So you wanna knit? Part four: casting on

Ready?  Good.  Let's go.
Grab your needles and your yarn.  Put on some good tunes.  Pour a glass of wine.  Let's cast on.

"Casting on" is how you get your stitches on your needles.  You are building a foundation to knit off of.  Your pattern will tell you how many stitches to cast on (CO).  Do what you are told.  If you are just playing around, it doesn't matter so much.  Try casting on 20, or in Knitting-ese, "CO 20".

The first stitch that you cast on is made out of a slip knot.  Have you ever made a slip knot?  Probably.  But maybe knot (sorry, couldn't resist).  It's easier to learn by seeing it, than reading it, so here are a few pictures that might help:

SLIP KNOT 101

1.  With the palm of one hand facing you, drape the tail end of your yarn over your hand from front to back.  Leave about a foot of yarn hanging off the back of your hand.

2.  Grab the tail of the yarn with your opposite hand and wrap it around your pointer and middle fingers one time so that it is hanging behind your fingers again.  Like this:

3.  Curl your pointer and middle fingers towards you and with your opposite hand, push a loop of the tail through the yarn that is wrapped around your fingers.  Grab this loop with your right hand and pull your left fingers out.  While holding the loop, gently tug on the yarn tail - the one that is "hanging loose" (not the one attached to the skein).  This will tighten the loop.

4.  You have just made a slip knot.  It is called a slip knot because it easily slips into a bigger or smaller loop, depending on how you tug it.  Play with it a little, and make a couple until you feel like you have the hang of it.  It becomes so second nature after a while that you do it without even thinking about it.  No luck?? It might be easier to watch a video. Try this one! Or just go to YouTube and type in "slip knot" - you'll find more videos than you'll know what to do with. There are lots of different ways to make a slip knot. You'll find one that works for your happy little fingers.

The loop of the slip knot gets put onto one needle. Then this needle is held in your non-dominant hand. This is going to be your working needle. You are going to add many more loops to this needle until you have as many as you need to start your project. This will be the foundation of your knitting, and what you are about to do is "cast on".

CASTING ON

Okay.  You already have one stitch "cast on" to your needle - the "stitch" that was created by the slip knot.  I am going to walk you through the "cable cast on" method. I like this method because as you cast on, you will also be learning the "knit stitch" (more-or-less)...so pay attention!  There are other ways to cast on, but we'll save them for later.

CABLE CAST ON:

1.  Hold the needle with the slip knot in your non-dominant hand.  (For me this is the left, so all of my pictures will illustrate right-handed kntting.  If you are a lefty, this link will walk you through how to do this in the other direction).  With your dominant hand, put the tip of the other needle through the front of the stitch, keeping the right needle below the left.

2. Next, wrap the end of the yarn which is attached to the skein around the tip of the right needle, from back to front:

Give this tail a little tug, almost so it snaps into place in between the two needles, and is snug against the first loop.

3. Now, with your right hand, bring the right needle from the back to the front of the left, carrying along the yarn that you looped around.  In other words, bring the yarn THROUGH the original stitch, back to front.

See what you've got?? You've got another loop.  Where do you think it should go??  Next to the first loop! 

4. So, with your right needle, pull a little to make the loop bigger, then slip it on to the end of the left needle.

Gently pull the tail to make this loop fit nicely next to its neighbor.  You never want to cast on too TIGHT.  The stitches should encircle the needle like your favorite old pair of broken-in-jeans fits your hips.

The next stitch will be made by repeating the above, but building on the stitch you just made.  The only difference is this: instead of inserting your right needle through the front of the stitch, you are going to wedge it between the first stitch and second stitch, like this:

Do you see the difference?  The rest is the same...wrap the yarn (which is connected to the skein) around the right needle from back to front, give it a tug, and carry it from back to front with your right needle.  Then tug on the loop and add it to the left needle, next to the first two. 

Do this over and over again, adding one stitch at a time, until you have "cast on" as many stitches as you need.  The stitches will stack nicely next to one another, and when you are all done, it will look something like this:

Congrats!  Practice makes perfect (hint, hint!).

What the...? Demystifying knitting lingo

I thought I was pretty cool in seventh grade.  I transformed from "Mandy" into "Mandi", got my first real boyfriend (or two), and made the executive decision to take...(drumroll)...FRENCH.  Up until seventh grade, you see, my classmates and I were forced to take Spanish.  Blah.  Uno, dos, tres.  I mean, like, didn't the teachers know that we, like, totally learned all of that stuff, like, on Sesame Street, about a TRILLION years ago??  What-EVER! 

But French...ooh la la!  So exotic, so sophisticated.  Someone decided that as seventh graders we were mature enough to handle the language of love, and voila!  I was officially a French Student.  Adios espanol!

Now, a decade (or two) later, I'm cursing that Francophilic adolescent.  Don't get me wrong, I enjoyed learning French, and continued to study it through my freshman year of college (thank you Prof. Williamson!).  But now that I'm a big girl with a big-girl job, I NEED TO SPEAK SPANISH!!!  Hindsight is 20/20, as they say.  I am exposed to more Spanish than English on any given day in my profession. Who would have known.  Rosetta Stone is my only hope at this point.  If I had only stuck with Spanish back when I was still Mandy, I would probably be pretty good by now.

Despite my failed attempts at being bilingual in the traditional sort-of way, I am proud to say that I am fluent in the language of knitting. 

The language of knitting is more like a shorthand.  The key is learning how to decipher the abbreviations and symbols that represent knitting stitches and techniques.  The shorthand helps to keep patterns concise and easy to follow.  Writing out "slip one knit-wise, knit one, and pass slipped stich over" takes up a lot more room than "SKP", and is messier for your brain to process when you are quickly glancing at a written pattern and telling your fingers how to follow.  Here's a run-down of some basic abbreviations:

CO = cast on
k = knit
p = purl
dec = decrease
inc = increase
k2tog = knit two together
yo = yarn over
wyif = with yarn in front
St st = stockinette stitch
BO = bind off

There are lots more, which you will learn along the way.

Most knitting patterns will have a key which explains what their abbreviations mean.  The Craft Yarn Council of America has certain standards for knitting abbreviations, and if you click here, you will find them all.  Any good knitting instruction book will have an index of abbreviations, and if all else fails, type "xx knitting abbreviation" into google, and you are almost guaranteed to decipher even the most obscure notation.  Knitting patterns that originate in other countries may have different abbreviations, but they are usually pretty easy to interpret with the right guidance (i.e. internet, expert knitter, LYS employee).

Allons-y!

Coming up...casting on.

Star Crossed Slouchy Beret

Have you noticed how H-O-T the knitted beret is right now??  If not, look around.  I like a knitted beret because it keeps you warm now, but can transition into the spring and still be stylish and appropriate.  Natalie Larson has a great beret pattern on ravelry called "Star Crossed Slouchy Beret" (it's a free download).  It knits up beautifully with worsted weight yarn and is a nice pattern for practicing all sorts of knitting techniques: ribbing, increasing, decreasing, and cables.  Try it!

The top is like a pinwheel, made by doing a simple decrease with double pointed needles (dpns) or by using the magic loop method.

I followed Natalie's advice and used Malabrigo worsted yarn.  It is a scrumptious kettle dyed merino wool that is soft yet durable.  The colors are so vibrant and earthy.  I literally couldn't stop buying skein after skein.  Each beret used about 2/3 of a skein.  Here's what it looks like on your (my) head...

Have you ever tried taking pictures of yourself in the mirror with your cell phone?? Not easy!

Fake-a-gamo

My mom's friend Anna is a knitter, like me.  She's cute as a button and sharp as a tack, like my mom.  Anna knits beautiful purses and has a friend who sews the linings.  Her final products are really somethin'.  Last summer she shared a pattern with me, and it's one of my favorite projects of all time.  It's for a knock-off of a Ferragamo handbag, appropriately dubbed a "Fake-a-gamo".  The pattern I followed was once posted here but I can't find it anymore!!  This link gives you some basics, and this has some FAQs.  If you go on ravelry and search for Fake-a-gamo, you can probably find a more complete pattern.

Mine came out like this:

I loooove it.

A closer look at the stitch pattern:

When my fiance and I were in San Fran this summer, I found a vintage fabric shop in Haight-Ashbury where I bought the material that I used for the lining...

I found the bamboo handles on etsy.  I'm working on a second, in midnight blue.  It's gonna be a gift, but I can't say for who.  Big secret!

gauge...don't be a hater

I wish I could say I wasn't a gauge-hater.  Fo' real.  But I am.  My name is Mandi, and I'm a gauge-hater.   You will soon see why there is no room for this in the knitting-hood.

gauge ('gaj) n. 1. In knitting, a measurement of how many stitches and rows make up one inch. 2. That thing you (reluctantly) check before starting a project to prevent the compulsion to throw your knitting needles across the room

swatch ('swoch) n. 1. a segment or strip of fabric used to represent the gauge, texture, color, or pattern of the whole piece 2.  The necessary evil one must knit in order to avoid the obligatory kneedle throwing (see above)

In a perfect world, you could grab some needles, pick some luxurious yarn, and be on your way.  A few hours later you would have an exact replica of the $350 cable-knit sweater you saw in the window of Anthropologie, custom fit to your exact size and shape.  Mmmmm...I'm taking a moment to live this fantasy.  The truth is, it AIN'T THAT EASY, sister.  But don't be discouraged...the real thing is way more fun and satisfying!

Many people knit from patterns, which expert knitters and fiber designers have created after hours and hours of sketching, tweaking, attempting, tweaking some more, and finally publishing.  Each pattern follows a similar format and provides important preliminary information, which if followed correctly, will ensure your finished product is just as perfect as the photograph you saw online.  Patterns typically start with descriptions of the following:

Size or knitted measurements - This tells you what sizes can be made with the particular pattern you have chosen. Sometimes this section will look like this: XS (S, M, L), meaning the pattern can be knit in four different sizes - extra small, small, medium, and large.  The pattern directions will go on to explain each step in a similar fashion. When it says to cast on 50 (54, 60, 68) stitches, it means that if you are making a size XS, you cast on 50.  For a size S, cast on 54, and so on.  

Materials - This section tells you what type of yarn the pattern was designed for.  Using the exact same type of yarn is always an option, but isn't a necessity.  Knowing how to substitute different types of yarns will come with experience and practice.  In the beginning, have your LYS employee help you pick out an alternative if you don't want to go with what is recommended or if you can't find the yarn that was specified in the pattern.  Another option is finding something that is of similar weight.  Weight is often depicted with a little symbol and a number, as designated by the Craft Yarn Council of America.  A link to these weights is found here.  If you know the weight of the recommended yarn, you can find an alternative yarn in a similar weight and you will probably be good to go. 

When choosing an alternate yarn, be careful of the drape.  Drape describes how something will hang or fall, just as you might have guessed.  Different yarns create different drapes - knitter beware!  Check with your LYS expert, or knit up a swatch (as described below) with the yarn you choose to see if is going to hang right.

The materials section also tells you how much yarn you will need.  If you are using the same yarn as the pattern recommends, purchase as many skeins as the pattern tells you to.  If you are using something different, you may have to do some math.  Let's say you are knitting a pattern that calls for three skeins of yarn, and each skein contains 110 yards.  This means you will need (3 x 110) yards, or 330 yards to complete the project.  You decide to use a different yarn, which is available in skeins which contain 90 yards each.  To get a total of 330 yards, you need (330 divided by 90) skeins, or 3.67 skeins.  Looks like you will be buying 4 skeins, and will have a little left over.

Gauge - Here is where the designer tells you how many stitches make up one inch (or four inches) using the recommended yarn and needle size.  Why do you care?  Well, in order for all of the proportions to be correct as you knit, your gauge has to match the pattern's gauge.  This is probably the most CRUCIAL THING YOU WILL EVER DO.  You will whine and mope as you knit your swatch, but it's better than whining and crying over a sweater intended for your sister that will only fit your Yorkie.  Trust me...been there.  The pattern will establish the necessary gauge; for example, 19 stitches and 29 rows = 4 inches/10cm using size 7 needles.  Your job is to do whatever it takes to make your yarn match this gauge.

You do this by making a swatch - a simple square, created by knitting in the stitch pattern dictated by the designer.  Often, the swatch is made with stockinette stitch (St st) which you will soon be a master of.  Typically, you want to measure how many stitches in your swatch fit into 4 inches or 10 centimeters (4"/10cm), so knitting up a swatch that is at least 4" x 4" is a GREAT idea (hint, hint).  Start with the needle size that the pattern recommends and cast on the approximate number of stitches that should fit in 4", plus a few extra.  Knit in the pattern stitch until you have enough rows to measure 4" up and down.  Then pull out your ruler.  Measure how many stitches make up 4" across and how many rows make up 4" up and down.  You can also buy one of these handy gadgets, which helps you to measure your stitches per inch:

The window enables you to count your stitches while keeping the swatch flat.  With this particular gadget, count the stitches in the window (2"), then multiply by two to get your stitches in 4".  If you have 22 stitches in 4" and the gauge is for 19, you have more than the recommended gauge.  To fix this, you need to use LARGER needles, so that fewer stitches are in every inch.  If your swatch has 16 stitches in 4 inches, you need SMALLER needles so that more stitches are in every inch.  So you switch needles and knit a new swatch.  Measure again and adjust again (and again and again) until you nail it.

If you are a gauge-hater like me, you might ask: "But what happens if I don't check my gauge? Who freaking cares about this gauge-(expletive)?"  Well, pretend you are building a house out of bricks.  Your measurements call for standard sized bricks in order for your house to be the correct size.  Your local hardware store is out of standard bricks, so you decide to use something else, and you build your house out of really big cinder blocks.  You follow the instructions that call for bricks...and your cute little cape is now a huge, oversized concrete warehouse.  Or, you use tiny glass tiles, and your house (although lovely!) is fit for a Barbie doll.  Luckily, in knitting, changing the needle size can turn your cinder blocks into bricks.  Home sweet home!

Get it?  If not, click here to read more.

Up next: What the...?  Demystifying knitting lingo

So you wanna knit? Part three: yarn

My all-time favorite teacher, Mrs. G., told me once that she became an art teacher because she loved paper.  She explained this one day as she walked across the classroom - a spring in her step and a twinkle in her eye - carrying a stack of oversized construction paper; I think it was red.  She loved the variety, the smoothness, the colors...the possibilities.  I feel the same way about yarn.  I think most knitters do.  Walking into a yarn shop is like being a kid in a candy store (or an adult in a candy store if you eat as much chocolate as I do...).  The skeins are arranged in bins like oversized jellybeans, with as many colors and flavors, and ignite a childlike excitement that makes you want to touch (and buy...and eat?) everything in sight.

Despite the seduction, buying yarn early-on in a knitting career can seem a bit overwhelming.  The options are endless...and all so enticing.  Most beginner knitters make the mistake of buying something totally exotic and gorgeous, to later find out that it's a mismatch to the project at hand.  A word to the wise: one should not buy yarn out of infatuation.  Instead, a carefully planned relationship is encouraged.  This way, no one gets hurt.

There is a lot to learn about yarn.  I'll cover some basics here, the rest you will discover with time and lots of knitting.  Your LYS owner is a great resource.

Texture

To most people, yarn is a four letter word: W-O-O-L.  Wool is certainly a lovely fiber, but there are many others out there, and many blends, which knit up to be really spectacular.  Basically, yarn can be broken down into three categories: Animal, Vegetable, and Artificial. Another way to categorize is protein (animal), cellulose/cellulosic (vegetable), and synthetic (artificial, or man-made).

Animal fibers come from a variety of critters.  "Wool" refers to the hair of a sheep or lamb, and is the oldest protein fiber around.  There are zillions of varieties of wool because there are zillions of varieties of sheep - who knew?  Wools differ by things like the type of sheep they come from or the farm the sheep grow up on.  In general, sheep and lambs are the only animals who produce "wool."   However, the Federal Trade Commission expands this definition and allows yarn spun from the hair of  the angora and cashmere goat, camel, alpaca, llama, and vicuna to be called "wool", too.  Wool from any source is known for its warmth - it keeps heat close to the body and absorbs moisture, just like it was intended. Here's a quick list of where other animal fibers originate, just in case you were wonderin'!

Fiber/yarn                Source

mohair.......................angora goat

cashmere...................cashmere goat
angora.......................angora rabbit
camel.........................camel
alpaca........................alpaca (a relative of the llama)

Some yarns are made from less commonly shorn animals like llama, yak, opossum, and musk ox.

Silk is in a league of its own and falls somewhere between animal and vegetable.  It is produced (extruded, really) by silkworms after they have gone on a 30-day binge of plant leaves - mulberry, cherry, oak, to name a few.  Silk does not contain cellulose, per se, since it is not grown like a plant, but it does contain a protein fluid which is made up of digested leaves.  Yum!  Hence the animal-vegetable confusion.  Either way, silk is luscious and - well, silky - and has been coveted for centuries for its elegance and strength.

Veggie fibers are things like cotton, linen, and hemp - all come from the cellulose found in their respective plants. They differ from the animal fibers in that they pull heat away from the body, so are great for light-weight, warm weather garments.  Many are machine washable, so are a good choice for baby clothes or hand towels.  Cotton comes from the cotton plant, linen from the flax plant, and hemp from the Cannabis sativa (yes, THAT cannabis plant!).

"Cellulosic" fibers are those that are produced using the same principles as cellulose fibers, but are created by man through manipulation, chemical intervention, or genetic modification.  Rayon is the primary cellulosic fiber, and includes close cousins Modal, acetate, and lyocell. Newer, more "green" cellulosic fibers are made with soy, bamboo, and corn fiber.

Synthetic fibers include everything else!!  Nylon, polyester, and acrylic are man-made fibers which are inexpensive, easy to care for, and highly resilient.  They are often mixed with an animal or vegetable fiber to improve wearability or increase strength.

Most of these facts were found in a really interesting book that I highly recommend.  It's called "The Knitter's Book of Yarn: The Ultimate Guide to Choosing, Using, and Enjoying Yarn" and was written by the very brilliant Clara Parkes.  It is a must-have for the spinner or knitter and has helped me to make sense of the fibers I use.  It is full of great patterns as well; each is designed to take advantage of the unique characteristics of each fiber.  Really cool.

Up next: Gauge - don't be a hater!

So you wanna knit? Part two: needles

Like a great chef needs her knives, a great knitter needs her needles - one to fit every purpose, project, and possibility.  Acquiring all the right needles takes time (and a piggybank) and is not something that should necessarily be attempted right out of the starting gate.  In my other life as a medical professional, we label something as "PRN" if it is designated as "as needed", from the Latin, "pro re nata" (translation: as circumstances require). I see needle purchases as "PRNs".  Get them as you need them, as the circumstances evolve.  Plan on buying a new set or two with each new project, and before you know it, you will have a nice collection to call your own. Here's my collection, to date.  A needle carrier is essential once your needle family begins to grow!  Find more like this in my etsy store...they'll be coming soon!

Needles come in many shapes and sizes.  The basic differences are as follows:

1.  Straight needles - These are the classic needles that you see in illustrations and artwork; the needles that you might picture in the hands of a little old lady in a rocking chair.  They come in pairs, are long and striaght, and each one has a pointed end.  The other end is wide and flat (or square, or peg-like) to keep the stitches from slipping off.  They are used for "flat" knitting - that is, knitting flat pieces such as scarves, blankets, pieces of a vest, sleeves, etc.  Straight needles come in several lengths, depending on the needs of your project, typically 10" and 14" long.  There are a multitude of sizes (relating to needle diameter) but I'll get into that later. 

2.  Circular needles - These are the needles that a beginner knitter looks at and says, "huh??"  A circular needle is essentially two straight needles whose butt ends are connected by a thin wire or cord.  Why?  To knit round things!  Hats, gigantic tube socks, the body of a sweater.  Knitting on circular needles is called knitting "in the round" because you literally knit around and around and around, unlike straight needles, which require knitting back and forth.  Now, circular needles are very adaptive and can also be used to knit large FLAT things.  They come in very handy if you are making a large afghan, for example.  Picture how many stitches must be needed to knit an afghan. Now picture fitting all of those stitches onto two straight needles - there would be a limit as to how big your afghan would be, right?  Circular needles come in large sizes, where your tip-to-tip length is actually longer than the total length of two straight needles added together.  You work the stitches in a way that doesn't connect them, so you are working back and forth rather than "in the round."  Get it? If not, don't sweat it. It will all make sense in a while. Circular needles come in different lengths too, like 16", 24", 29" and 36". They also come in varying diameters (more later).

3.  Double pointed needles - These are the needles that make beginner knitters run for the hills!  Not only do they look scary (two pointy ends! Ah!), but you use four or five at a time!  WHAT!!??  Do not fear, double pointed needles (dpns) will soon be your BFF, and you will be forever grateful for those little suckers. DPNs are used to knit "in the round" when you are working with a small circumference (like a sock) or a circumference that is decreasing in size (like the crown of a hat). 

Imagine having 50 stitches nicely spread around a circular needle.  The directions tell you to start decreasing the number of stitches so that the "tube" you are making becomes more and more narrow.  This is typically the situation when knitting a hat and shaping the crown.  You get down to about 30 stitches on the circular needle and start to totally freak out - the stitches are stretched because the length of the circular needle is much bigger than the working circumference of your project.  Major panic attack!  But in come your dpns to save the day.  You transfer the stitches onto three dpns, with an even number on each needle (in this case, 10 stitches on each of three needles) and the needles are arranged in a triangle, like this:

The triangle is a modified "round" and since it is made of three needles, can shrink down to the tiniest triangular circumference possible as the centers of the needles are moved towards eachother.  This is also done with four dpns arranged in a square, which is able to get smaller and smaller as you decrease the number of stitches.

The fourth (or fifth) dpn is used as the "working" needle to knit the stitches from the first dpn in the triangle (or square). When all of the stitches are transferred from dpn 1 to dpn 4/5, dpn 1 becomes the working needle and is used to knit the stitches off dpn 2, and so on.  Trust me, it works. It may take some time for your fingers to learn the drill, but that's par for the course in this craft!

Knitting needles, whether straight, circular, or dpns are assigned a "size" based on their diameter.  The smaller the size, the smaller the diameter.  The smaller the diameter, the tinier the stitches.  Sizes range from 000 (super small) to 20+ (fattys!).  The sizes that I am referring to are in US size range.  Each US size has a corresponding metric size which is expressed in millimeters (US 9 - 5.5mm).  Be sure you are looking at the right size range before you take the plunge!  There's a big difference between US 8 and 8mm!

Knitting needles are made from a variety of materials, like aluminum, bamboo (my fave), wood, plastic, nylon, and Teflon. Everyone has their own preference. Some are more expensive than others. One word to the wise: if you have cats or puppies around, keep your wood and bamboo needles out of reach!! I have had too many beautiful bamboo needle tips chewed to a pulp by a hungry kitty or two!

That's knitting needles 101!  I would recommend picking up a set of size 7, 8, or 9 straight needles in 10" length.  They'll be easy to maneuver as you learn how to knit and are a great size for working with worsted weight yarn.  We'll learn about yarn next...