hello,
I’m a brand new knitter and decided to knit a blanket for my first piece. I have 13" needles and just about managed to cast all the stitches on with a few cm spare.
I’ve now done about 3 rounds of garter stitch and the stitches seem to no longer fit as well as they did? I don’t know whether it’s because the piece is bunching up too much as it is still wrapping itself around the needle
Can a piece suddenly not fit even if it cast on fine?! help please!!
thank you! 
I would not knit a blanket on straight needles. They aren’t long enough and it will eventually be too heavy. Blankets are best done on a long circular needle.
If it’s a baby blanket you might be able to use a 40", but if it’s a full afghan or blanket it will probably need to be 60" or so. It depends on the size you are making.
The cast-on compacts better than it does after you knit for a while. A blanket is usually uncomfortable to handle on straight needles, even if a lot of people used to do that (I did, to start with.)
If you can find a circular needle, the long cable between the needles will give you a lot more room to lay the stitches out and you can rest the growing blanket on your lap while you work. You don’t knit in the round, just act as if you still had it on straight needles.
thanks for answering so soon
I’ve definitely learnt my lesson now! even though it will be difficult will it be possible to carry on as I’m going then? I don’t have any circular needles at the moment and I just want to crack on, I’m so eager and impatient!
Much wiser to invest in a circular needle now. You can knit your next row onto the new needle and breathe a sigh of relief. It’ll be easier on your hands, you’ll be able to see mistakes (just in case you make one or two) and the stitches will be more even and happier.
I made this mistake early on and it’s always been a lesson to me.
Welcome to the forum!
The sooner you get a circular, the better you’ll get on. You canknit until you get it, but the problems you’re having will get worse.
Once upon a time, those really long straight needles were all we had, and they turned a lot of people off knitting. They’re better for relatively small things, not much wider than one needle is long, with not many rows.
If you cannot get circs right away… why not do half of the blanket at one time and then stitch the two pieces together when they are done.
As everyone has said… using a circ is the best, but, if you still want to just get going… you can. However, I guarantee, once you use circular needles, I doubt you will ever go back to straights again.
I use my circs for everything now!
Good luck!
TEMA :knitting: