Primary Knitting Terms and Procedures Explained

Any human activity involving application of knowledge and skill inadvertently develops its own glossary and usage. This article is purposely written to explain some of the basic terms and procedures associated with the fascinating activity called knitting.

yarn - a continuous and often plied strand composed of either natural or man-made fibers or filaments and used in weaving and knitting to form cloth

stitch – a single loop of thread or yarn around an implement such as a knitting needle or a crochet hook. Pick up the second needle with the empty hand and insert it through the first stitch. Pull the yarn through and out this stitch, and continue until all the stitches have been transferred. Start another row and yet another until the desired number shall have been created

knitting stitch - usually made with the yarn at the back of the work by inserting the right needle into the front part of a loop on the left needle from the left side, catching the yarn with the point of the right needle, and bringing it through the first loop to form a new loop

purl stitch - usually made with the yarn at the front of the work by inserting the right needle into the front of a loop on the left needle from the right, catching the yarn with the right needle, and bringing it through to form a new loop

cast on - putting the stitches on the needle. Make a slip knot about 6 inches from the end of the yarn, slip the needle through this knot and then pull the yarn to tighten it. Loop the yarn around the thumb of the hand other than the one holding the needle, which is then slipped through and out this loop. Tighten a little and make several more stitches depending on requirement

cast off, also called binding off - finishing or saving for later work a knitted item and getting it off the needles. Produce two stitches, bringing in the first stitch over the second. Knit one more stitch and again bring the first stitch loosely over the second. At the end of the row, cut the yarn, draw it through the last stitch, and pull it in tightly

blocking - giving a finished work a neat and smooth appearance. This is accomplished simply by pinning the work down by stretching it on an ironing table. Cover the work with a damp pressing cloth and press with a hot iron, and then let it dry thoroughly

joining - connecting one yarn to another or one piece of knitting to another

gauge - ratio of stitches per row and per inch

Once the "hang" and the "feel" of the activities have been developed, the newbie is already fully prepared to tackle bigger and more complex projects.


When following published patterns, these abbreviations are sometimes encountered:

M1 -- make one
wyib -- with yarn in back
pnso -- Pass next stitch over
yfon -- yarn forward over needle (also seen as yo or yarn over)
K1 tbl -- Knit the stitch through the back loop instead of the front
k-b -- Knit the stitch from the row below
kll -- Knit left loop to increase to the left
krl -- Knit right loop.





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