How to get into knitting?!

[Chocolatelovingirl]

Hi! I would really love to get into knitting and make nice things like gloves or jumpers! But I've never done any sewing or knitting before and don't know where to start, I don't have any experience in being deft with my fingers!
Should I borrow a book or watch a video, and if so, which one/s?
What material should I buy to start off with?
How long should I expect to take before I can be good at this?
I'd really appreciate any advice!

Start on YouTube but if you get frustrated and stuck see if you can get a lesson. Local wool shop is a cgood place to enquire.
Lessons are like giving up smoking, better if you've had a few and failed already. So get in a few dry runs for free via the online offerings is my advice.🧶

Thank you all for the wealth of advice, what great responses!

@KnottyKnitting I love that adorable horse, I could never knit something like that! I hope whichever child (or adult!) it's for enjoys it!

Chocolatelovinggirl I would never have believed ten months ago that I would ever be able to knit something like that either but with lots of practice and patience anything is possible!

Once you have the basic knit and purl stitches under you belt and then techniques to add and reduce stitches you have most of it sorted.

I started by practising lots of squares with different combinations of stitches to just get my confidence. I found this site quite useful. makeetc.com/blogs/knitting-and-crochet/knitting-block-patterns-for-beginners. Good luck!

I taught myself a few years ago. Favourite site for tutorials is Wool and the Gang - they use videos and step-by step instructions with photos. Knitting for Dummies (book and website) is also great.

I just started out last week and found the Sheep and Stitch YouTube channel good! I can cast on, knit and purl now. My mother tried to teach me and failed.

I find bamboo needles grip the wool more easily than metal which is handy for a beginner.

It really doesn't matter if you get holes or find you have random extra stitches appear on your needles. That's normal, focus on learning not the quality of the finished project - you'll naturally improve with time and practice 😊

I learned with you tube and eventually found a knit and natter group in my area via Ravelry. Those ladies were awesome and taught me much more than You Tube about stitches, colour and design 🥰

1. Youtube is your friend. There's a ton of useful videos for beginner knitters. Focus on learning how to cast on and perform a basic knit stitch.

2. Find a knitter friend and get a leftover half ball of yarn from them to practice on (trust me, they will have one.) Any colour. And use that until you've mastered the basics.

3. Start with a scarf in garter stitch. No fancy stitches, no increasing/decreasing. Just straightforward knitting. Buy some chunky wool (nothing too fluffy - as that's harder to use.) Cast on a bunch of stitches. And just knit and knit until it's long enough for your liking.

Start with a basic scarf. Everything else can come with time and experience.

Yay! Start small and accept that it is nonfunctional. I think baby items are good because you get through them quickly.

I love very pink knits as she does slow mo videos, which I’ve linked to.

It takes time and muscle memory developing but I love it. Try out both English knitting and continental as some people find one or the other more comfortable. My mom is an English knitter and I’m continental.

Also to some extent ignore errors. Recognise them but move on. I am a fairly reasonable knitter but never completed large items until recently as I would notice a tiny error rows back and then would abandon the whole thing. I’m knitting a shawl/scarf thing now and I have made a few minor errors but honestly only I can tell are there.

Youtube's great. Would also agree that knitting squares to try out different patterns and techniques is good. If you use a thick wool,they knit up quickly which is more encouraging. You can easily sew the squares together to make kimono type jacket or dressing gown,so you wind up with a garment and not just a blanket.

Get sewing books

I would echo what a PP said about you need to knit enough for it to become muscle memory (like riding a bike). I was taught to knit while young, and go through phases of picking it up and then ten years will go by and I've knitted nothing but can pick it up again very easily - I just finished a blanket for our son's bed! My problem is boredom, so I find that I need a pattern with just enough changes in it to create some interest without being too hard.

I'm going to have a try at Tunisian Crochet next, having watched a Youtube video. I prefer crochet to knitting as it can be put down mid-row far more easily!

For thin yarn - DK weight or lower - I like to use metal needles. If the yarn weight is higher than DK I use bamboo or wooden needles. You can buy plastic needles but they aren't nearly as nice to knit with, the yarn seems to stick more & you have to keep stopping to ease the yarn along the needle. I do anyway! I have several pairs of size 4 needles, in bamboo, metal, & a pair in wood, that's the size I use most as I do more DK knitting than anything else. Some yarns are better on metal & some on bamboo.

I learnt about 20 years ago from a weekly magazine that came with a ball of yarn. I made a really bad blanket (which I've since got rid of) but I can knit really well now. You can definitely learn from just a book, if you can find RL support that's even better. And of course YouTube is a fab resource now too.

I regularly use Very Pink Knits' YouTube videos too - she does some slo-mo ones with voiceover which are great for seeing where the needle/yarn goes. I've been knitting basic stuff off and on for years but recently got back into it and am now doing more complicated projects - jumpers, cardigans etc. Baby clothes are great once you've got the basics because you can try out new techniques but they don't take long to knit.