Advanced Techniques For The Knitting Expert – Part 1
After you learn to cast on, knit, purl, and bind off, what's next? Intermediate techniques, right? Where do you draw a line beyond which are advanced techniques for the knitting expert? It depends on the knitter. Here's my list of knitting techniques laid out in a somewhat ever-increasing level of difficulty.
Increases and decreases.
With these, flat knitting gains a whole new level of design interest and ability to fit a human body. You can nip in for a waist, expand as you work your way up a sleeve, etc. There are many different increase and decrease methods, each with a different look, so one will work just right in your next project.
Yarn overs.
With yarn overs, increases and decreases, you can do lace. The magic of lace is in the blocking because what looks lumpy and uninspired while knitting becomes airy open lace. Whee!
Speaking of blocking...
There are several methods:
* steam
* soak, rinse, squeeze out excess water, lay out to shape, pin down and let dry
* pin out to shape, spritz with water and let dry
Cables.
There are so many cable designs a knitter can try. They range from a simple crossed cable to complex Celtic knots. Advanced knitters can make cables without a cable needle.
Knit in the round.
One can knit a big or little tube four ways:
* on double pointed needles
* on one circular needle near the size of tube you're knitting
* on two circular needles with half the stitches on each
* magic loop, where you use one large circular needle with a big loop of needle's cable pulled out on one side of the tube
Picking up stitches.
Most socks want stitches picked up at the heel flap. You'll pick up stitches for many other reasons for many projects.
Special stitches.
These include twisted stitches, loop stitches, elongated stitches, bobbles, linen stitch, slipped stitches.
Two color knitting.
The slipped stitches can be used in mosaic knitting where the pattern looks like you use two colors in each row or round, but you really knit one color and slip the other.
Fair Isle alternates two colors in each row or round and carries the unused color behind the knitted color for each stitch. If you feel expert enough, you can use more than two colors in each row or round. Good luck with that.
A bohus sweater uses Fair Isle but adds purl stitches for texture. Beautiful stuff.
Intarsia is where you knit one color in a block or design at a designated spot in your knitting. You keep one color separate instead of carrying it along the back. Interlock the yarns to prevent a hole when you change colors.
Shadow knitting.
A mysterious color change where you can see a pattern when the knitting is viewed at an angle.
Are we done? No way! We're about halfway through my list of advanced techniques for the knitting expert. They more or less get tougher as we go, yes?
Remember, you knit for fun, relaxation and productive results. For tips on how to avoid knitting mistakes from a professional tailor who knits, visit my Knits Gone Bad blog at http://knitfitninja.com/blog/
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