Newbie and needs HELP!

#1

Hello Knitters!

I took my first class on Dec 19, 2007. Went home and promptly forgot how to cast. In the class I was taught casting on, English and Continental Knit and Purl, correcting dropped stitches, binding off…needless to say, my head was swimming.

After doing online searches, I figured out how to cast. I started knitting. My main problem (now) is that my stitches slip off my needles (more than one stitch at a time) and if they unravel or are too many, I don’t know how to fix them aside from ripping them all out and starting from scratch.

I feel kinda d*mb asking, but any tips out there for me? And I’m warning in advance…I’ll probably be full of questions later!:wink:

Thanks for any help!!

Jinner

#2

Hi and welcome; you came to the right place!

Click here http://www.knittinghelp.com/videos/knitting-tips and go down to the section on fixing mistakes. That should help you, and the other videos can help you remember what you were taught in class as well as learn new things.

#3

Welcome! I don’t know what kind of needles you’re using right now, but if you’re using metal ones, you might want to try switching to bamboo. They can be a little ‘grippier’ especially with slicker yarns, and might help keep the stitches from slipping off so much.

#4

I am a newbie too, I switched from metal needles to bamboo such a difference, better control and less stitches slipping off.

#5

I am new to knitting as well and am having a terrible time with mystery stitches being added to my work. I thought I had figured out where I was making a mistake but alas, no! I started what was to be a scarf, but it ended up being wide enough for a small doll blanket!:knitting:

I have tried both the wooden and the metal needles and much prefer the wood, they are easier to control.

Now to stop those darn stitches from multiplying!

Have a great Christmas and a Safe New Year

#6

Have you read through this thread? http://knittinghelp.com/forum/showthread.php?t=32886 Lots of posts on causes and fixes for extra stitches.

#7

Stitches can and will slip off the needles if you aren’t paying attention, especially if you knit loose. The best thing you can do is to stick with it, pay close attention, and most of all enjoy it.

#8

Hello and welcome Jinny. I’m also fairly new to knitting, started learning about two months ago. Anyway if your stitches are slipping off the needle you can try, as someone else mentioned, keeping them a bit farther away from your needle tips or, as I like to do, keep a finger on your stitches to keep them from slipping off. Although that’s not exactly the proper way to knit I think, it does keep my stitches from flying off my needles though.

As for the stitches unraveling you can try to thread your needle back into the loops and knitting the unraveled yarn back through. As for mystery stitches, if it was done the previous row you can try to fix it by moving the yarn to get rid of the extra stitch. Like when I accidently pull up the bottom loop to form another stitch when I get back to that point I keep the stitch on the needle and move the extra loop off the needle so it’s in the correct position. If the loop was formed by a yarn over or something I think you can slip it off the needle when you get back to it, then tighten the yarn to close the gaps.

At least that’s how I think you could fix problems, but I’m new to knitting still so there could be easier ways to fix the problems but we’ll have to wait for someone else to provide the answer.

#9

What are you all talking about “wooden needles” I’ve never had a prob with using my cheap metal ones from wal-mart. :wink:

I wish i could tell you how i keep my stitches on, but tis kinda hard to explain. Though, i do knit tighter rather than looser… Most of the time I have a hold on the two end stitches, closest to the tips of the needles. But, that’s what has always worked for me…