Fantastic Knitting Tips From Top Knitters
The best knitting tips, all gathered in one place.
I love to search the Internet for knitting tips, but sometimes it seems like for every useful bit of information you turn up, you have to wade through a dozen obvious, silly, or boring suggestions. And I always forget the good ones and have to go searching for them again. So I decided to make a list of my favorites, and since I was making the list anyway, I wanted to share it with you.
These aren't rocket science miracle cures, just plain old fashioned good advice -- fun knitting tips to make your job a little easier.
1. Cast on with a needle a size or two larger than you plan to knit with.
Such an easy tip and it makes a world of difference: you don't have to worry about casting on too tightly. And since I'm a chronic tight caster-onner, this one's a lifesaver in my books.
2. Remember that stockinette stitch always curls.
Stockinette stitch, if you'll recall, means knitting one row and purling the next. And one of the best knitting tips I've ever seen tells you how to deal with the curling up, rolling around, and other antics stockinette stitched products seem to get up to.
There are actually a couple of solutions, my favorites including:
-Stitch it double width, then fold it over and stitch the ends together (works great for a nice warm scarf)
-line the piece with a chunk of fabric
-use a nice edging to hold it straight
3. Use novelty yarn sparingly.
I know, it looks so funky that you really want to make a whole sweater out of fuzzy purple sparkles. But for the most part, these knitting tips are trying to save you from yourself, you know. There are dozens of fun things you can make with novelty yarn that WON'T drive you nuts or make you look like a teenage fashion disaster -- things like scarves, trim on mittens, stripes, and tassles.
4. Glycerin prevents finished products from pilling.
If you want to keep your finished products looking new (and don't we all), try adding just one or two drops of glycerin into the wash water, which smooths the yarn and keeps you from getting ugly pills and bunches.
NEVER put that piece into the dryer, though. You shouldn't really be machine drying hand-knits anyway, but if you must don't use these knitting tips. Dryer + glycerin = gross, sticky mess.
So there you have a few of my all time favorites. Enjoy these knitting tips, and remember: whatever you do, just keep on knitting.