Complete virgin knitter

[musttidyupmusttidyup]

Can someone recommend a good you tube vid to get me started?
It was one of me NY resolutions so I have just under 2 months to get reasonable. I've been to c &h and got a ball of wool and some needles so....

Not You Tube, but I asked on here for good books and was recommended "Knitty Gritty" by Aneeta Patel. I've found it good and you can easily go back and check what to do for casting on/off, decrease, different stitches etc, which might not be so easy to do with a video.

Thanks bluey I might order a copy. I have achieved today:
Casting on
Knit stitch
Casting off
And done a reasonable job but a few holes.
I keep starting off with 10 stitches and ending up with 12,13,14 can't work out why though....

Probably because you don't let the stitch slide off properly and knit it again.
Or maybe because you just put the wool round the needle but don't finish the stitch off.
If you google 'knitting' you should get a resulting video.

Are there any learn top knit classes near you? Local yarn stores usually run something on a regular basis. I would highly recommend doing a class, as there is nothning like being shown in the flesh to help one catch on really quickly.
Have a look at the UK Hand Knitting Assocaition website for their "knit one, pass it on" workshops.

You can also have a look at Ravelry whether there are any groups in your area.

One of my favourite sites is Knitfreedom, loads of fantastic video tutorials to get you started.

Knitting for Dummies is a very good book - and website.

YouTube has loads to go at, I like Planetpurl

Thanks for these. Each little square is a bit better than the last!

I did that mystery stitch increase randomly when i was trying to suss out knitting as well. This is a bit hard to describe, but...

Each stitch is like a loop of wool over the needle, right? So there is one thread over the top, and two bits dangling down.
But when you reach the end of the row (and have a swig of coffee, and a loo visit, and, and, and... ) you sometimes get the knitting a bit twisted round on the needle so the last stitch's two dangly bits are facing you. Then you end up knitting into two loops instead of one, and you end up with one stitch too many.

So before you start on each new row, you need to check your free wool is hanging down neatly where it should be, and you have the right number of loops on the needle.

If you have 'Stitch n bitch' - which I totally recommend - there's a picture on pg 38. It's the only knitting book I've seen that actually goes into the many ways you can cock up, and what to do about them. V useful!

There's a YouTube channel called iKnits, she even shows how to make a Kim Kardashian beanie! She uses circular needles though but really good clear instructions when you pause it every time lose count & drop blardy stitches

Thank you for these ideas. I think I am back on track and keeping stitches right - I definitely am not being careful enough though as I'm still making some holes. Have agreed to knit a very small scarf for ds2's teddy so sure he won't be too fussy :-)

Btw have I made re right decision to learn knitting rather than crochet?

the

Well, that depends. People say crochet is easier to learn from scratch as you have only got to control one pin rather than two which can go all over the place.
But I think that knitting, once you have learned gives endless opportunities which crocket does not give. I can do both, but knit far more than I crochet.

I found the Stitch and Bitch series a really good reference for how to do all kinds of things, starting with the basics and moving up to intarsia and designing for yourself. Disclaimer: I've got a pattern in the second book in the series. But I still use them and lend them to people all the time.

A local class or even supportive yarn group work WONDERS. My ability to cable, do lace and have any confidence at all in knitting come from a woman I refer to as my knitting enabler.