Looking at different kinds of needles
It won't surprise you that knitters have preferences when it comes to yarn, but it may surprise you that sometimes their preferences for needles are even stronger. I like to knit on metal circular needles and find it faintly annoying to knit on anything else. Then again, I know tremendously skilled knitters who love straight, wooden needles. There's no right or wrong here. Take the opportunity to try out different needles to see what you like best. Needles generally fit into a few basic...
Markers and holders
Knitters use a variety of tools to mark particular spots in their knitting and to hold live stitches. Live stitches are stitches that you aren't working with at the moment, but that you'll do more with later. Shoulder stitches that will later be bound off with the three-needle bind-off or the stitches for half the neckline after you've divided the left and right neck are common examples of stitches that you may want to put on a holder. Check out these marking and holding tools, which are shown...
Measuring Yourself
Figure 3-1 shows the parts of the body that you need to measure before you start knitting a new garment. When you measure, follow these guidelines 1 Use a cloth or plastic tape measure if yours looks worn and stretched out, spring for a new one. A stretched-out tape measure won't give you an accurate measurement. i Strip down to your skivvies, or at least wear something close fitting. Measurements taken over a winter parka won't be accurate 1 For all horizontal measurements, try to keep the...
Trying the favorite sweater technique if youre still unsure about size
If you still aren't sure what size to knit, try measuring a favorite sweater. You can skip measuring yourself entirely if you really insist , or you can use this technique in combination with your body measurements to get a good idea of what size fits you best. Choose something from your closet that fits you well and is of a similar weight and style to what you're planning to knit. It doesn't have to be a handknit even a sweatshirt can give you useful information. If you're knitting a cardigan,...
Do You Measure Up Size Matters
Understanding pattern sizing Measuring yourself properly Picking the right fit m f you've ever bought clothes based on the size marked on the label alone only to find out that they didn't fit properly, you know that one designer's medium isn't the same as another's. With off-the-rack clothing, you can always run back to the mall and exchange your purchase for a different size. But if you've spent 100 on yarn and two months' worth of free time on a sweater, it's heartbreaking to discover that...
Understanding common terms and abbreviations
Especially for new knitters, knitting patterns can seem like they're written in a foreign language. They're made up of lots of abbreviations, strange grammar, and words you may have never heard before. In the end, however, you'll probably only encounter a handful or a couple of handfuls of abbreviations regularly. Knitting language really has a small vocabulary and no future imperfect tense to grasp , so if you get a handle on the following common terms and abbreviations and what they mean, you...
Part III Patterns with Rectangles and Related Shapes
The easiest shape to knit is a rectangle, but the simplicity of the knitting doesn't mean that these patterns are boring they're anything but Start off with rectangles to wear in Chapter 8. You'll find scarves here, of course, but you also can choose from stoles, hats, slippers, and even a top all of which are rectangles. Really. But wait, there's more Chapter 9 gives you rectangular projects for the home pillows, potholders, a lovely and smart looking baby blanket, and a journal cover perfect...
Staying Simple with Seed Stitch
Seed stitch, shown in Figure 5-4, is both beautiful and simple. It has a regular texture of little bumps that look a bit like seeds albeit highly organized ones . Like garter stitch which I describe earlier in this chapter , seed stitch lies flat and looks the same on both sides, so it's great for edgings and is a beautiful choice for scarves or blankets. Seed stitch makes a wonderful background for cables see Chapter 6 or other more intricate patterns, but you also can use it on its own for...
Tools for keeping track of your knitting
When knitting, you'll find that there are inevitably little bits of information that you want to write down. Whether you need to remind yourself that you're on Row 27 or you need to remember the title of a recommended book or the name of the yarn the person next to you in class was using for her shawl, something to write on often comes in handy. The grocery-bag-toting knitter will make do with a receipt or another piece of scrap paper, but it's smart to carry a notebook for your knitting ideas....
Following a repeating pattern
Many knitting patterns have a stitch pattern that's repeated. So, in addition to directions like Cast on 24 stitches or Work until your piece measures 12 inches, you may have directions that repeat over a set number of stitches in a row using asterisks to show you what to repeat and over a set number of rows the pattern will tell you which rows to repeat, such as Repeat Rows 1-6 until the piece measures 12 inches. . To use such directions, work Row 1 as described, repeating whatever comes...
The sizing conventions in this book
The patterns in this book are based on sizing standards set up by the Craft Yarn Council of America to help minimize the confusion of pattern sizing. I use the same size standards throughout this book, so a large size, for instance, is always designed to fit someone with a 40- to 42-inch chest circumference. This book features patterns sized for everyone from XS to 3X. Not every pattern has every size, but knitters of all body types will find patterns to suit them. And while it's always smart...
Break the Code Reading Patterns
Deciphering knitting patterns and charts Becoming a savvy pattern buyer J s you know, knitting is made up of stitches, rows, decreases, and increases. You can W make it all up as you go along, of course, but if you want to repeat someone else's work, you either have to be by her side the whole time which might be okay if that knitter is your mom or you have to come up with a way of translating the knitting onto paper. Just as a composer must write notes on a staff so that someone else can play...
Conventions Used in This Book
I include a few standard conventions to help you navigate this book i Italics point out defined terms and emphasize certain words. i Boldface text indicates the key words in bulleted and numbered lists. 1 Monofont highlights Web addresses. Each pattern in this book begins with a photograph of the finished project. And if you have to use any techniques that may be new to you, they're explained in the New skill section of the pattern. I also give you the materials and vital statistics needed for...
Part II A Primer on Stitches and Color
Part II provides step-by-step instructions for the stitch patterns used in this book and some others you might like to try. If, for example, you need a refresher on how to knit seed stitch in the round or want to try your hand at half linen stitch, Chapter 5 is the place to turn. This chapter is where I cover the simplest stitches. Chapter 6 introduces you to a variety of textures that can be used all over a piece or as accents. Study this chapter to master the basics of ribbing, cabling, and...
Authors Acknowledgments
Creating a book is inevitably the work of many hands, and I am truly grateful to those who helped bring Knitting Patterns For Dummies into being. I am struck, in writing these acknowledgments, by how lucky I am to be doing a job that I love and to be surrounded by others who clearly love what they do. I am grateful to my husband, Leo Bleicher, and my daughters, Zoe and Ella, for their support and encouragement. Thanks to the helpful folks at Wiley Lindsay Lefevere for getting the project...
Reading charts and symbolcraft
While many patterns are written out in what is, more or less, English, another approach to conveying the necessary information for all or part of a pattern is to represent it as a chart where each box is equal to one stitch. With this approach, you can map out an entire sweater graphically and not have to use any words at all. For complex color patterns you may show the whole sweater in a chart, but more often only significant parts of a pattern are mapped out on the chart. In this case, the...