help - too many stitches on needle

[hmccord]

I am very new to knitting. I have been making a prayer shawl...not counting stitches. I started with casting on 60 stitches. I have done knit stitch with several rows with size 13 needles, and am having a hard time since there are so many stitches when I finish a row. Is there a way to work around this, besides getting larger needles? Also, my next project may be to count stitches....how does that work, because if you start with 12 stitches, by row 2 you will have 24 since when you wrap the yarn around the needle each time, you are doubling the number of stitches. I would appreciate any help.....sorry if these seem like really elementary questions.

[Plantgoddess+]

You will have to go to a circular needle to accommodate all those stitches as you will be continuing to add stitches. I would probably go to at least a 32" cable going by the size of needle you're using.
As for counting you can put stitch markers on your needles after every pattern repeat or if it's just a basic stockinette or garter pattern you could put a marker after every 10,20, 0r 25 stitches whatever is easiest for you. You then just count the stitches between markers to make sure you're increasing correctly.

[cftwo]

It sounds to me like you'll need to get longer needles. You have 2 options: get longer straights and knit off your short ones and onto your long ones, or get a circular needle (again, knitting onto the new needle is probably going to be easiest for you).

Your pattern should tell you how many stitches you should have every so often. That's a good time to double check your total number of stitches. Rarely is it the case that you'd double the number of stitches in 1 row, unless you're making a circle or ruffles. Are you sure you're supposed to go from 60 to 120 that quickly? Counting is sort of a necessary evil, and can be time consuming (and I tend to check my count). Stitch markers can help - I use them if I'm working with hundreds of stitches.

[suzeeq]

It's the other pattern she's going to use that doubles stitches - 12 to 24.

There's some shawl patterns that start out like that, double, knit a row, double, knit a row, double, then work a few rows in pattern, double sts, a few more rows in pattern, then double again. It makes a circular shawl which stays on very well and is like a cape.

[tarrentella]

are you sure you are supposed to be doubling your stitches? the way you described it made it sound a little as if you where doingit by accident. Dont forget that when you wrap the yarn around your needle for a knit stitch you pull it through the old stitch and then drop that old stitch of the needle, so you are always replacing 1 with one, and not adding to it (unless your pattern calls for it).

as for the amount of stitches you have on your needle being difficult to manage, the easiest way is to get a circular needle (two short needle which are conected by a cable). you can knit flat with them just the same as normal but the mass of stitches can rest on the cable and be a bit easier to manage.