Knitting at Bloglander talks about everything related to knitting including yarn, patterns, and DIY knitting projects.

“The percentage of women under forty-five who knit or crochet has doubled since 1996,” says Debbie Stoller, author of Stitch `n Bitch. This little book single-handedly took the activity of knitting from “old and frumpy” to “sassy and hip.” Suddenly, everyone from my little cousin Emily to big-name Hollywood stars are into knitting. They know where their LYS is and are proud to show off and talk about their WIP whenever the subject is brought up (”Local Yarn Store” and “Work In Progress,” respectively).

Continue reading “Stitch ‘n Bitch” …

I wrote up a short article with picture instructions on how to cast-on.

View: How to Cast-on

This soft and luxurious wool - cotton yarn blend (54% Wool, 24% Nylon, 22% Cotton) is exclusive to Jo-Ann stores and comes from their Bellezza Collection. They call it Sensations Dolcetto Yarn and we’ve found it very “sweet” indeed. It’s really great for knitted hats and scarves.

On the Jo-ann website they offer a variety of pretty pastels including lime, peach, pink, purple-pink, yellow, cream and blue but in the store closest to us they only had lime, peach and yellow for sale. When we were at Jo-ann’s the other day trying to pick up a few balls of this Dolcetto yarn for a project, there were only a few left in the store. The salesperson there even said that they’ve been a pretty popular item so they seem to go quickly.

Most beginning knitters use Single-pointed straight needles, which are sticks with a pointy end and a knob end. They come in all sorts of widths and materials, and it is up to you to which you prefer. I’ve posted a picture of the most popular ones above: aluminum (show in size 19), bamboo (shown in size 15), and plastic (shown in size 6).

Aluminum and plastic needles are the most economical. Aluminum needles are lightweight and slippery, which is easier for sliding in and out of loops with. But I’ve found that it is very easy to drop stitches with aluminum needles. Aluminum needles are also very cold to hold and loud to knit with. If you plan to knit in bed with someone sleeping next to you, the clang clang of the aluminum needles could keep someone awake. Plastic needles are a good option. They are cheap and widely available, but sometimes the tips are not well-made and can snag and pull your yarn.

Continue reading “Knitting Needle Types” …

I wrote up a short article with picture instructions on how to make a simple slip knot which is pretty much the first thing you need to learn when you’re just starting out knitting.

View: How to Make A Knitting Slip Knot