Beginning Knitting - Help!

[NotQuiteCockney]

Any expert knitters out there? I'm just starting to relearn how to knit, after years and years. Well, really, I'm learning for the first time, as my mom used to do casting on for me etc.

I've got a pretty good book, and am doing ok (I think). The problem is, I bought a ball of yarn from a local shop, and I'm finding it very annoying. The yarn is "courtelle", which must be synthetic. It splits a lot, and if I mess up, un-knit a bit, and try to start over, it's all frayed and impossible.

What sort of yarn works best for figuring out what I'm doing? I'm working on 4mm needles, although I'm happy to get more. And are there good online sites for buying knitting stuff? Or should I just do ebay? (There's a nice-looking place out in Leyton, but getting there's a bit of a struggle with no car.)

Yum, the perfect Friday thread. Thanks Tamum

My pleasure, Marina (and that's without all the US/Canadian ones.......)

Must you tempt me with all those yummy sites, Tamum? I lol-ed at your 100000000 balls of wool - my friend removed five bin bags of wool from her MIL's house.

I'm knitting a throw from Debbie Abraham atm.

think Im gonna have to get back into my crafts and start doing something. Ive not touched anything in ages. Got sooo much I want to do gonna start again this weekend. Really tempted to buy some stuff off these gorgeous websites but Ive got so much wool at home already

Surely you must have some super patterns for viking chain-mail Tarantula

lol now that is the most tedious thing to make ever. two pliers and a pile of washers and 6 mnths later (if youre lucky) you have a mailshirt. Im supposed to be doing some tablet weaving for some reins for dd and got to make her a new costume cos for some reason last years is too small. Dp and dss both need new cossies too argh thats 2 over tunics 2 under tunics and 2 pairs of trousers. I dont want to even think about it. And still havent made myself the dress I bought material for two years ago. Gosh what have I been doing with my time Oh yeha thats it I ahd a baby.

Suedonim, thank you so much for telling me about the 5 bin bags, I feel marginally better. I spread mine liberally round the house so I never get confronted with it all in one go. I am genuinely tryng to work through some of my stash at the moment. Debbie Abrahams is great, isn't she? I've got that book too, it's fab. Sadly I keep knitting odd squares and never quite getting down to it, but I will one day I'm sure

tarantula, don't be put off by the wool you already have, just click on those links.......

My mum is knitting my DSis a baby blanket ready for the arrival of new grandchild. I think it might be in the book suedonim mentioned. As indiv balls, the yarn looks bleurgh but the blanket is beautiful when made up (this'll be the second one she's made).

I might have to take up knitting. Mum was showing me the workshop list for John Lewis in Nottm who are having some workshops over the next few months.

You know you want to really, SueW! Then you can have a good chunter at the skimpy vests in the Rowan mags on your own account
So are you going to be an aunty soon? How does dd fancy having a cousin? Our ds has to be bound and gagged to stop pestering both our sisters (one not in relationship, one in relationship crisis) about producing cousins for him...

DD already has 6 cousins in NZ, two over here and two new step-cousins but this will be the first new baby cousin she's had!

I do think a lot about taking up knitting, esp as you can do it almost without thinking, it seems, once you get into the knack! However at the moment life seems to be taken up with other things and in just five weeks I start teaching my first antenatal class - yikes! Maybe I'll need to take up knitting as relaxation by then.

Tamum, thanks for the knitting at knoon site (in addition to all those others)! Now I will have eons of happy browsing, and the knitting at knoon site looks very helpful.

SueW, I have just the thing for you. Learn to knit, and you can make just the thing for your antenatal classes- a knitted uterus .
Go on, you know you want to

And you might actually find there is a demand from your clients to be taught to knit while talking about "how many people in the room for a c-section" etc. I've had a number of newly pregnant friends and rellies ask me to teach them the basics.
Tamum ! Looks like one for those Casting Off scamps....

ROFL at the knitted uterus - I've seen some before but not cuddly ones!

Stephi (DD aged 8yo) choreographed the 'pelvic rock' for me last night in prep for classes. An exercise to remind you to wiggle your hips during labour to expand the space through the middle and help baby move down. I can't wait to try this one out....!

tamum, thanks again for the spare yarn. I got my set of bamboo knitting needles in the post today (woohoo ebay!) and am now working on the cotton. I see what you mean about the unravelling, but it's still about a billion times easier to use than that synthetic stuff! I was trying to learn how to increase "normally" and couldn't see the old stitches, IYSWIM.

I've got increasing and decreasing working now, and just have to pick a project ... well, I told DS1 I'd do his initial, which I'll just do in seed stitch on stockingette, but after that ... maybe a mobile phone cozy? I have a pattern ...

You're more than welcome, NQC. It sounds as though it's coming on well! Have you got some good books? The Stitch and Bitch ones have lots of things like mobile phone cozies and wrist warmers, and the first one is a good instruction book too.

I've only got one book - the first Stitch and Bitch one. (There's more than one of those?) I'm pretty happy with it, it's where I'm getting my instruction from.

I was planning on trying online knitting patterns, but are they reliable?

DS1 has his heart set on a Stitch and Bitch sweater (with jolly roger on it) but a) that requires using more than one colour, I think it's intarsia? I'd rather wait a bit to learn that I think and b) I think it's adult sizing, so I'd have to fiddle it.

Help! I'm running into UK/US problems. Can anyone explain the following terms in a (UK) pattern to me? It's a sort of skullcap looking hat, with holes in it. (Rowan Cotton Rope Collection, Safi Hat) It's not knitted in the round.

• yfrn. It says this means "yarn forward", and it's between a K2tog and a perl. Which is fine. But why is it telling me yfrn here, and not between perl and K2tog?

• yon - is this yarn backward? It's between a P and a sl.

• sl - am I slipping knitwise, by default?

• psso - pass slipped stitch over - is this like binding off, in that I pass the slipped stitch over the stitch I knitted after it?

• "patt 2 sts"?!? It's in the crown shaping, and the odd rows keep having some perl, then (patt 2 sts, something else) 8 times. They say what the pattern is earlier, but it's a 4-row thing. Help?!?

Am I just expecting patterns to make more sense than they do, generally? It's really just the last question that has me totally flummoxed, I guess.

I think 'yfrn' means yarn to the front rather than forward.

'yon' is yarn over needle, making a stitch.

'- sl - am I slipping knitwise, by default?' Yes, unless it says purlwise.

'psso - pass slipped stitch over - is this like binding off, in that I pass the slipped stitch over the stitch I knitted after it?' Yes.

'"patt 2 sts"?!?' It's bit hard to explain but if you're knitting a pattern it means you need to knit the stiches so as to correspond with the preceding pattern eg if you were doing a rib stitch you'd want to have your knit and purl stithces in the correct place to make up the ribbing.

I'm sure that's all clear as mud and I hope someone more skilled will come along with a clearer explanation!

You're right, it's yfrn, I'm looking at the back and seeing ywfd and being stupid. It does mean, take the running bit of yarn to the front, like you do between knitting and purling?

patt 2 sts makes sense, it's in stockingette, so that's fine.

yon is the only real puzzle left then. They have me doing P2, yon, sl 1, K1 etc repeatedly. I just assumed yon meant, bring yarn to the back - why would I put the yarn over the needle between purling and slipping? (This probably has something to do with making the holes in the hat? They're pretty big holes, I thought it was a crocheted hat when I saw the pic.)

Thanks for the help, you're being very clear. It was not very bright of me to start knitting with an American book in the UK. Lots of the knitting equipment I wanted for the US patterns was incomprehensible or non-existant in John Lewis Oxford Street this morning.

Hello NQC! Not sure there's much to add to suedonim's excellent explanation, but all the yon means really is that you put the yarn back over the needle before you slip, so you make a stitch before the slipped stitch which is only apparent once you've then done the knit stitch. There, clear as mud. I would have said it was a way of increasing that also makes a small hole, would that sound right? If there's a corresponding decrease (k2tog, or soemthing) on the next row then it's just a hole not an increase. It's used in lace knitting a lot.

That's a shame about not being able to find the right stuff in JL. What sort of things were you after? I thought things were getting more standardised really, but I do order a lot of yarns from the US and Canada.

There is another Stitch and Bitch book although I'm kind of wishing I hadn't bought it as the patterns are mainly for such barmy things. There is a whole chapter on resizing and reshaping patterns though, which might help with the jumper for your ds . It's called Stitch and Bitch Nation .

Thanks tamum. I'm not sure I thoroughly understand that, might have a go at it now, to see what it does exactly.

I'm off to my MILs for next week, and won't have web access, or access to any knitters (I think?), so I want to be sure I can do this while I'm there.

I was looking for 85g wool - everything was 50g or 100g. And 4.5mm 16" circular needles (which they did stock, but were out of, to be fair).

I can always just buy stuff online, or buy things when I'm in Canada every year. I just needed projects for next week in Royston Vasey.

I think I understand it - the two weird instructions were both Yarn Over (YO) by the American book I have, one on a knit stitch, the other on a purl.

It's an interesting pattern, but a bit tricky, not least because it's very hard to backtrack on ... well, it's a learning experience.

Hello! Well done, that sounds right, it is essentially just YON, isn't it. I knit more from US patterns than UK probably, so I can see why you're confused. I get Interweave Knits, which I like better than any UK based mags.

You're right, I have never seen 85g wool! If you are going to substitute one yarn for another it's always worth looking at the yardage/meterage if you can, as that's a much more accurate way of estimating how much you need. As far as the circular needles go, I would definitely think about getting a set of Denise needles if you're really gettng into this knitting business. It's a great set of circular pins and cords to join them so you have endless options. You can buy them in the UK here , but they're probably cheaper in Canada. I got mine on eBay from a US seller; they were reviewed on Knitty , that's where I heard about them. Although they're quite expensive it is cheaper if you're going to do lots of circular stuff.

Sounds like you're doing really well, anyway