stephanier.1765 Posted February 19, 2015 Share Posted February 19, 2015 As a Christmas present to myself, I signed up for Knit Crate Newbies. Every month they send me a project along with yarn plus yarn to practice with, as well as access to their instructional videos on their website. I can't even get through the first month's practice swatch. I can cast on, do the first row and then everything falls apart. I try every single day and every single day I fail. What should I do? Give up? Find other instructional videos? Or give in and take a class? I've always been able to teach myself new skills so this is hitting a bit at my self esteem. :blushing: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mommy22alyns Posted February 19, 2015 Share Posted February 19, 2015 Knittinghelp.com worked for me. I also took a class in person, but the Kh videos helped me between sessions. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lynn Posted February 19, 2015 Share Posted February 19, 2015 Don't get discouraged. I picked up some yarn, knitting needles and a couple h o w t o guides from the library and just practiced and practiced, watched videos. It did take a lot of practice and playing around with yarn tension, technique etc. It took several weeks of just playing around before I took on a small project of a doll blanket. Trial and error, patience, give yourself time, have fun with it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Minerva Posted February 19, 2015 Share Posted February 19, 2015 Youtube! There are some great knitting tutorials there. I really needed help because my dd is a lefty and I just couldn't wrap my head around how to teach her left handed knitting. Also, don't be afraid to take your knitting disaster to your local yarn shop. You will often get good results from the lovely knitting geeks nearby. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bug's Mom Posted February 19, 2015 Share Posted February 19, 2015 The Kids Knitting book by Melanie Falick helped me a lot. The Knitting Experience Book 1: The Knit Stitch was helpful, too.Some people learn from books, others from videos. Some do best with one-on-one instruction. Keep trying! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LostSurprise Posted February 19, 2015 Share Posted February 19, 2015 I spent a week just casting on. Then I spent a week just casting on and doing the knit stitch. I used on Youtube. She talks and shows things really slowly. She also moves her hands around a little so you can see it from the side or the top. I would watch the first video, then practice, then watch, then practice, then watch, then practice. Each time I would notice something different. I would not move on to the next introductory video until I'd succeeded with the last one. Don't try to do both English knitting (holding the working yarn in your right hand and putting it around or over) and Continental (holding the working yarn in your left hand and picking it up with the needle). Pick one and work on that. Later you can try the other and see if you like it better. The important thing is to pick what makes the most sense to you now and get some experience with it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Murphy101 Posted February 19, 2015 Share Posted February 19, 2015 Is there a local yarn store you can go to a sit and knit (and learn)? Are you on ravelry? I could send you some great beginner vids with patterns from there. And KnitCrate has a group there too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
unsinkable Posted February 19, 2015 Share Posted February 19, 2015 As a Christmas present to myself, I signed up for Knit Crate Newbies. Every month they send me a project along with yarn plus yarn to practice with, as well as access to their instructional videos on their website. I can't even get through the first month's practice swatch. I can cast on, do the first row and then everything falls apart. I try every single day and every single day I fail. What should I do? Give up? Find other instructional videos? Or give in and take a class? I've always been able to teach myself new skills so this is hitting a bit at my self esteem. :blushing: Can you look for knitting meet ups in your area? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peach Posted February 19, 2015 Share Posted February 19, 2015 Also check the classes at the local JoAnn's if you have one. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
I talk to the trees Posted February 19, 2015 Share Posted February 19, 2015 Agree with Knittinghelp.com, and Knit Witch videos on youtube. If you have a local yarn shop, pay them a visit. Knitters are such friendly people, and are always willing to help! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stephanier.1765 Posted February 19, 2015 Author Share Posted February 19, 2015 Is there a local yarn store you can go to a sit and knit (and learn)? Are you on ravelry? I could send you some great beginner vids with patterns from there. And KnitCrate has a group there too. Yep, I'm on Ravelry. My username is the same there as it is here. The only local store I know is not exactly local. It's a pretty long drive. I haven't even gone in yet to check it out even though I've been a crocheter for years. It's something I've been wanting to do but didn't have a good excuse to go. Maybe now I have one. I don't know why I keep fighting looking for a class. It must be a pride thing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Slartibartfast Posted February 19, 2015 Share Posted February 19, 2015 I agree using knittinghelp or other videos on youtube. If traditional knitting doesn't make sense then I would recommend you watch the continental knitting videos instead and use continental. IME continental works better for people who learned to crochet first. It's more grabbing than wrapping. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Arcadia Posted February 19, 2015 Share Posted February 19, 2015 There are parents who join in the kids at the kids knitting club at the library. My kids find it easier learning by imitation than by videos or books. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stephanier.1765 Posted February 21, 2015 Author Share Posted February 21, 2015 I think I've got it! Thanks to the knittinghelp.com beginner's video I figured out the problem. First, I was frustrated with the loose last stitch but she explained that's normal (yay!) and how to deal with it. Secondly, the hold I learned on the Knit Crate newbie video wasn't working for me. It was awkward. But the knittinghelp.com video showed me a hold that was much closer to a crocheter's hold (or at least for me it is) so I was much better able to keep hold of the yarn and keep much better tension. I still ordered a couple of books from Amazon as back up help but I am feeling more encouraged with my progress. Thank you so much for everyone's help. My swatch is coming right along. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KungFuPanda Posted February 21, 2015 Share Posted February 21, 2015 Either the videos aren't that great and you need to try different (YouTube) ones, OR learning from a video just isn't your thing. Some people have trouble with video learning because they think they're doing the same thing they see, but they're not catching their own mistakes. You're new. How WOULD you know what common mistakes happen? If trying new videos fail, find a person. You might post a help message on FB and see who comes to your rescue or just take a class. Our homeschool co-op has a knitting class, so I signed up this year. I learned to knit scarves and washcloths first. Now I'm knitting slipper socks. I think I'm making decent progress because I get to ask questions each week and have someone watch me when I try something wonky. I'll bet you have a local knitting group full of people that would love to help. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KungFuPanda Posted February 21, 2015 Share Posted February 21, 2015 I think I've got it! Thanks to the knittinghelp.com beginner's video I figured out the problem. First, I was frustrated with the loose last stitch but she explained that's normal (yay!) and how to deal with it. Secondly, the hold I learned on the Knit Crate newbie video wasn't working for me. It was awkward. But the knittinghelp.com video showed me a hold that was much closer to a crocheter's hold (or at least for me it is) so I was much better able to keep hold of the yarn and keep much better tension. I still ordered a couple of books from Amazon as back up help but I am feeling more encouraged with my progress. Thank you so much for everyone's help. My swatch is coming right along. Make sure you know your knit style and search that when you look at how-to videos. A friend used videos to learn and realized after a year of successful knitting that she was knitting a English style, but wrapping her perl stitches the continental way. It didn't make a difference until she tried to make a sweater. Suddenly she was loosing stitches and couldn't figure out why. It took a friend watching her knit to puzzle out that one. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
unsinkable Posted February 21, 2015 Share Posted February 21, 2015 I think I've got it! Thanks to the knittinghelp.com beginner's video I figured out the problem. First, I was frustrated with the loose last stitch but she explained that's normal (yay!) and how to deal with it. Secondly, the hold I learned on the Knit Crate newbie video wasn't working for me. It was awkward. But the knittinghelp.com video showed me a hold that was much closer to a crocheter's hold (or at least for me it is) so I was much better able to keep hold of the yarn and keep much better tension. I still ordered a couple of books from Amazon as back up help but I am feeling more encouraged with my progress. Thank you so much for everyone's help. My swatch is coming right along. That is awesome! And getting books is always a good thing! :D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Suzanne in ABQ Posted February 21, 2015 Share Posted February 21, 2015 Another vote for You Tube tutorials. There are slews of folks who love to share their tips and instructions. I've learned so much from them. The best thing about the videos is you can rewind and watch over and over again. But, the most important thing is to just keep practicing. You are training little tiny muscles to do things they've never done, and training the nerves in your fingers to feel and control little tiny things they've never been aware of before. It will get easier and more fluid the more you do it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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