FairyMom Posted September 13, 2011 Share Posted September 13, 2011 I've just gotten back into knitting and would love to know what avid knitters recommend for beginners; books, websites, etc. :D Thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
annlaura Posted September 13, 2011 Share Posted September 13, 2011 ravelry.com Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FairyMom Posted September 13, 2011 Author Share Posted September 13, 2011 ravelry.com Thank you. What about the best place to purchase supplies? Is there a great online place? I live in a small town. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
amey311 Posted September 13, 2011 Share Posted September 13, 2011 I've gotten some good stuff from knitpicks.com (I love their needles). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FairyMom Posted September 13, 2011 Author Share Posted September 13, 2011 I've gotten some good stuff from knitpicks.com (I love their needles). Thank you. I will check them out. What needles do you recommend for a beginner? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WiseOwlKnits Posted September 13, 2011 Share Posted September 13, 2011 Definitely Ravelry and Knit Picks. I have their wooden needles and they are heavenly to knit with! And absolutely beautiful to boot!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mothersweets Posted September 13, 2011 Share Posted September 13, 2011 (edited) :iagree:with everything suggested. My favorite needles are Addi Turbos. Another good place to buy from is Paradise Fibers. They've always shipped my orders out quickly. Love that. :) What are you wanting to knit? Shawls, sweaters, socks, baby items? Edited September 13, 2011 by Mothersweets Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FairyMom Posted September 13, 2011 Author Share Posted September 13, 2011 Thanks for asking. I'm trying to knit hats for hubby and me. I also want a scarf for myself. :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mothersweets Posted September 13, 2011 Share Posted September 13, 2011 Oooh, hats! I love hats! They knit up so quickly. Scarfs....don't. :D But don't listen to me. Guess who's knitting a shawl right now? But it's a small shawl. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FairyMom Posted September 13, 2011 Author Share Posted September 13, 2011 Oooh, hats! I love hats! They knit up so quickly. Scarfs....don't. :D But don't listen to me. Guess who's knitting a shawl right now? But it's a small shawl. Could you share your shawl pics, please? :D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FairyMom Posted September 13, 2011 Author Share Posted September 13, 2011 Definitely Ravelry and Knit Picks. I have their wooden needles and they are heavenly to knit with! And absolutely beautiful to boot!! Thanks. :D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
happi duck Posted September 13, 2011 Share Posted September 13, 2011 This is a directory of free online patterns. While browsing you'll stumble upon a lot of different blogs and sites. http://www.knittingpatterncentral.com/directory.php Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FairyMom Posted September 13, 2011 Author Share Posted September 13, 2011 Ooh, jackpot! Thank you. :D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WishboneDawn Posted September 13, 2011 Share Posted September 13, 2011 (edited) You can start on straight needles, most people do. There are some really great and expensive needles out there and I DO love the better needles I have but honestly, cheap Red Heart needles from Walmart are perfectly good. I've never had bad needles. I think it's pretty hard to mess up a pointy stick. I do find what they're made of makes a difference. I can't knit a slick acrylic baby yarn on metal needles for instance, too slippery, but those metal needles are wonderful when I'm knitting a grippier wool. To get a beginner hat pattern for straights you can search on Ravelry.com. Got to search and then from the left-hand choices picks Attributes>Construction>Seamed and then go to Category>Accesories>Hat>All Hats. You've had a bit of experience before so you might want to jump right into DPNs or circulars. I started out loving my straights and was a lever knitter (I held one needle under my arm) but when I finally got used to DPNs (it took a couple of months!) then I found I didn't want to go back and I'm all about the DPNs and circs now. :) An excellent book that will give you basic techniques is Knitting Techniques: Volume 1 (The Harmony Guides) . The pictures are very easy to interpret. It won't give you every way to increase or cast on but it will give you enough to build your confidence so you can build a good foundation. I started two years ago now. I learned to cast on, knit (not purl, just knit), and bind off. Then I didn't do much until last spring when my brother died and I picked up some needles, yarn and the book I mentioned and really started working to keep my mind off the situation. Now I can confidently knit a sweater for my kids with no pattern, just a swatch and a tape measure. It's addictive fun. :D After that really all you need is Ravelry. Between the patterns and the forums you'll find all the information and inspiration you'll need. There is a WTM group there as well but it's not all that active. Edited September 13, 2011 by WishboneDawn Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cinder Posted September 13, 2011 Share Posted September 13, 2011 Ditto on Ravelry and Knit Picks. I love KP Harmony Wood needles. I find their metal needles too slick. For metal I like Boye--they have a slight stickiness but are mostly smooth, much like the Harmony. And you can usually find them at your local craft store. Ravelry has all the patterns linked. You can sort through and find tons of free patterns for a particular item, like hats. For basic instruction I used Kids Knitting by Melanie Falick, Stitch and B!tch by Debbie Stoller, and Knittinghelp.com. There are also many, many videos on Youtube. And what's nice about Youtube is you can watch several different people's videos on the same topic. For practice I'd get a ball of Lion Brand Wool-ease or Patons Classic Wool to play with. You can get this at your local craft store cheap. If you can't get anything locally and need to order, I'd go with Knit Picks Wool of the Andes. There is also WEBS where you can get Cascade 220 (another quality workhorse yarn). WEBS can be totally overwhelming, though. A good beginner hat pattern is Turn-a-Square by Jared Flood. Enjoy your knitting adventure! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CalicoKat Posted September 13, 2011 Share Posted September 13, 2011 ravelry.com :iagree: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PrairieSong Posted September 13, 2011 Share Posted September 13, 2011 Yes, definitely ravelry.com!!! knittinghelp.com is also a really good site, though not as large as ravelry. The owner has a series of very helpful knitting videos, and there are active message boards. Ravelry.com is wonderfully organized. You can search for patterns by name, yarn weight, popularity, etc., and can see what others have made using a certain pattern. I love my wooden needles! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JulieH Posted September 13, 2011 Share Posted September 13, 2011 ravelry.com :iagree::iagree::001_smile: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FairyMom Posted September 13, 2011 Author Share Posted September 13, 2011 Ditto on Ravelry and Knit Picks. I love KP Harmony Wood needles. I find their metal needles too slick. For metal I like Boye--they have a slight stickiness but are mostly smooth, much like the Harmony. And you can usually find them at your local craft store. Ravelry has all the patterns linked. You can sort through and find tons of free patterns for a particular item, like hats. For basic instruction I used Kids Knitting by Melanie Falick, Stitch and B!tch by Debbie Stoller, and Knittinghelp.com. There are also many, many videos on Youtube. And what's nice about Youtube is you can watch several different people's videos on the same topic. For practice I'd get a ball of Lion Brand Wool-ease or Patons Classic Wool to play with. You can get this at your local craft store cheap. If you can't get anything locally and need to order, I'd go with Knit Picks Wool of the Andes. There is also WEBS where you can get Cascade 220 (another quality workhorse yarn). WEBS can be totally overwhelming, though. A good beginner hat pattern is Turn-a-Square by Jared Flood. Enjoy your knitting adventure! Thanks for all the links! I am definitely a beginner. My oldest daughter is very interested as well, so she's got my rear in gear. ;) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FairyMom Posted September 13, 2011 Author Share Posted September 13, 2011 You can start on straight needles, most people do. There are some really great and expensive needles out there and I DO love the better needles I have but honestly, cheap Red Heart needles from Walmart are perfectly good. I've never had bad needles. I think it's pretty hard to mess up a pointy stick. I do find what they're made of makes a difference. I can't knit a slick acrylic baby yarn on metal needles for instance, too slippery, but those metal needles are wonderful when I'm knitting a grippier wool. To get a beginner hat pattern for straights you can search on Ravelry.com. Got to search and then from the left-hand choices picks Attributes>Construction>Seamed and then go to Category>Accesories>Hat>All Hats. You've had a bit of experience before so you might want to jump right into DPNs or circulars. I started out loving my straights and was a lever knitter (I held one needle under my arm) but when I finally got used to DPNs (it took a couple of months!) then I found I didn't want to go back and I'm all about the DPNs and circs now. :) An excellent book that will give you basic techniques is Knitting Techniques: Volume 1 (The Harmony Guides) . The pictures are very easy to interpret. It won't give you every way to increase or cast on but it will give you enough to build your confidence so you can build a good foundation. I started two years ago now. I learned to cast on, knit (not purl, just knit), and bind off. Then I didn't do much until last spring when my brother died and I picked up some needles, yarn and the book I mentioned and really started working to keep my mind off the situation. Now I can confidently knit a sweater for my kids with no pattern, just a swatch and a tape measure. It's addictive fun. :D After that really all you need is Ravelry. Between the patterns and the forums you'll find all the information and inspiration you'll need. There is a WTM group there as well but it's not all that active. Thanks for the info and encouragement. I've known how to cast on, basic knit only, and then I fizzle. My daughter really wants to make things, so she's lit a fire for me. It's very inspiring to hear that you grew that confident that quickly. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stacey in NY Posted September 13, 2011 Share Posted September 13, 2011 For purchasing supplies check out Etsy, I have found beautiful wool roving (for needle felting) and yarns at good prices. They have yarns I can't get here locally! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cinder Posted September 13, 2011 Share Posted September 13, 2011 About my recommendation of Turn-a-Square as a good beginner hat. If you do use this pattern I would just use one color yarn and not do the striping. I forgot that the pattern is written for striping two colors of yarn. You might not want to try that just yet. Another good beginner hat would be a roll brim hat like this one. The nice thing about the roll brim is you don't have to purl if you're knitting it in the round. Just knit, knit, knit and decrease at the top. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mothersweets Posted September 13, 2011 Share Posted September 13, 2011 Could you share your shawl pics, please? :D Here is the link to the pattern on Ravelry - Azzu's Shawl. I'm knitting mine in blues, greens, and very light yellow. Sounds a little weird but I think it looks nice! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TexasRachel Posted September 14, 2011 Share Posted September 14, 2011 Check out knittinghelp.com. They have videos. I'm self taught so it's nice to be able to see how to do something. And I second knitpicks. They have good yarn and needles. I don't knit with anything else. I can actually use their metal needles. Most make my teeth grind. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FairyMom Posted September 14, 2011 Author Share Posted September 14, 2011 Here is the link to the pattern on Ravelry - Azzu's Shawl. I'm knitting mine in blues, greens, and very light yellow. Sounds a little weird but I think it looks nice! Thank you. When I'm feeling ambitious, I will try it. Check out knittinghelp.com. They have videos. I'm self taught so it's nice to be able to see how to do something. And I second knitpicks. They have good yarn and needles. I don't knit with anything else. I can actually use their metal needles. Most make my teeth grind. I'm self taught via you tube. Thanks for the link! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
justamouse Posted September 14, 2011 Share Posted September 14, 2011 http://www.purlbee http://www.yarnharlot http://doyoumindifiknit.typepad.com/ http://ittybittyblog.canalblog.com I have the books Super Stitches Knitting and Knit and Purl Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tlittlef Posted September 14, 2011 Share Posted September 14, 2011 I would also recommend http://www.jimmybeanswool.com/ and http://www.imagiknit.com/ .. I love going into imagiknit, it's yarn heaven. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
amey311 Posted September 14, 2011 Share Posted September 14, 2011 I don't own any straight needles - I knit flat things with circular needles. Maybe it's because I live with active, curious boys? The day i found they'd taken my stash of straight needles and shoved them into the carpet at an angle so there was just this row of needle heads (and I do wonder, sometimes, if they got any of the double points, but I don't feel a lump...) and their smiling faces? It was all circulars, all the time. They make crappy swords, too ;) If you have money to burn, I'd get the interchangeable set from KP in your preferred substance (wood, metal, acrylic), or get the sampler set they have http://www.knitpicks.com/needles/TRY_IT_Needle_Set__D90589.html to feel them all before committing. At Joann's and Michaels you can often find children's needles: http://www.amazon.com/Lion-Brand-Inch-Knitting-Needles/dp/B00281IXKS Some children also like knitting with a knitting spool/knitting nancy/french knitter: http://www.amazon.com/Lion-Brand-French-Knitter/dp/B00281IP1U/ref=sr_1_5?s=arts-crafts&ie=UTF8&qid=1315978937&sr=1-5 It just makes a snug tube, but they can be spiraled into things. I like the videos at Knittinghelp.com if you need some video help to get you started. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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