This tutorial will show you the basics of knitting. Follow along and see how easy it is to actually do! Anyone can learn to knit and it’s a great craft to know if you want to give handmade gifts! A simple large knitted rectangle is essentially an afghan. So this simple stitch can go pretty far and will keep you warm for years to come! Scroll down to watch the video.
Note: You can reverse the following directions if you are left handed.
First you’re going to tie a slip knot. The loop should connect to the yarn ball. Leave enough of the cut end of the yarn hanging – the bigger your pattern is, the more of this loose yarn you will need to cast on with. Put the slip knot loop on your needle and cast on with your left hand. To cast on, loop the yarn around your left thumb and slide it onto your needle, keeping it looped around your thumb. With your right hand, bring the loose yarn from the back to the front between the needle and your thumb. Then push the loop around your thumb over the loose yarn and off the needle. This makes the loose yarn into a new casted-on loop! Continue this process until you finish casting on your first set of loops.
To begin your first row, you’re going to hold the needle with the cast-on loops in your left hand and the empty needle in your right. Leave the yarn that’s connected to the ball to the back. Slip the empty needle through the top loop on the other needle, going from the bottom towards the tip. You’ll keep the right needle behind the left once they’re in the loop together. Wrap the loose yarn (that leads to the yarn ball) from back to front between the needles. Now push the right needle down between the loose yarn and the left needle and pull the loop off the left needle completely. This should form a whole new loop from the loose yarn. You’ll repeat this all the way down the row. When you get to the end of the row, switch the now full needle (the right hand needle) to your left, and put the empty (left hand needle) in your right hand, and repeat the whole process. You’re knitting!
To bind off the last row, you’re going to knit two stitches, then on the right hand needle, pull the bottom stitch up and over the top stitch, leaving only one stitch on the needle. Knit one more stitch and again pull the bottom stitch over the top one. Continue this until you get to the end and have only one stitch left. Clip your yarn, feed it through the last loop, and pull it tight. Weave in the loose ends with a crochet needle or yarn needle into your work to hide it. You’ve finished!
