Knitting Basics – Understanding Stitches
If you are a knitting beginner then it is a good idea to start your learning at the very beginning and to learn just what stitches are. This will allow you to understand what you are doing and so make the whole process a lot simpler for you. In this article we will look not only at what stitches are but also how they should sit on the needle and what size they are.
What are stitches?
The simplest way to think about a stitch is as an interlocking loop of yarn. The top of the lower loop will interlock with the bottom of the higher loop. The top of this higher loop is kept on the needle ready to interlock with the next loop. Then each loop that is on your needle or has ever been on your needle is called a stitch. It is a similar idea to the daisy chain bracelets that many of us made as children.
Each stitch or loop as two sides, the knit side which is the one that looks smooth and the purl side where you can see how the stitches have interlocked. What side of the stitch you show on your garment will depend on what you are making. For example of you are making a plain jumper with no pattern then you will only see the knit side. However if you are doing something like a rib pattern then you will alternate knit and purl at the front to make the rib pattern appear. When you are making anything it is always important to know what is the right side and what is the wrong side so you can make sure you have the stitches facing the right way. This will be explained in a later article when we look at casting on.
How Stitches Sit on the Needle
With every stitch or loop there are two sides, the left and right side of the loop. When the stitches are on the needle then apart from some exceptions the right side of the loop will be at the front of the needle. If it is the other way round then you may find your stitch is twisted. To correct it just slip the stitch off the needle, turn it and reinsert the needle into the stitch the right way round.
When you start a row the stitches will all be on the needle in your left hand with the right loops at the front of the needle. As you knit you will progress along the needle from right to left until all the stitches are on the right hand needle. When this happens you have completed a row and you switch the hands that the needles are in.
What is the Right Stitch Size?
This is a very difficult question to answer as it depends on the yarn being used as well as the needles and your knitting style. When are using a particular yarn it will normally tell you on the label which size needles are right to use. It will also give you information on the number of stitches and rows to a 10cm/4in square. This is called the tension of the yarn. We will look at this in more detail in another article but it is always important to test your tension for every project. One of the things many new knitters do is to pull their knitting to tight and so making their stitches smaller. Remember when you are knitting that you should easily be able to move the stitches backwards and forwards on the needle but they should be tight enough to stay on the needle.
About the Author
This article has been supplied by Mercedes Aspland for the<a href=”http://www.theknittingshop.co.uk”>knitting wool shop</a>.
There is a lot more information on our site and you can buy <a href=”http://www.knittingwoolandyarnshop.co.uk/shop/products/wools_yarns/debbie_bliss_collection”>Debbie Bliss yarn</a> and many more.
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