mistake glaring at you from a finished project. Just last week, recognizing I hated the scarf I was making, I unraveled my skein, took the loose end and cast on, knitting up a knew project from the previous partial one. 

Help! I Need Somebody, Not Just Anybody

It's always nice to have knitting-talented friends at the ready to help when things go wrong or the pictures in your pattern make your brain feel fuzzy. Luckily I have a half dozen friends and family members that are willing and able to help when needed. If you aren't as fortunate, or it's 3am and your friend won't answer their phone, Youtube is extremely knitting friendly. There's just something wonderful about seeing someone explain a process step by step.

Continuing into the spring with a growing appreciation for knitting, I've developed a soft spot for a few stitches and discovered some awesome knitting resources online - all the more to share in my next recap!

Learning to Knit Part II - Chunky Cowl Scarf

They call this the teaser shot

I've mentioned that, with the encouragement of some lovely friends, I've opted to take up knitting in 2013 and shared a few of my less-than-beautiful practice runs from the past few weeks. With nothing but time on my hands, I was able to quickly work through some old yarn and in no time found myself tucked away in the back corner of my nearest Michael's craft supply store surrounded by glorious skeins of plush wool in the most beautiful colours imaginable. After settling on a slate blue hue (officially called "denim") I grabbed two skeins for seven dollars each and returned home to search for my first official knitting project. 

Do you have any idea how many knitting patterns are online? Likely a comparable figure to the number of recipes, DIY tutorial, or pieces of celebrity gossip floating around out there right now. As a result, deciding what to knit, while also struggling from indecisiveness, was next to impossible. However, as I already knew I wanted to make a warm, chunky, cowl scarf I narrowed my options down, slightly. 

Not yet knowing how to knit "in the round", an essential skill for making anything circular, think toques, mittens, socks, or cowl scarves, I refused to give up on the idea of a stunning slate-blue cowl scarf and set out to find a way around my knitting in the round dilemma, which led me to the wonderful and glorious fisherman's rib stitch. 

Hallelujah! 

Using this incredibly-chunky-and-amazingly-awesome stitch, I simply knit one straight scarf and then stitched the ends together after casting off. Is this the correct way to make a cowl? Not really. Did it work anyway? Heck yes. Would I do it again? Try and stop me!

Just look at those lovely ribs!

Isn't that colour amazing?

The Fisherman's Rib really is a plushy soft stitch and it works wonderfully here with Wool Ease Thick & Quick yarn to create this chunky look. For a great tutorial on this stitch and many more check out Fluff and Fuzz, there are also some really helpful videos on youtube that helped me figure out how to "knit the stitch below" (after struggling for an hour or so - I'm very stubborn).

With this success under my belt I can't wait to start my next project - as soon as I can secure some Michael's coupons and buy more yarn!

*Note - we have a lovely yarn store downtown that I have yet to visit, I'm afraid it won't be good for my bank account and am instead awaiting a birthday gift certificate before venturing inside.

Learning to Knit in 2013 - Part I

Looking for a new challenge to keep me busy, a couple wonderful friends turned me onto knitting and after only a couple weeks I can't put it down!

Although I've spent my fair share of time ripping out stitches and making mistakes, I've also dedicated a lot of time on the basics, rows and rows of knit stitches and then endless purl stitches, to ensure I have the hang of it before moving on. I look at knitting as a long term hobby, not something to be rushed, and over the past month I've moved from borrowing needles and yarn to buying my own and wrapping up my first official knitting project.

I'll be sharing that project soon, but in the mean time here are a few of my practice rounds. The good news when it comes to knitting is that small improvements result in big results and these scraggly scarf-looking bits won't be coming from my needles for much longer!

I absolutely adore knitting and can't stop pinning beautiful (and intricate) patterns I hope to one day complete. Not only is knitting wonderfully portable, I carry it around in my purse all the time, it's also relatively affordable, my needles were six dollars and a skein of yarn was seven, and keeps my hands from reaching for a snack while watching television at night. Anything that trims your waistline, or at least slows it from expanding, while lounging in pajamas is my kind of hobby!