Daniela's Knitting Blog

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Work as for fixed needle but omit step a. Work with standard or circular needles. Beware not to stick your elbows out and not to clutch the right needle.

Yarn or needle

This is the slowest, most awkward, most tiring and least even way of knitting. After inserting the right needle into the stitch, the needle is dropped and forgotten. The yarn is then picked up, wrapped (Fig 6) and dropped, leaving the hand free to go back to the needle and draw the loop through.

b Take needle with stitches in left hand and empty needle in right hand. Both hands should be on top of needles, c Push first stitch to tip of needle with left thumb and insert right needle into it. d 'Hook'yarn with right needle and pull through the stitch. To hook the yarn to knit is very straightforward (Fig 8).

To purl, it is less so (Fig 9), unless you work a plaited purl stitch (Fig 10). However, as explained on page 20, the new stitch needs to be untwisted on the next row. Take care not to move your right arm more than necessary.

Yarn in left hand

This is also called German or continental knitting (somewhat misleadingly, as many European countries do not use this method). Using circular or standard needles, just long enough to hold the work, it is a very fast method to knit, but not so much to purl. Purl stitches too large (see page 20) are fairly common.

a Wind yarn around left hand in one of the ways shown in Fig 7.

Left-handed knitters

Left-handed knitters are often given the advice to hold illustrations next to a mirror, and follow their reflection, and to reverse any non-symmetrical instructions. However, I think this is a convoluted and off-putting method. I advise you simply to think of knitting as the two-handed craft it really is. Use either the fixed needle or the yarn-in-left-hand approach, whichever you prefer, and forget that the instructions are for right-handed knitters. Beginner knitters, whether left-or right-handed, have to train both hands to do something completely new. (See also 'From left to right' under Picking it up, page 71.)

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No matter what the problem, there is always a solution to your knitting woes. Here are some basic problems that all beginner experience (you are never alone!), plus handy hints for getting yourself out of those tight spots.

Does your knitting grow very slowly?

You might be:

• making your fingers travel too far to make each stitch?
• keeping the working stitches too far from the tips of the needles?
• not keeping the needles under full control?
• trying to keep one needle still whilst the other does all the work?
• using needles with very long, very blunt tips?

Do you keep dropping stitches?

You might be:

• keeping the working stitches too close to the tips of the needles?
• a slack knitter?
• not keeping both needles in your hands all the time?
• holding the right needle like a pen, with the work tightly gathered into the crook of the thumb?
• See also Flat knitting, page 22.)

Is the left edge too long?

This problem creates havoc when trying to sew two edges together. The main cause is lack of control when starting to purl. Are you holding the yarn in your right hand but not fixing the right needle? Try tightening the yarn more on the first purl stitches. It is not as easy as with knit stitches, but quite possible. If that fails, try a double-chain selvedge (see page 69) on the over-long edge.

Are the edges stretching?

You probably have problems both when starting to purl and to knit, perhaps made worse by a slippery yarn. Apply the solutions for'left edge too long'to both edges.

Are your purl stitches too large?

Try these solutions:

• Practise tightening the purl stitches and loosening the knit stitches (see Which needles?, page 14).
• Purl with a finer needle than you knit. This only works with stockinette stitch.
• When purling, wrap yarn under needle as in plaited purl stitch
• Fig 2). On the next row, knit-back the resulting stitches (Fig 3) to straighten them up. Again, this works only for stockinette stitch and a limited number of stitch patterns.
• Adapt to circular knitting and avoid stitch patterns with groups of purl stitches on the right side - the odd one is not likely to be a problem.

This gives a stripy look to stockinette stitch (Fig 1). It is a fairly common problem amongst yarn-in-left-hand knitters, but can also happen to others.

Is your work uneven?

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This is invariably caused by poor control (Fig 4). Do you:

• hold the right needle like a pen?
• drop the yarn or any of the needles regularly?
• keep the yarn quite long between the work and the finger that wraps it around the needle?
• work some stitches well away from the tip of the needles, and others very close?
• hold the needles at a longish distance from the tip?
• use needles with very long tips?

Why the aches and pains?

If knitting gives you arm or hand cramps, stiff shoulders, neck ache, or backache, look at the way you arrange yourself and use your muscles. Do you:

• keep your head permanently bent forward, or to one side?
• let your body slump in a heap?
• sit on something that does not give support to your back?
• get all tensed up?
• clutch needles or yarn?
• stick your elbows out?
• keep your two arms in constant movement?
• bend your right thumb up to hold the needle?

Almost all knitting is done from right to left, building up a fabric in rows. But going from left to right without changing yarn position is equally possible. In fact, it has some very interesting and potentially creative applications.

flat <9>l aftOAlatl? Flat knitting

Whichever direction you work in, you can produce either an open flat fabric, or a tube. Each has advantages and limitations. Your choice is likely to be a result of the sort of things you knit. If you are interested in odd-row stripes, round mats, seamless garments, gloves, hats, socks, or jacquard, or if you hate sewing (or find it difficult because of eyesight problems), then circular knitting may be for you. If you love intarsia, open collars, edgings, wall hangings, shawls, bedspreads, pieces that require very accurate blocking, or if you hate transcribing instructions and do not want to design your own work, then go for flat knitting. If you want to add a round yoke or border to something worked flat, use first one method and then the other. When changing methods, gauge (tension) may be altered - check beforehand. Having made your decision, you have a further choice between straight (standard or double-pointed) and circular needles.

Try the different methods and decide which one works best for you. Don't let anyone tell you that one way of knitting is better than the others.

In flat knitting, you use a pair of standard needles or one circular needle.

Each line of stitches is called a row. At the end of a row, the left needle is empty and the right needle full. Turn the work, so that if you were first seeing the right side, you now see the wrong side. Swap hands and start again.

To knit flat using a circular needle, work in exactly the same way.

Identical pieces

In flat knitting, it is easy to work two symmetrical or identical pieces (such as two sleeves or two jacket fronts) at the same time, using two balls of yarn (Fig 1).This saves much time checking shapings, and ensures identical results. If your gauge is not very stable, this is a good way of compensating for it - If the two pieces were worked separately, one might end up much longer than the other.

Classy clickers... when using a circular needle for flat knitting, think of each point as a separate needle - forget that they are joined (Fig 1).

Circular knitting

Each circle of stitches is a round. Rounds are arranged like a spiral, worked without breaks. As a result, a'step'forms on the pattern when changing from round to round. Use a needle marker to see where the rounds start. (See also Casting on circles, page 43.)

Because the work is never turned, you are always facing the same side. This is usually the right side. If you want to work from the wrong side, your hands will be at the far end of the circle.

Circular knitting can be done on a circular needle or a set of double-pointed needles. The sets can be used for any size of circle, from glove fingers to huge round rugs, although it is not too comfortable to work very small circles with the longer needles; if the stitches grow too crowded, extra needles can be added. Circular needles must be smaller than the circle, otherwise the stitches are stretched out of shape and work is slow and awkward; if the project changes width, you might need to change needle length.

The shortest circular needle usually available is 16in (40cm) long; shorter ones are very difficult to work with. Smaller circles, therefore, cannot be worked adequately with circular needles. If changing from sets to circular needles, your gauge may alter; check it.

Classy clickers... when using a circular needle for flat knitting, think of each point as a separate needle - forget that they are joined (Fig 1).

Style secrets

With circular knitting, you can produce totally seamless projects, including whole sweaters. These are appealing garments that are also deeply rooted in tradition. Many knitters love making jumpers and vest tops with circular needles because you can create shapely, well-fitting items with no tedious side seams to sew up at the end. These garments can look really elegant and professional. And most knitters much prefer knitting to sewing, anyway...

Circular needle

Simply work round and round (Fig 2). Measuring might require additional needles, if it is impossible to lay the work flat.

Circular needles - the good points:

• The stitches can be slipped onto the cord so that they do not drop when you put the work away, or set into a slant if left for any length of time.
• They are good for working in a tight space.
• You can make very wide flat pieces that would not fit on standard needles.
• You can never lose the 'other' needle.

And the bad points:

• They are not so easy to store as straight needles.
• There is no size indication on the needle itself, so you will need to label them yourself, or use a needle gauge (see page 27).
• They are difficult to keep dead straight when spreading the work for measuring.
• The work gets heavy if you knit as you walk.
• The stitches have to be pushed more often because not many can be crowded on the stiff points, and the ones on the connecting cord keep slipping back. If working in circles, you also have to make the stitches go all the way round.

Creative types may find that circular needles:

• are heavy and cumbersome in their final stages;
• show a step at the start of the rounds;
• restrict shape experimentation;
• make certain types of blocking awkward, if not impossible;
• are better than badly-put-together, 'homemade'flat knitting, but not necessarily better than good flat knitting;
• are not so easy to adjust as garments worked in pieces if something goes wrong with the sizing.

But are circular needles good to work with? If you hold the yarn in left hand, yes, they are excellent. You have no right needle swinging around, which can be quite heavy if full of stitches. If you hold the yarn in your right hand, circular needles do not give nearly the same control as a straight fixed needle, although people used to working with hand on top find them quite satisfactory. The fact that the weight of the fabric is now on the lap will not impress fixed-needle knitters much, because they have already taken care of the weight problem. In fact, they might get worried about having to bend their neck because their hands are now much lower. Non-fixed-needle knitters, though, might welcome resting the work on their lap.

Double-pointed needles

Double-pointed needles come in sets of four or five. One needle is kept free, and the stitches divided amongst the other needles, equally if possible. Having worked the stitches off one needle with the free needle, a new needle is released. If the needles are crowded, use stops.

Use as many needles as make sense for a particular shape. Trying to work a square on three needles is nonsense, as you will not see how work progresses, and the join stitches will get distorted; you need to use four needles.

It is essential to keep an even yarn tension when changing needles. Loose stitches often appear but are easily avoided - always start a new needle on top of the old one (Fig 2); pull the first stitch tight. Changing needle position by two or three stitches each time is only partly helpful. You could end up with a spiral of loose stitches instead of a vertical line of them, and unless you have many needles it could be awkward.

Identical pieces

Although two identical tubes (such as sleeves or socks) are generally worked independently, it is possible to work them at the same time, one inside the other. The advantages would be those outlined in Flat knitting, above.

With two balls of yarn: a Cast on, alternately, one stitch from each ball, until you have enough stitches for both tubes. Make sure that the two yarns do not get tangled, b Work each stitch with the yarn it was cast on with. You can either work all rounds with two yarns (use second or third methods of holding yarns explained in Jacquard, page 92), or work one round with one yarn and the next with the other - each time slip purl-wise the stitches not being worked. If the two tubes are in stockinette stitch, knitting the outside tube and purling the inside one helps to differentiate the two layers. Gauge is likely to be looser than in one-layer work. Check it, and use finer needles if necessary.

Adapting instructions for circular knitting

Most instructions, including those in this book, are intended for flat knitting. When adapting them to circular knitting, whether you are working from row-by-row instructions or from charts, the stitch pattern must flow continuously. That is, you need complete pattern repeats, which in written instructions are the stitches between asterisks. If the number of odd stitches at either side of the asterisks varies, a repeat is probably split between the two ends. Chart the pattern, or knit a sample with at least two repeats, to find out the relevant stitches. Then, reverse all wrong-side rows:

• Read them from the end, in order to reverse the sequence.
• Work knit for purl and purl for knit. Rows instructing 'knit the knit stitches and purl the purl stitches'take care of themselves.
• Work increases and decreases from the other side. The instructions in this book mention shapings on knit or on purl - either of which can be the right or wrong sides. If a wrong-side row has an increase on knit (purl), work the same increase on purl (knit) when you are working rounds.
• Work with yarn in front instead of with yarn at back, and vice versa. To avoid mistakes, it is best to transcribe the instructions before starting to work. If there are armholes or other openings, divide work and shape as required. Either change to flat knitting, or make a bridge and continue in circles.

From left to right

This is a way of working flat without actually turning the work. Some people use the method to work large pieces knitting back and forth from end to end. Even if you do not want to go this far, you will find it useful for some raised patterns (which, of course, can also appear in circular knitting).

Keep yarn in right hand. To knit: a Insert left needle into back of stitch, b Wrap yarn down front and up back of needle (Fig 3). c Draw new stitch through.

To purl:

a Insert left needle into back of stitch, b Wrap yarn up back and down front of needle (Fig 4). c Draw new stitch through.

Classy clickers... when working two identical pieces, with two balls of yarn, turn the work clockwise at the end of one row anti-clockwise at the end of the next row to prevent the two yarns twisting.

Once you get into knitting, you may find yourself yearning after all sort of fancy equipment. Knitting is a dream for the gadget lover. But you really don't need expensive items of kit - if you're thrifty, you can often find cheap alternatives.

There are three types of needles: standard, circular and double-pointed. Standard needles (or pins) are only used for flat knitting. Choose the length according to how you hold the work.

Circular needles can be used for flat or circular knitting, and consist of two very short needles connected by a strong, flexible cord. The short, stiff ends must be long enough to span your closed hand for a good grip. Before buying, inspect the joint between needle and cord; it must be absolutely smooth or your knitting will snag.

Double-pointed needles are used for circular knitting (these were the only choice until the invention of circular needles). They come in sets of four or five. Two of them with a stop at one end can be used for flat knitting. (See also Needle know-how, pages 18-21, and Working it! pages 22-24.)

Needle tips should taper to a blunt point (keep your needles well protected when not in use). If the tapering is very long and/or the point is too blunt, knitting will be slow and awkward.

Modern needles are most commonly made out of bamboo, aluminium, plastic or wood. In the past, you could find steel, tortoiseshell, celluloid, bone, ivory, and even silver. The more polished the surface, the faster the stitches glide. Some needles are rigid, while others gradually bend as the knitter works. Length varies tremendously, reflecting a wide range of uses and different ways of holding the work.

The thickness varies between countries. The finest needles were used for the most delicate work: lace knitting. Today it is difficult to find really fine needles, finer than size 0 (2mm), though they used to be the norm. To have as wide a selection as possible, shop for knitting needles when you travel abroad. The following table shows approximate equivalents between ranges. Metric equivalents to American sizes vary - not surprisingly, since American needles often fall between the sizes of the other two ranges.

Needle size converter Essential accessories rw

Style secrets

It might seem unlikely that a useful knitting gadget could also double up as an accessory, but many of the stitch markers available now are truly beautiful items. Some have been specially designed so that you can wear them as pendants or earrings when they're not on your needles.

US	Metric
0	2mm
1	2.25mm
2	2.75mm
	3mm
3	3.25mm
4	3.5mm
5	3.75mm
6	4mm
7	4.5mm
8	5mm
9	5.5mm
10	6mm
10V2	6.5mm
	7mm
	7.5mm
11	8mm
13	9mm
15	10mm
19	15mm
35	20mm

Classy clickers... beware of slippery yams on high-gloss needles - whole rows could drop off.

Stitch markers

Stitch markers are closed or coil rings slipped around the needle to highlight things such as changes in stitch pattern, the start of rounds in circular knitting, lines of increases or decreases or pattern repeats.

Alternatively, if you're in a thrifty mood, you could use loops of contrast yarn, safety pins or paper clips.

The same items can be attached to the knitting itself to make fabric markers to pinpoint increases or decreases, row 1 of pattern and so on.

Sewing needles

These are also known as'yarn','knitter's', 'heavy embroidery', or'tapestry'needles. They must have a blunt point, to prevent splitting the yarn. Use the size most appropriate to the yarn, as this can be ruined if forced through too small a needle.

Scissors

If you are using conventional yarn, these do not need to be very big, but they must be sharp.

Stitch markers

Stitch markers come in all shapes and sizes, including gorgeous beaded versions - think of them as jewellery for your work!

Stitch markers

Stitch markers come in all shapes and sizes, including gorgeous beaded versions - think of them as jewellery for your work!

Scissors

They don't have to be very big, so are ideal for knitting on the goi

Scissors

They don't have to be very big, so are ideal for knitting on the goi

still looking stylish. They are generally large enough and have enough useful length of contrast yarn

Stitch holders

Often an essential item when knitting garments.

Knitting gauge \

Combine your needle and knit gauge with one handy tool.

Cable needles

If you're into cables, these could be your . best friend.

Point protectors

Available in fab designs and colours to decorate your needles.

Row counter

A very useful gadget. Buy a couple if you're likely to have more than one project on the go.

Crochet hook

Useful in an emergency-dropped-stitch situation!

Tape measure

Use an accurate dressmaker's tape, or a rigid ruler. It is important to take all measurements consistently in either inches or centimetres.

Blocking board

Use anything large, flat and able to take pins. Ironing boards are usually too small. Covering with a checked cloth will help you keep straight lines.

Sprayer

For blocking, use a steam iron, or an ordinary plant sprayer giving a fine mist.

Work bag

Any large bag or basket can be used for storing your knitting in progress. The best are easy to carry, with a flat base so that they can be left on the floor without falling on one side, large enough to hold the nearly finished work, and with organizer pockets for small pieces of equipment. There are many specially designed and glamorous-looking tote bags for knitting available now - they're the ideal thing if you want to transport your knitting projects round town while compartments in them to double up as a shoulder bag to contain all the essential items that you'd usually carry round with you.

Useful accessories

Needle gauge

Used to check needle size, especially of circular or double-pointed needles that have no indication of size. The needle is the size of the smallest hole it can go through.

Cable needles

These are available in straight or angled versions (so that the stitches do not drop off). Straight ones look like very short double-pointed needles. Apart from their obvious use for cables, they are good for poking stitches into place when blocking or counting stitches.

Stitch holders

These keep stitches from unravelling when they are not needed. They come in various shapes; buy the ones least likely to unfasten when knocked about. Alternatively, use spare needles with stops at both ends, safety pins or a

Stops

These are used to protect the point of the needles, or to prevent crowded stitches from dropping off.

You could also use corks, wooden beads or elastic bands wrapped over and over. Avoid sticky products used for fixing posters - they can stain.

Crochet hooks

Apart from being used in a number of techniques, these are very good for picking up dropped stitches. Keep at least one or two to hand.

Knit gauge tool (tension gauge)

A graduated ruler that, placed over a certain number of stitches or rows, gives an immediate reading of the gauge (tension) in 4in (10cm). You can also use a tape measure (or ruler) and calculator.

Row counter

These little gadgets fit onto the end of your knitting needles; use them to keep track of rows and repeats. Alternatively, use a pocket abacus, strokes and dashes on a piece of paper, or pencil marks by each row.

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The range of yarns available now is hugely varied - you won't be able to resist. Not all yarns suit the same designs, even if they knit to the same stitch size. So, if you are following a pattern, and decide to use a yarn other than the recommended one, take great care. Always knit a selection of samples and compare the different effects.

Fibres

There are basically two types: natural fibres and manmade. Natural can be animal (wool, mohair, angora, cashmere, alpaca, llama, vicuña, silk) or vegetal (cotton, linen, raffia, bamboo). Manmade fibres are made from regenerated natural fibres (viscose, rayon, acetates) or synthetic (polyamides, polyesters, acrylics).

Each fibre has its own characteristic handle, resilience, strength, inflammability, resistance to dirt and/or moths and mildew and resistance to heat and water. In general, manmade fibres are easier and cheaper to produce, attract fewer pests, and are easier to clean than untreated natural fibres. These fibres do not shrink, although they can stretch in a hot wash. Natural fibres generally breathe and are absorbent; they are still comfortable in the rain or heat. They pill less, if at all, take dyes better and attract less dirt.

Many blends try to make the most of both natural and manmade fibres by mixing them.

Classy clickers... understand a cheap mohair blend may only have 10 or 15 per cent mohair. Even if the name 'mohair'appears prominently on the label, the yarn will have little in common with 85 per cent mohair blends, and even less with pure mohair.

Cotton, linen and wool may shrink, even when washed at low temperatures. Wool can be treated to make it shrink-resistant and/or machine washable. This needs to be worked slightly tighter than ordinary wool, and it has a different handle.

Shrinkage test

a Work a sample.

b Cut a piece of paper to the exact shape of the sample, or take a photocopy c Wash the sample, d Block and, when dry, compare with original shape.

Handle

The way a yarn 'feels' to the touch is its handle. Very smooth and shiny yarns tend to be slippery, so they glide through your hands and along the needles. This makes for easy work, but also easy unravelling and easily dropped stitches, especially when worked loosely.This can be an advantage in techniques such as provisional cast-on where a contrast yarn is used as a foundation to be unpicked at a later stage. Spun silk is possibly the most slippery of all yarns, followed by mercerized cotton and some types of viscose.

Classy clickers... watch out for slippery yarns that make your knitting sag, especially if it is heavy.

Resilience

This is the elasticity or'give'. Some yarns (such as wool), will immediately recover their original length if stretched and released. Others (silk, some manmades and all vegetal fibres) either cannot be stretched, or remain stretched if pulled. Elastic stitch patterns such as ribbings can only be knitted successfully with resilient yarns. In, for example, silk or cotton, they widen and widen until they are totally useless.

Classy clickers... have learnt that silk or cotton knitting should never have ribbings as borders - it doesn't have enough resilience.

Twist

Totally untwisted yarns are very warm, because air is trapped between the fibres, but they are weak and break easily. High-twist yarns are strong and give a much clearer stitch pattern definition, but they are not so warm.

Classy clickers... have learnt that silk or cotton knitting should never have ribbings as borders - it doesn't have enough resilience.

.¿/Double knitting

Fisherman, medium weight/Triple knitting or Aran

Chenille buiky/Super

Thickness

There are various terms for thickness. Britain, for example, uses the term 'ply' (a ply is one of the twisted strands that highly textured yarn, one will counter the other.

• The purl side of the stitch is rugged. Any bumps or loops in the yarn will

Classy clickers... place hairy yarns such as mohair and angora in the fridge (in a plastic bag) for a couple of make a yarn). The more plies there are, the thicker the yarn. The US uses other terms.

Thickness within each category also varies; not all worsted or double knitting yarns are the same by any means. Keep this in mind when substituting yarns. Consult a yarn substitution guide. Check the ball band on a ball of yarn for the suggested gauge (see page 30).

Colour introduces another factor. Dark colours use more dye, making the yarn both thinner and heavier. Two large, identical items, knitted in a very light and a very dark colour of exactly the same yarn, might require different needles, different stitch sizes and different amounts of yarn.

Texture

Match yarn texture to stitch pattern. (See also The knitted stitch, page 13 and Stitch patterns, page 16.) • The knit side of the stitch is smooth. If teamed with a smooth yarn, the effect will be emphasized. With a naturally stay on that side, and stand out far better than from the knit side.

• Complex stitch patterns in highly textured yarns are a waste of time, because they do not show.
• Some yarn textures make certain techniques awkward. Brushed and hairy yarns get caught when passing one stitch on top of another, as in basic bind (cast) off and certain decreases.

Brushed yarns (such as most mohair) and hairy yarns (such as angora) may shed hairs and cause choking, especially in young children. Work these yarns loosely, letting the hairs fill the gaps, or work tightly for a furry effect. Brushing after making up gives extra lift to the hairs. Projects in plain yarn can also be brushed, either in parts or all over, to achieve a brushed-yarn effect. Bouclé (or poodle yarn) can refer to three types of yarn: real bouclé, gimp and loop. Chenille is a velvety yarn with a deep pile surrounding a central core.

hours to reduce shredding.

Ribbons give extraordinary depth to purl stitches. They require special treatment if they are to be knitted without any twists. Try threading a knitting needle or similar object first through one side of a box, then through the ball or spool of ribbon, and then through the other side of the box. In flat knitting, working the return rows from left to right helps to keep ribbon untwisted.

Colour

Yarns can be dyed in many ways, apart from in solid colours. Heather mixtures are very subtle combinations of fibres - dyed and blended before spinning. Twists are combinations of strands of different colours. Ombré or space-dyed yarns have different shades of the same colour appearing at regular, or irregular, intervals. (See also Thickness, above.)

Buying yarn

Addresses of Internet or mail-order yarn retailers can be found in knitting magazines or via an Internet search. Some offer superb qualities that are not viable for the mass market, or more ordinary yarns at a reduced price because they are selling direct.

Yarn is dyed in batches, called dye-lots. Colours may differ subtly between dye-lots. Mixing dye-lots can add depth to colour knitting, but is best avoided. If you have no option but to mix, change dye-lots every couple of rows, to give an all-over effect.

Labelling

Yarn bought from shops (except sometimes yarn on special offer), always carries a label or a ball band. Information on the label will include some, or all, of the following: • Fibre content Weight

• Cleaning instructions Approximate length in yards and metres
• Suggested needle size and tension

Symbols such as those of Fig 1 should be read:

'The manufacturers recommend a tension of 24 stitches and 32 rows in stockinette stitch; an average knitter will obtain this with size 5 (4mm) needles, then use size 4 (3.5mm) needles for the ribbings. Use size 5 (4mm) needles to work your first gauge sample, and assess how average you are; if necessary, change needles until the correct gauge is achieved. For patterns other than stockinette stitch you could need a totally different gauge and possibly different needles too.'

I 24 sts

Using yarn

Keep yarn clean inside the work bag or in a yarn box. Slippery yarns should always be kept in a yarn box. Most handknitting yarn comes in balls, but some is sold in skeins (hanks). There are also occasional spools and, if you want to use machine-knitting or industrial yarns, cones.

Commercial balls are easier to start from the outside, but it is better to start them from the inside to avoid twists.

Instructions always tell you how much yarn you need, but if you change tension, stitch pattern, style or indeed yarn, you will need more or less.

Skeins

These need to be wound into a soft ball (tight balls put the yarn permanently under stress). Stretch the skein over a chair back or ask someone to hold it for you (Fig 2). Undo the tie and start winding the end that hangs from the outside. Wind carefully and slowly.

a Leaving an end at least 8in (20cm) long, wrap yarn around thumb and little finger of left hand in a figure of eight, say 10 to 20 times (Fig 3).

lOx 10

b Slip the little hank off your fingers, without disturbing it, and fold in half, c Keeping the free end to the left, place the hank against the left fingers and wind the yarn over both the hank and the fingers, some 20 to 30 times (Fig 4).

d Turn the ball and wind 20 or 30 times more over ball and left fingers, at right angles from c. e Wind again between c and d. Always keeping the free end loose, repeat c to e until the skein runs out. f Tuck the end of the skein into the ball. You now have a ball of yarn that can be started from the centre (Fig 5).

If you want a ball that starts from the outside, wind the start of the skein around the fingers of the left hand, instead of a and b. Do not leave a tail.

Joining in yarn

In flat knitting, unless you are desperately short of yarn, or cannot face unpicking a nearly finished row, try to join yarn only at seam edges. Otherwise, join in at mid-row but NOT at a free edge unless extraordinary circumstances force you to do so. Darning the yarn ends could easily spoil the edge.

When joining at mid-row, try doing it at a change in stitch pattern, near a solid area in lace patterns, or at any other place that will make darning easy. If the two tails can lie on the wrong side, so much the better.

Always treat knots and imperfections in the yarn as if they were breaks. Cut them and rejoin.

To find out if you have enough yarn for one row, make the slip knot one-fourth of the length away from the needle, and see whether you can knit a quarter of a row.

If a join leaves you with a long length of yarn that could be used for seaming, do not cut it. To stop it from getting in the way, tie it into a little bundle: a Starting with the free end, wrap yarn around a couple of fingers, until a short distance away from the work, b Make a loop and place wrapped yarn inside it (Fig 6).

c Pull to fasten loop. When nearing the end of a ball, to find out if you have enough yarn to complete two rows: a Fold what is left of the yarn in half, b Make a slip knot.

c Knit first row. If you have reached the knot before the end of the row, there is not enough left for the second row.

Knots

Knots are best avoided, but if you do need them, make them properly. The ordinary, 'granny', knot can come undone. When joining yarns of the same thickness, use a reef or square knot (Fig 7). This is best when you can control exactly where you want it (see Drop and take, below); if done in advance you may have difficulties passing it through a stitch. Work as for granny knot, but tie first left over right, then right over left.

For yarns of different thickness, use a weaver's knot (Fig 8). This has to be done in advance.

Drop and take

Best for self-coloured knitting. Drop the old yarn, take the new yarn, and continue knitting. Leave tails not shorter than 6in (15cm), and darn them later (or tie into a square knot). If you find it difficult to keep an even yarn tension on the next row, work the first stitch after the join with the two yarns. Unpick one of the two strands before darning.

Woven join

Good for colour knitting. Weave in the old tail for not less than ten stitches when you start knitting with the new yarn, as in jacquard (see pages 90-91). On the next row, weave in the new tail in the opposite direction. In circular knitting, weave in the two tails together. Cut tails after blocking.

With slippery yarns and chenille, it is safer to weave in the tails on two rows, changing direction, or to weave them in for a longer length.

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