Best beginner advice?

[fishcube]

I am going to try my hand at knitting. I am going tomorrow to get some needles, beginner book etc. Will be learning from a beginner book. I have done some crochet before.

I have wanted to try knitting for a long time. A close friend said she didn't care for knitting, but loves crochet. I really want to knit afghans, socks, and baby clothes.

Any advice for a beginner just learning knitting?

Best tips?

Thx
Sharon

[tilllie]

Check out the how-to videos on this site, find a friendly yarn store with friendly workers willing to help and most of all: remember it is a hobby, meant to be fun! Welcome to a wonderfully enjoyable pasttime!

[Jan in CA]

Use size 8, 9, or 10 and a smooth, light colored, medium (worsted) weight yarn. Don't use a fuzzy yarn till you have a good grasp of basic technique. Keep on knitting even if it isn't perfect. It doesn't matter if the stitches are uneven or wonky at first.

Check the videos on this site and you can also look here for more help if you like still photos.
http://www.community.knitpicks.com/notes

And most of all be patient. It feels awkward for everyone at first.

[etoilechaude]

I agree with Jan... no matter how weird it looks just keep going!!!! As a good friend once told me (and I honestly think of this qoute to this day!!!) "It's just yarn!"

[trvvn5]

I'm gonna agree with Jan on this. One of the things that I did a lot when I first started was I would notice that my stitches weren't even and I would frog it all the way back and start over. It was remarkably frustrating. So even if they aren't even in the beggining just keep going. The evenness will come over time.

Another thing I would suggest is to start by making scarves or dish cloths. They're short projects, they're usually easy, you can embellish them with different patterns as you get better.

Don't use fuzzy yarn to learn on. You'll just end up crying. I know some of the softer and fuzzy yarns are so pretty, but its really hard to determine your stitches and its really hard to make sure that you haven't split your yarn on a stitch.

Remember that knitting is a skill. You'll only get better as you practice and you're not going to be very good at it when you first start. You'll get frustrated when you drop a stitch or when you can't figure out where that extra stitch came from, but just post here and vent and ask for help and everyone here will be more than willing to help you out.

[Crycket]

Don't invest in any really expensive yarns until you are satisfied with what you are working on.

A lot of my first projects had tension issues, and I am glad that at first, I was using your basic yarns.

[CountryNaturals]

Start with a light, solid color yarn so you see every stitch. Pay attention to what they look like so you can recognize the difference between front and back (and eventually knit and purl).

STAY LOOSE! (Tension) The biggest mistake most beginners make is making their work too tight. Hold your yarn loosely. Watch the free videos here to learn how to hold your yarn. Practice that part by itself until the yarn feels comfortable going through your fingers and you don't have to think about what to do when you change needles or pick up your knitting after a break.

Relax, be patient with yourself. Laugh. Enjoy.

[UruzPhoenix]

just take the patterns one line at a time. Doing it that way you can pretty much ignore their "difficulty levels".

I also try to find new patterns for things i want to make that will teach me one new thing when it comes to knitting...

[Ellieblue]

You can hold your yarn the same way you do for crochet. Buy circular needles instead of straights; you'll be happier in the long run. Thre are a lot a videos on Youtube under Knitting. Have fun

[melmac51]

Relax with it. It's supposed to be fun! If it stops being fun, or you're stressed out over it, put it aside until you're ready to try again. After awhile, you'll probably be able to do it almost without even thinking about it!!

...and, this is the best site ever for advice and venting.