Craft Blog

Imagine waking on a freezing morning out on the boat. Waiting for your hot drink to warm your insides, but part of you is already warm and dry. This is all due to the amazingly designed Aran style, knitted jumper your loving wife has knitted.

Ok, well imagine you are the wife with your husband wearing that jumper. The pride just swells inside your heart. That is what started the history and tradition of the Aran jumpers and sweaters.

Aran knitting originated from Arran Scotland. Due to the extremely wet, cold conditions the wives designed the Aran knitting process to protect their loved ones from the biting cold. At least that is one story.

Most historians agree that far from being an ancient craft, Aran knitting was invented as recently as the early 1900s by a small group of enterprising island women, with the intention of creating garments not just for their families to wear but which could be sold as a source of income.

There are a number of areas that have adopted their own style of the Aran knitting. Specific patterns for a particular garments comes from different districts. The tradition of the Aran knitting is still strong in many outlying districts in Arran. This is also a way for many of the smaller communities to generate income.

Aran knitting is a craft that needed very few tools and it is a skill that was passed down from generation to generation. This skill was also practiced by both men and woman.

Since the late 19th centyury hand-knitted items of clothing much like that of the Aran jumper have been valued for many reasons.

Values of the Aran Knitting process:

The Aran knitting was done originally with unscourned wool. This make the article of clothing water resistant.

Aran knitting is hand-knitted at a very tight tension. Stitch formations are intricate and each pattern has a history of its own. Each piece is knitted to shape. No scissors are used to shape the material. The benefit to the wearer is that the garment will keep its shape even through many washes.
Traditional interpretation is also a high point of the structure of the Aran knitting style. This had a signifacant religious meaning. The honeycomb is a symbol of the hardworking bee. The cable an intregal part of the fisherman’s daily life. It is said that it is a wish for a productive and safe journey.The diamond is a wish of success and treasure. The basket stitch represents the fisherman’s basket and a hope for a great many catch.

The Aran stitch patterns are:

Diamonds- you can fill them with almost any other pattern, making it possible to tie a garment together with a theme.
Chevrons, trees and coins- pretty much any that look like a tree.
Cables, plates and braids- 2-8 stitch cables, double twist braid, long cable, and diamond and braid which ever you like.
Backgrounds-double moss, goose berry

The Aran design also has a great thermal dynamic design that increased the retaining of body warmth. Long before there was any knowledge of thermal dynamics, the women there were knitting theses knobby pattern stitches into the sweaters they made for their families. We now know that trapped air spaces make for a warm garment and with reasonable care, these beautiful sweaters can last a lifetime.

So all and all, Aran knitting is a treasured style of knitting that has many benefits. This knitting technique has been past down for many years and carries the quality and beauty with it.

Classic style, crisp looks and vintage knitting goes together. Even though there is some remakes of old styles, there are also many vintage-knitting patterns available.

There are literally thousands upon thousands of knitting patterns that are no longer available simply because they were published many years ago and are now out of print.

If you have ever wondered what kind of patterns your ancestors might have knitted, check out the Internet. You will be able to see what was being knitted and worn when your grandma was the talk of the town. This translates to some of the patterns from an 1891.

Though many of these patterns are tricky to read, there are many ways to learn the translation of the vintage-knitting pattern into modern language. It is truly amazing to see and try these vintage patterns.

Knitting History has an amazing collection of historic knitting patterns, dating back to the 14th and 15th centuries. Those styles are often mimicked in new styles, though the look just is not the same.

Using the vintage knitting patterns either purchased online, or gotten for free, or from thrift stores, grandmas secret stash or just pure luck, you can make the next treasure and impress all your friends.

The biggest things I have found with knitting from the vintage patterns are the difference in the sizing. Make sure to get a test swatch made to compare.

If the sizing is off try a needle one or even two sizes smaller or larger until you obtain the exact gauge specified for the garment you intend to make. The needles and hooks recommended in the instructions are based as nearly as possible on the average knitters work. We suggest you test your own work first to verify the gauge.

If you find that you have to use a different size needle or hook than that called for in the instructions, the change will not in any way alter your garment, provided your gauge is the right size as called in the instructions.

Here is a chart to help figure out the size differences in the vintage knitting pattern.

If you are working with a vintage pattern the sizing is a little different, but very doable.

Sizing: Sizing has changed considerably over the course of the twentieth century. To make matters more complicated, vintage sizing was not quite as standard as it is today.

•    Size 12 = 30" bust in 1930, 32" bust 1930s — 1960s, 34" bust post-1968
•    Size 14 = 32" bust in 1930, 34" bust 1930s — 1960s, 36" bust post-1968
•    Size 16 = 34" bust in 1930, 36" bust 1930s — 1960s, 38" bust post-1968
•    Size 18 = 36" bust in 1930, 38" bust 1930s — 1960s, 40" bust post-1968
•    Size 20 = 38" bust in 1930, 40" bust 1930s — 1960s, 42" bust post-1968

Looking at the recommendations for needle sizes on vintage patterns often can be daunting. You see size 13 needles on a small gauge and just think to yourself “that can’t be”. Well here is a little information to help clear things up a bit

The US sizes are sizes 0-9. 0 being the smallest. 9 being the largest. Sometimes different companies used the metric sizes. You can find metric sizes in most craft stores.

You have all these knitting needles and no gauge ruler to figure out what size is what. Well most needles have some kind of characteristic or marking on them, but they wear off and sometimes are not labeled at all.

There have been few exceptions but there are a few books that use steel needles and they are sized more like UK needles. Please do not confuse aluminum needles with metal needles.

The vintage Boye needles maintained their sizing and they seem to match up with the modern day standard needles.

The overseas in the UK scale is a great deal different. The larger numbers like 13 are smaller sizes.

Therefore, my point is that no matter what the pattern calls for there are differences in size of the pattern and needle sizes. Keep this in mind and always do a swatch to check your gauge.

Creating a vintage-knitting garment is going to be a treasure for your lifetime. Use high quality thread and enjoy your knitting.

Every beginning knitter has to start somewhere. You have a picture in your mind of what you want to make, but how do you get from that thought to a finished knitted item. We all must start from the beginning by getting tools.

The question remains then, what tools do you need. Lets go over some of the tools and descriptions of what they do. This should help get you started.

First thing we usually want to do is jump in the car and head to the fabric or craft store. There we can see all the beautiful yarn and versatile needles. You could spend a fortune just on that. However, many of us need to start with the basics and go from there.

The other thing to look at is do you want to spend a great deal of money on tools that you may decide later you do not like the hobby of knitting and therefore the tools would sit in a bag in the corner.

The good news is, you do not need a lot of expensive supplies or fancy yarns to make your first knitting projects. In fact, you could probably buy everything you need at a discount store and not even visit a craft store or yarn shop (though you will find higher-quality items at a crafts store).

So, what do you need to get started?

•    Pattern

•    Yarn

•    Needles

•    A pair of scissors

•    A sewing needle

•    A crochet hook

The first and most basic would be the pattern. Knitting patterns come in many sizes, styles, difficulties, and prices. Choose something simple and easily finished in a few hours.

Next would be yarn. There are so many options; the biggest thing would be to match the yarn to the pattern you are working with. Therefore, if you do not have your pattern, you had better pick that out now.

Now you have your pattern and you have your measurements for yarn you will need. The quality of the yarn you purchase will affect the quality of the knitted item you make. This is important because maybe the practice run of a project you make is no big deal, but in time spending 15 hours on a bag you are giving as a gift, will be important and you would want it to last a long time.

Those yarns can be made from many manufacturers and with many different fibers. Several of those fiber types are listed as followed:

•    Silk

•    Wool

•    Cotton

•    Nylon

•    Synthetic

Now the needles, with so many, which ones do you get. Most knitting patterns are pretty clear when it comes to telling you what size knitting needles you will need.

If a pattern includes all of these numbers, you have no problem, but if the only number listed is one you are not familiar with, you need a needle conversion chart.

The scissors you purchase could come with plastic handles, metal handle, be left handed or right, or can be colorful or black and silver. The biggest thing is that they fit your hand, are comfortable and sharp enough to cut yarn.

You may also want a pair of scissors for material and yarn and a separate pair for paper and patterns.

Next comes the sewing needle. The little variety needle kits are very handy in the beginning. They are inexpensive and come with a wide variety of sizes you may need.

Finally, yet importantly, you will want a crochet hook. The size “G” crochet hook to start with will probably work fine. This is a good needle size for beginners.

Now another option you may find is that many of these tools could be found in a premade kit. That is fine to use also. I myself prefer to pick out the items that fit me best. It is your tools though you choose.

There you have it, put all the parts of your beginner knitting kit in your bag, tote, or case and get started having fun.

What are the characteristics of the Ultimate Sweater Machine?  Is it the machine that you need no knitting experience required to work it?  Will you be able to create beautiful sweaters, Afghans, pillow covers and more? The Ultimate Sweater Machine would use hand knitting and craft yarn and all the fancy new yarns. Will you be able to create a full size sweater or afghan quickly? All these questions will help to figure out what the most important characteristics of the Ultimate Sweater Machine.

How quickly will you be able to knit a sweater or afghan? The average knitting machine will work at about 600 to 1,200 stitches a minute (6 to 12 rows per minute, 100 stitches per row). You should be able machine knit 20” in about 5 minutes.

The Ultimate Sweater Machine stitches up to 600 stitches per minute, at 12 rows per minute stockinet x 100 needles. Up to 1200 S.P.M. with 2 beds joined for 200 needles

What kind of stitches will you are able to make? The Ultimate Sweater Machine will be able to be versatile in fancy stitches like eyelet/lace, Fair Isle, tuck stitch, cable, intarsia, and more.

What if you want to buy a bulkier yarn for the Ultimate Sweater Machine? All you would need to do is that an extra needle from the machine and test the thickness by sliding the thread ends through the needle.

How versatile are the machines ability to fit the patterns to the machine? You can also knit a pattern to fit on the machine by putting needles into work and out of work to shape a sweater front, back and sleeves to later seam together by hand, sewing machine.

All sweater and knitting machines have some limitations. If you are interested in knitting with a thicker thread or a thinner thread and skipping back and forth you may need to purchase more than one knitting machine.

Many machine knitters have at least two machines. If you are doing winter sweaters and blankets you will probably need a bulky knitting machine with 8-9mm between all the needles. This will produce a test swatch that is 3 to 6 stitches per inch. Fine gauge sweater yarn and machines go up to 10 stitches per inch.

In comparison to the deluxe model:

The Bond Ultimate Sweater Machine DELUXE model includes the extension kit, row counter, and intarsia key plate. The non-Deluxe model is the same without the three accessories.

If you were planning to buy the 3 accessories, you would save by moving up to the DELUXE model. Compare DELUXE vs. U.S.M. at plus extension kit plus row counter, with the plus intarsia key plate. You can cast on up to 100 or 130 needles and knit any number of rows you want in solid or variegated yarns or in stripes of different yarn colors.

What is the machine made of? The Ultimate Sweater Machine is made from high quality polymer. This is what is used in aircrafts. Therefore, the life expectancy of this machine is many years.

How much is the Ultimate Sweater Machine? The Ultimate Sweater Machine will run you around $200 in price.

You can purchase extension kits, row counters, patterns and books. These Ultimate Sweater Machine accessories help you to create beautiful sweaters and scarves.

The Ultimate Sweater Machine comes in portable carrying case, similar to a large briefcase & weighs just 10 pounds

.
The convenience and ease of this knitting machine is going to make your knitting experience fun and productive.

Easily knit sweaters and so much more! You can make scarves, afghans, etc! Your designs will look like a professional hand knitter made them! The knitted sweaters or Afghans you can make are of the utmost quality.

The Silver Reed Knitting Machine comes in several models and works with the same yarns as hand knitting.

The Silver Reed knitting machine breed has the widely spread variety of machines available to the home knitter.

They are: LK-150 Fine-gauge (3.6 mm), 250 needles Standard-gauge (4.5 mm), 200 needles Mid-gauge (6.5 mm), 150 needles Chunky-gauge (9 mm), 114 needles.

The Japanese-made Silver Reed machines can be purchased as a punch card machine or as an electronic machine. Because the distance between the needles varies widely, the number of needles on a normal bed varies widely.

A punch card machine can create a pattern, which are 24 stitches wide. However, that pattern can be repeated across the width of the knitted piece or positioned in a specific location, which is then called a motif.

The pattern needs to be either 24 stitches or a number evenly divided into 24. An electronic machine can produce a pattern from one stitch to as many stitches wide as there are needles on the machine

The Silver Reed Knitting Machine comes in several models. Here is a list of the models and some features.

SK 830 Electronic Fine Gauge

This fine gauge machine gives you a lightweight fabric for summer warmth or creates lightweight wool suits for the professional look in the office. All year round, this machine will make you the envy of the crowd with your new wardrobe designed and modeled by you.

SK 270 Punch card Fine Gauge

The SK270 is one of Silver Reed’s finest, with a 30-stitch punch card pattern center that lets you create beautiful tuck, weaving, slip, and Fair Isle stitch patterns. This fine gauge punch card machine is the perfect machine for Cashmere and lightweight dress yarns to create an array of garments year round from elegant wool suits to summer shells.

SK 280 Punch card Standard Gauge

The SK280 is a machine that will proudly stand by your side to help you create some of the most beautiful garments in your wardrobe. With a 24-stitch punch card pattern center, you can create beautiful tuck, weaving, slip, and Fair Isle stitch patterns. This Standard Gauge Punch card machine is the perfect machine for fingering and sport weight yarns. Indulge your creative side; join the growing family of machine knitters.

SK 155 Punch Card Bulky Gauge

The SK 155 provides the great basics by providing a 12-stitch punch card machine that will knit those heavy yarns with ease. This machine handles worsted weight yarns and makes short work of creating beautiful chunky winter wear. Ideal for heavy weight yarns in the bulky range. Stay warm all winter with the Afghans you create to match your decor.

SK 160 Intarsia Mid Gauge

The SK160 is a great beginning-knitting machine. This Mid Gauge Manual Knitting machine offers the same bed as the SK 860 with a non-patterning Intarsia carriage. The SK 160 allows you to start with a basic machine that you will never out grow because it grows with you. Learn the basic operation of the machine then add the optional Electronic Carriage and software when you are ready, to upgrade this machine to a SK 860.

LK 150

The LK 150 offers an excellent knitting machine for the beginner. A lightweight portable machine offers a quick and easy way to create stockinet fabric. This hobby machine gives you the ability to turn imagination into fashion. With its low cost and ease of use, there is no reason not to own one. This machine is ideal for Sport, DK and four-ply weight yarns.

These Silver Reed Knitting Machines seem to be hardy, huge on options and great for beginners.

Selecting a knitting machine can be difficult because different machines have different features. So the kind of knitting you want to do, should inform your decision. Depending on whether you are going to use a light or heavyweight yarn and the patterns you choose, you will need different knitting machines.

A knitting machine knits yarn automatically, after being set or programmed to knit a specific pattern. A knitting machine saves time compared to hand knitting, but the machine knitter must still pay close attention to the knitting machine, as slipped or tangled stitches are common.

Lightweight machines usually knit with floats, while heavier machine double knit without floats. Most knitting machines come with standard-gauge needles for average-sized yarns. You cannot knit heavy yarn on standard needles; they are just too close together. Likewise, if you knit fine yarn on heavy needles, you will end up with something that looks like a hairnet.

What to consider when you want to understand knitting machine basics

Most complete knitting machines have three parts: a main knitting bed, a shaping device, and a ribbing bed.

•    Main knitting bed: The main knitting bed is where the knitting actually takes place.  

•    Shaping device: The shaping device takes a drawn pattern and lets you know how to operate the machine.   

 
•    Ribbing bed: The ribbing bed lets you apply ribs and different patterns to your garment.

In general, there are two types or "categories" of machine, Japanese manufacture and European manufacture.  Japanese machines do an excellent job of lighter knits, while the European machines handle a wider spectrum of fabrics.
Japanese machines include Artisan, the Ultimate Sweater Machine, and SILVER REED. These machines generally knit lighter weight fabrics. These fabrics include "fair isle" with floats (which are the little strings strung across the back of the fabric) lace, and knit-woven fabrics, who are of special interest to the sewing brigade in general. Also included in this fabrics list is the variety of simple stitches common to all knitting machines?
On the other hand, the European machines (PASSAP, for instance, is Swiss made) are designed to knit double-knitted (no floats) and textured fabrics. The majority of Fair Isle fabrics produced is usually destined for sewing machine use.

Silver Reed Knitting Machines

•    SK830
•    SK 840
•    SK 860
•    SK 270 
•    SK280
•    SK 155
•    SK 150
•    SK 160

All year round, this machine will make you the envy of the crowd with your new wardrobe designed and modeled by you. The different models, allow different yarns to be used in addition to different sizes.

The Ultimate Sweater Machine

•    The Ultimate Sweater Machine
•    Deluxe Sweater Machine

This is a simple 100 needles, plastic bed knitting machine. Nevertheless, do not let its simplicity fool you, it can make great sweaters, Afghans, caps, and scarves.

Artrisan

•    70D

Now with built-in intarsia on main bed, This knitting machine takes almost all hand knitting yarns currently available on the market his machine will make all kinds of garments, including sweaters, skirts, simple double bed scarves, socks with ribbing, mittens and gloves, and a wide variety of other articles.

PASSAP

E-660
E-800

The Swiss-made PASSAP knitting machines are considered the true double-bed machine. The main bed (front bed) and the ribber bed (back bed) cannot be separated as on the Japanese machines. These machines can do more of a pattern and have more of an effect on the front bed patterning than the Japanese machines. There is also a non-patterning, single-bed machine.

Although no knitting machine made so far can replicate every hand knitting stitch, a knitting machine is a fast, reliable way to knit products for home use or for sale. It is important to remember, however, that machine knitting is not necessarily easier than hand knitting. A knitting machine needs much more attention to detail than a sewing machine and can require regular untangling of caught yarn and pick-ups of slipped stitches.

When the decision has been made that you must have a knitting machine for your yourself, the decision-making has really only just begun. Knitting machines are not like sewing machines. It seems like we were born with the basics of sewing machines. Knitting machines are intimidating pieces of equipment. With buttons, springs, in addition to wires and hooks enough to contact the outer world.

With your research and thoughts of what you want to knit in mind, you can find the machine for you.

There is nothing more romantic that getting a beautiful sweater or knitted gift from a man. Counting all the hours put into that knitted project shows so much love and talent. Nevertheless, how long have there been males knitting?

The exact origin of knitting is hard to determine. Many believe it was developed BC. However, there may be many that dispute this. Either way, as long as there was knitting, there has been men knitting also.

It has been said that knitting as a profession was cornered by the male population in the early 1500s. Later knitting became a household population with the growing popularity of knitting socks in the 1600s.

History has shown that knitting by men have been around for many years. Then why is it that there is an odd look on many faces when a man is knitting. For my family who has a strong European and Danish decent, knitting was perfectly normal. My husband, brother in law, and son’s knit, crochet and cross-stitch.

There is a funny saying that comes to my mind. If a man who knits is odd, then a man who knits lace is even odder. Why is that? Maybe, because knitting as a hobby would be considered on the more feminine end of the scale. However, this would be odd in itself due to the history of men knitting.

Long ago, knitting was a male-dominated trade in Europe. Sailors were known to knit their own windproof sweaters for long voyages. These days, however, it’s a hobby most often associated with women.

Guys who knit in public say they often are teased or receive odd looks. However, others say their knitting can be a conversation starter.

There are groups for men who knit.  The main fact is, many guys are taking up knitting, especially as the hobby surges in popularity on college campuses, in coffee shops and at the many yarn stores that are sprouting up in cities across the country.

Around the time of the 12th century, when knitting needles were very expensive and difficult to manufacture, knitted sweaters and garments were a sort of luxury. Hand knitted items, garments and fabrics were a great alternative to other fabrics. When the era of the Renaissance came about also came the advances in metal. This then led to the creation of the metal needles and the all male-knitting guilds. However soon after the inventions of knitting machines came and then minimized the men who knitted. Other than, the few find needle works that could not be reproduced by the machine.

Skip ahead to the 21st century and knitting has transformed into a largely recreational activity, rediscovered by a new generation. And while men have continued to knit in greater and smaller numbers over the last hundred years (particularly in wartime, making their own socks, mittens, hats and scarves), this new wave of knitting has brought guys back to the craft in droves.

There is a part of history during World War II. Men who came back from the war took part in an active drive to knit clothing for their fellow solders in the war effort.

From movie stars to the average Joe, knitting is picking up all over the world. It is now hitting the men of young and of old. There is not any specific standard for loving this beautiful craft. In addition, there is no proof that the knitting techniques cannot as equally be performed with perfection and finesse by either a male or a female any differently.

Whether you use Continental knitting as a lefty or English knitting as a right-handed person, many options make knitting easier.

The bias in all forms of knitting is not necessarily right handed or left. In fact, it is well known that many knitters are left-handed. Which really is not that surprising and knitting is an art.

Knitting with the yarn in your left hand is commonly known as Continental knitting, German-style knitting, European knitting, or left-hand knitting. In like English knitting, or right hand knitting, the yarn is going to be kept in your left hand and more importantly; the left hand never leaves the needle.

The English knitter on the other hand can work my lifting the one hand up off the needle to wrap yarn around the opposite needle, the Continental knitter keeps both hands on their respective needles during the knitting period.

Continental knitting style is also referred to as picking, whereas English style knitting is referred to as throwing.

The most common modern knitting involves holding project you are knitting with both hands. Some earlier variation did have the knitter using a long needle and a leather belt, but in now it is nearly always two handed.

Knitting is one activity that is strongly symmetrical, and can be quiet simply handled by all knitters, left handed or right. If there is some problem in the beginning of learning to knit left or right handed it is usually because the person who is learning to knit not being patient and understanding that there is a trial and error period.

Relaxing is the most important thing. Of course learning the technique is important and I will list the technique steps, but enjoying yourself and loving what you are doing is the most important thing.

If there is a bias to be concerned with as a left-handed knitter it would be in the patterns. There are many times that the translation in the pattern is not there, or is difficult to read. The tools and steps along with brain thinking are very similar.

Continental knitting technique:

The motion of the right wrist is used to slip the right needle into the loop of the stitch being knitted and ’scoop’ or ‘hook’ the yarn onto the right needle. An alternative method of collecting the yarn involves using the thumb or index finger of the right hand to hold the yarn in place as the new stitch is being pulled out of the loop.

The tension in the yarn is controlled by threading the yarn through the fingers of the left hand. Typically, the yarn is looped around the little finger and over the index finger.

The overall larger problem you will likely run into is cables. Some true left-handed people want to knit the pattern as it is written. What you will come up with is back ward twisted cables. Other people tend to substitute the needle in front for the needle in back; this will correct the twist direction of basic cables.

Whether you use Continental, English or combined knitting, all these techniques work regardless of if you are left handed or right.

Knitting is awkward at first, no matter which method you use, no matter whether you are a right handed or left handed. If you are a leftie, and have heard of the Continental method of knitting and think it will be easier for you, I would encourage you to try Continental knitting first. That method also favors lefties, and you will have a much easier time following standard instructions, because you will not have to reverse them!

Stripes, polka dots, checkers and doodads, these things all make the knitting fun and exciting. Now, how do you learn to knit stripes?

Tired of the same old same old? Using a single kind of color of yarn is fine for your earlier projects, but after a while, you may want to add some variety. You may want to try something a little more interesting. An attractive and interesting technique for putting some interest to your knitted items is throwing in a few stripes.

Next, you decide do you want narrow stripes or thicker stripes. The narrower the stripe, the easier it is to carry. Generally, on an item like a scarf where you will see an edge, you can simply carry the yarn up half an inch; wider stripes require you to cut the yarn at the end of each stripe.

Keep in mind that when you are deciding to knit in stripes where are you going to change colors. Remember to always change colors at the end of a row so that your stripes will be symmetrical and even.

On a piece where the edge is tucked in a seam, you should be able to carry it a full inch. If you do carry, make sure you maintain smooth, even tension: you will not want to pull too tightly making an unnatural look to the material, nor leave the yarn too loose

The key is to knit stripes of even numbers so that the working yarns both ends up on the same side of the knitting.

When knitting stripes of yarns that are very different gauges, then you should use the needle size recommended for the larger yarn. The fabric will be stable if you knit wider stripes of the larger yarn and narrower stripes of the fine yarn.

Now at the end of one stripe and are ready to start the next color, cut the yarn of the original color, leaving a few inches of tail. This tail will leave to be woven into the project later.

When you are ready to add in the new color, leave a few inches of tail. Next, you will need to hold it tight as you would hold the yarn to begin a regular row. Then you begin knitting. If you find this very awkward, try holding the tail of the other yarn along with the new yarn as you make the first stitch, take care to only make the loop with the new color.

At the end of the knitting, you will find many tails on one side of your project. These are from the changing of the colors. You will want to take the time to carefully weave these tails into the same color of section. These tails should be about six inches long so when you weave them in they will be secure and will not fall apart.

You can also weave these ends in during the time you are knitting that color instead of waiting until the end. Use caution though, as you will want to make sure you are leaving space for the next color to blend in.

What ever you do, do not keep the yarn attached. The idea of not wanting to waste yarn is not going to be beneficial in the end. Cut the yarn and weave it in. By doing this though, it may seem a little wasteful it will increase the life of the knitted sweater, blanket etc.

There you have it. Just remember it is very hard to determine how much yarn you will need when you stripe a garment. So, buy plenty or yarn for your project. You can always save the receipt. Have fun and add some stripes to your life!

Visual knitting instructions form knitting videos often increase the success of learning to knit. What options are available in learning to knit videos? Are you tired of trying to learn how to knit from a book? Most of us do not have an expert knitter in the family to go to when we run into knitting trouble.    

By joining an on-line video knitting club or learning from web sites that have free videos, you can enjoy viewing instructional knitting videos showing many different knitting techniques all in the comfort of your own home. We are using the latest in Internet video technology to bring a knitting teacher to your home.

There are many learning videos both in the stores and on the Internet. One of the finest and most informative web sites is www.craftfinder.com.

Located under www.craftfinder.com you will find a specific section for knitting. The normal person like you makes these instructional videos. They just happen to have some information regarding knitting.

These videos are about different projects from puppets, blankets, and scarves to different knitting techniques and stitches.

A great thing about these videos also is that people of different countries and languages make them.

It is free to watch the videos and learn from them. Once you are a pro at knitting or you have something you want to share, you can also create your own video and add it the collection at www.craftfinder.com

About Play lists

Play lists are collections of clips assembled by users or site editors.

Registered users can select clips to add to a play list as part of the "Create a Play list" option on the search page. You can even act as the host of your own play list by recording an intro on your web cam and adding the clip to the play list sequence.

You can choose to search a specific subject or just check out what was the most popularly viewed in the recent week.

There are many different online and videos available for learning to knit. Many are free, and others cost around $35. There are groups that cost for a yearly subscription or there are videos for free just on the Internet. You choose what you want to work with. I have found that many are comparable.

Knitting is not an extremely difficult hobby, and can really be very relaxing. However, learning the techniques with out seeing the steps can be somewhat difficult. The nice thing about seeing what other people are doing and how they are doing it by watching the videos is that you do not feel alone.

Reading the instructions in a book may not show you the movement your hand needs to make and therefore you are guessing. Sure, that is the way some have learned in the past but this technology of watching the video instructions brings back the culture of learning this skill from a friend or family member of sorts.

Be patient when you start the videos you are going to watch. Sometimes they take several seconds to minutes to load. This is depending on the speed of your Internet connection.

In addition, there may be requirements for the site you are watching the video from. For the videos at www.craftfinder.com, are pretty general and most computers should be able to view them just fine.

So whatever location you get your video for knitting instructions from, remember to have a great time learning a new craft and hobby.