Blocking your knitting is a major step in the successful completion of projects. After your project or a gauge swatch is off the knitting needles, it’s time for blocking. Blocking means relaxing your yarn and the overall knitted project. After all your yarn has been wound, unwound, twisted, tugged and stored for the duration of making your project. Now, the knitted yarn needs some love and pampering. There are many ways to block your knitted projects with specially-designed blocking tools to smooth your process.

Let’s take you through the method of blocking.

1. Wet Blocking - A common way of blocking wool and animal fiber yarns. Fill a sink or tub with lukewarm water (hot water may cause felting in wool!) with some wash and mix it thoroughly.Submerge your project until fully saturated.Let the knitted project rest in the bath for at least 10 minutes and up to 30 minutes. Lift the project out of the water gently. Make sure to not let the knitted project stretch or distort due to the water weight. Lay your wet project flat on a clean, dry towel or bedsheet. Roll the cloth and gently press out the extra water. Once its semi-dry, lay your project on blocking mats or a rubber yoga mat (spare one), bath mat, etc. Adjust your project and pin it with knit blockers.

1. Spray Blocking – Lace projects and cotton fabric is blocked with spray blocking. Lightly spray with a diluted mix of wool wash and water in a regular spray bottle. The damp project can be shaped to approximately match the finished dimensions. Place knit blockers at intervals while stretching your project to the desired dimensions. When your piece is fully dry, unpin and use.

1. Steaming – This method is recommended for delicate lace projects. Use knit blockers to pin the knitted project. In this method, you would want the steam to penetrate the piece. So, lay a light sheet or cotton towel over the project. If the project is made of cotton yarn, you can let the iron touch the fabric very lightly. You can also steam first and let your piece rest after using the knit blockers.

Use the blocking methods for your knit gauge swatch. After the swatch has been blocked, it will give an accurate result of the row and stitch count. You will also get a clear idea of how the yarn reacts after being washed, sprayed or steamed. For blocking your knitted projects, carefully use the knit blockers. Do not insert between the stitches. Blocking can work wonders for many projects, allowing to match dimensions, let the yarn bloom and even clean the yarn. So, be it the stockinette stitch or the intricate cables or the delicate lace, you make on any of the knitting needles, do not miss out on the process of blocking. Like knitting needle sets make your life easier, so does the blocking tools. You will be thankful for the extra effort.

If you want to explore and practice the meditative aspects of knitting, the Mindful Collection offers stainless steel needles & accessories to enjoy crafting!

Source: https://uberant.com/article/1874308-how-to-block-your-knitting/

Knitting is a fun craft, after all, you only need three simple things: knitting needles, yarn, and creativity.  But, there are also a few “things” that can make knitting a lot easier and fun. Be it the beginners or the advanced crafters, every knitter needs some help. Before you go and get your hands on everything possible, check out our list of knitting essentials.

1. Knitting Needle Sets

In knitting, of course, you will need knitting needles, but the collection is never complete until you own all three types of needles and the popular sizes. A pair of single-pointed needles are handy to knit most rectangular projects in back-and-forth knitting. The circular needles are two 10 and 13 cm length tips joined by cables varying between lengths of 25cm to 150cm. If you do a lot of knitting you might want to get an interchangeable circular needle set which will offer flexibility. You won’t need new sizes for each project, as a set offers multiple. Plus, if your project calls for changing needle size or even the cable length you can easily go ahead with it. Double-point needles are ideal for knitting small things in the round, like mittens or the top of a hat.

Many times you may need to switch needles. You may start a project on circular needles, then switch to double points as you get close to binding off or knit different sections on different needles, so it is always recommended to include all needles in your collection.

2. Yarn

Obviously yarn, given the fact that knitting is fiber art. There are so many types, different weights, different fibers, different colors, etc of glorious yarn. Too much to possibly mention, but suffice it to say, you never have enough. For every project, you need different yarns. The ones that work best for socks may not be the right fit for a sweater, the ones you use to practice new techniques may be only used for practice and not any actual project.

3. Scissors

A pair of sharp scissors is always handy for a maker. You need it to cut the yarn when you finish your project or want to switch colours.

4. Tapestry Needle

A basic need for any knitter, a darning needle is a large sewing needle, with an eye big enough to accommodate bulky yarn. You’ll use the needle to weave in the tails of yarn left after you bind off your project or for different techniques and even seam projects together.

5. Stitch Markers

Like its name, stitch markers are used on your needles to mark particular points in your pattern. Some markers can be directly put onto a stitch such as locking ones, while cute round designs stay on the needles for reference in a particular stitch or pattern.

6. Measuring Tape

As a maker, you would want to work on your own designs and for that measuring tapes are handu. Also many times, a pattern mentions inches, rather than rows, so it's better to keep them on hand. Measuring tapes will not leave you guessing.

7. Row Counter

Some patterns require keeping track of exactly how many stitches and rows you have knit, and a row counter helps you keep an accurate count.

Know More: How to Use Row Counter for Knitting

8. Blocking tools

Yarn blooms beautifully after being blocked and blocking tools assist you in this. Any yarn of any project requires some pampering and blocking does that.

Know More: How to Block your Knitting

With the above knitting-related things, you are ready to knit anytime and anywhere!

Source: https://knitproblog.blogspot.com/2022/10/things-every-knitter-needs.html

Flat and circular knitting are just different styles of making a project. It is the path that your knitting needles take to complete a project. For instance, say you need to clear a round field full of grass. You can take your lawnmower and either go back and forth or you can start from the exterior circumference and go in a round. Both of these methods will get the task done. Choosing the style of knitting depends on the project as well as the knitter.

To make things easier and smoother, we’ll discuss both flat and circular knitting.

What is Flat Knitting?

In flat knitting, you knit back and forth on single-pointed needles or circular needles. Flat knitting is preferred for flat patterns- mostly dishcloths, scarf, etc., but it does not mean that you cannot make a sweater with straight needles. You will have to knit them separately and seam them later.

You start with a slip knot, then cast on stitches (as mentioned in a pattern or your own design’s calculation. Knit all the cast-on stitches across a row on one needle, and when you reach the end of the row, all the knitted stitches are on the other right-hand needle. To knit the next row, you’ll turn the work, move the needle with all the stitches to your left hand, and repeat the process again.

Knitting flat with circular needles is particularly amazing for knitting blankets, shawls, afghans, etc. With interchangeable circular needles, you get the versatility of different needle tips with different cable lengths. Also, if you need to cast a large number of stitches, you can easily shift the stitches to the cables keeping your hands free from extra bulk and stitches.

What is Circular Knitting?

Circular knitting is knitting in a continuous round which creates a circular tube. The seamless knitting style is particularly best for socks, hats, sleeves, fingers of mittens, etc. For knitting seamlessly, the options are circular needles or double-pointed needles (DPNs). Before circular knitting needles were invented a century earlier, double-pointed needles were the only method to knit small circumferences. The set of five needles works together to create a circumference as well as knitting the stitches with the extra needle. Working in the round avoids having to sew up the seams of the project. In this type of knitting, you always knit around and around without turning your work and can mark the beginning of each round with a stitch marker.

Circular needles are basically straight needle tips with a cable joining the two needles from one end. Usually, the needle lengths range from 25 cm to 150 cm from one end to another end. The interchangeable knitting needle sets are a knitter’s treasure as here you get to choose the needle sizes and cable sizes independently. Fixed circular needles are handy for projects such as socks and mittens.

To be clear, knitting in the round is not just restricted to using circular needles. For knitting socks, you need to knit a small circumference and the best option is the double-pointed needles.

Knitting is creative and in all a craft of Mindfulness. Whether you knit flat or circular with any knitting needle, enjoy every stitch. With the stainless steel needles of the Mindful Collection, you will have an enjoyable crafting experience along with inspiration from the unique words imprinted on the needle tips.

Source: https://www.klusster.com/portfolios/knitpro-mindful-collection/contents/391382?code=ffc66fee-d1d8-45e5-a9d1-63b5249f46ab

Ask a knitter if they knit without stitch markers. The experienced ones would say it is rather unthinkable after all, they help with marking, reference and avoiding common knitting mistakes. Stitch markers are handy accessories that either sit on your knitting needles or hang on the project. You do not need a special technique to work with stitch markers. You simply place one on a knitting needle and will slip the marker from the left needle to the right. Make sure to not entangle it with working yarn.

Available in round shapes, split designs, and even lockable ones that look like safety pins. Whether you are knitting socks or blankets, stitch markers are used to mark rows, rounds, and specific areas of a project.

1. Marking the beginning or end of a round - Knitting in the round means knitting seamlessly without edges. It’s tricky to tell when a round begins and ends, therefore you need to place a stitch marker to mark the point. This is important whether you knit with double-pointed needles or circulars.

1. When following Charts - Knitting charts are like a map. The stitches are represented with symbols. While new knitters are often scared to follow the charts, advanced knitters often enjoy it. To make your knitting smoother, use a stitch marker to note the beginning and end of a color chart repeats. Even the lace knitting pattern repeats can be marked with stitch markers. Also, if something doesn’t look right, the markers can help you backtrack on the pattern. Stitch markers can be used to divide your work into manageable sections.
2. Decrease or Increase in patterns - Some patterns instruct to count stitches before a decrease or increase. To not count the stitches every time, place a stitch marker that will let you know when it’s time to decrease or increase.
3. To mark Cables and Other Special Stitches - When working on cables and other complex stitches, stitch markers are going to be your allies. Place a stitch marker every time you make the switch to the elaborate stitches. This way you can work smoothly till you get to the marker and pay attention to the chart.
4. To Mark a Reference Point - In a knitting pattern, you might find an instruction to work a particular stitch for a certain point, stockinette stitch for 10cm (4″). It is difficult to measure the exact length, so instead of guessing, place a stitch marker and use a tape measure for the exact figure.
5. To Mark Multiples of Stitches - When working a large number of stitches at a time, get help from stitch markers. Place a stitch marker every ten or twenty stitches, you will have the count. If this sounds bulky to you, work with a circular knitting needle with enough cable length to spread your stitches and see them clearly.

Given the many uses and benefits of stitch markers in knitting, it is recommended to use markers that you enjoy working with. The Mindful Collection is dedicated to the meditative aspects of knitting. Stainless steel materials, teal colours and mindful themes make this collection special. The stitch markers of the collection are pretty special too, they represent the seven ancient chakras. The very design assists you with the practice of knitting as a mindful habit. There is also a pack of teal stitch markers that comes in round, split and lockable designs. Available in diverse options for all needle sizes, stitch markers are a must in a knitter’s craft collection.

With stitch markers by your side enjoy knitting!

Source: https://ext-6117053.livejournal.com/742.html

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