According to Princeton.edu, knitting is defined as "needlework created by interlacing yarn in a series of connected loops using straight eyeless needles or by machine creating knitted wear". http://wordnetweb.princeton.edu/perl/webwnThis popular craft is reported to have been around since at least 1100 A.D.. Archaeologists have found a pair of knitted cotton socks in Egypt that date to that time period. http://knitknitting.com/knittinghistory.htm Since then, this do it yourself textile has expanded beyond small article clothing to include everything from sweaters to blankets.

This article has been designed to accommodate all crafting skill levels and takes you through the knitting process step by step. You need to have 2 knitting needles of the same size and a ball of worsted weight yarn. It is recommended that you use medium to large sized needles so that you can easily see and manipulate the stitches. Try size 10 or above knitting needles to make the example swatches. Also, a size K crochet hook comes in handy for several steps. It should take anywhere from 5 to 10 minutes to create each sample swatch.

On this How to Teach Yourself to Knit site, you learn everything you need to know about creating your first knitted fabric piece. You are taken through the process of casting on, making knit/purl stitches, handling dropped stitches, increasing, decreasing, casting off and blocking your final project. Once you have completed the entire tutorial, you should be able to handle any basic knitting pattern with ease.

Casting on is the first step to starting any knit fabric. It is how you create a foundation chain that holds your first row of stitches. There are many different ways to cast on in knitting. However, this beginner article will cover the two most common and easiest methods for those starting out.

• Long Tail Cast On:

Basic cast on is usually the first technique that new knitters learn. At first, it may seem complicated. With practice, you will find that it becomes easier and that you can do it quickly. To ensure that your cast on isn't too tight, hold both your needles together and make the loops as directed.

1. Make a slip knot with the yarn. Leave a 24 inch tail. To make a slip knot, create a loop then hold the tail of the yarn behind the loop in the middle. Carry the needle through the loop on the right side of the tail then back up on the other side of it. Now, you have come out of the loop. Tug the tail to tighten the knot on the hook. (Read the Tip section for more on calculating tail length.)
2. Hold the needle in your right hand while you drape the tail over your left thumb and the working yarn over your left index finger. The ends of both threads are held taut under your other left hand fingers.
3. Dip the needle down then insert into the loop created on your left thumb. Don't release the loop yet.
4. Carry the needle tip over to the left index finger and scoop up the thread.
5. Remove your thumb from the loop then use your left thumb to pull the tail strand and tighten the loop. Keep in mind that you shouldn't pull too tight if you only use a single needle.
6. Continue the process until you have the desired amount of loops which is 12 loops in this sample.

• Crochet Cast On (Chained Cast On):

This method works best if you use one knitting needle and one crochet hook with the same thickness. For this example, use a size 10 knitting needle and K crochet hook. Crochet cast on is great for knitters that don't want to worry about controlling tail length with the basic cast on method. Also, if you use a waste piece of yarn to do it, you can remove it once you are done for more advanced seaming.

1. With the crochet hook in your right hand, make a slip knot over it with the yarn. Leave a 6 inch tail.
2. Hold the knitting needle in your left hand with the end cradled at your side facing straight out from you.
3. Lay the hook on top of the knitting needle, Make sure that the working end of the thread hangs below both needle and hook.
4. Holding the working thread in your left hand, wrap it around the thickness of the knitting needle and place it in the crochet hook.
5. Pull the loop through.
6. Drag the strand back around to the right side and wrap it around to connect with the crochet hook. Bring up the loop. Repeat until you make the desired number of loops minus one.
7. Once you are done, slip the loop from the crochet hook on to the knitting needle by simply dragging the loop over the needle tip and removing the hook.

All the textures and patterns created in knitting are formed from two simple stitches, the knit and purl stitch.

• Knit Stitch:

1. Cast on 12 loops using either method.
2. Hold the needle with the loops in your left hand and put the empty needle in your right hand.
3. Wrap the working strand around your palm while anchoring it over your right index finger.
4. With the working yarn positioned behind the needles, place the tip of the right needle on the left side of the first loop.
5. Move the tip down and behind through the loop on the left needle. At this point, the right needle is behind the left one.
6. Wrap the yarn over the tip of the right needle then slide the needle up hooking a new loop on the right needle.
7. Push off the old loop from the left needle by dragging the right needle to the right. You have now made a knit stitch.
8. Continue across with knit stitches for each loop.
9. Now, the stitches have been transferred to the right needle.
10. Switch the full needle back to your left hand and make another row of knit stitches. This continuous pattern of knit stitches is called the garter stitch.

Garter Stitch Pattern:

• Row 1: Knit across.
• Row 2: Knit across.
• Row 3 - 12: Repeat rows 1 and 2.

• Purl Stitch:

1. Cast on 12 loops using either method.
2. Hold the needle with the loops in your left hand and put the empty needle in your right hand.
3. Circle the working strand around your palm while anchoring it over your right index finger.
4. With the working yarn positioned in front of the needles, place the tip of the right needle on the right side of the first loop.
5. Insert the right needle from right to left through the loop on the left needle. The right needle remains in front of the left one.
6. Wrap the yarn over the tip of the right needle then drag the needle down and behind hooking a new loop on the right needle.
7. Push off the old loop from the left needle by dragging the right needle to the right. You have now made a purl stitch.
8. Continue across with purl stitches for each loop.
9. Now, the stitches have been transferred to the right needle.
10. Switch the full needle back to your left hand and make a row of knit stitches. If you alternate knit and purl rows, you get another stitch pattern called the stockinette stitch. (If you did continuous rows of purl stitches, that would also create the garter stitch pattern.)

Stockinette Stitch Pattern:

• Row 1: Purl across.
• Row 2: Knit across.
• Row 3 - 12: Repeat rows 1 and 2.

• Dropped Stitches:

Every knitter experiences the misfortune of dropping a stitch. A dropped stitch occurs when a loop accidentally slips off the needle causing a few rows of knitting to unravel. If this happens, it is actually pretty simple to fix with a crochet needle.

1. Place the piece down on a flat surface. Make sure to secure the loops still on the hook by pushing them lower on the needles than usual. This will prevent more loops from falling off the needles.
2. As you look down the unraveled section, you should see one stray loop sticking up. Insert your crochet hook through the loop from the front.
3. Above the loop, there is an unraveled straight portion of yarn. Gather that piece of yarn up with the crochet hook and pull it through the loop.
4. If there are more rows of unraveled loops, continue this process.
5. Once you reach the top row, slip the loop back onto the needle it slipped off.

If you plan on making any knitted garments, you will have to become comfortable with increasing and decreasing stitches in a row. There are various ways to go about this. Most of the time, you will have to use an increase or decrease that matches the purl or knit stitches in the pattern. The most common techniques are demonstrated below.

• Increasing:
• Make 1 Knit:

1. Using the left needle, you will hook the tip under the first horizontal strand of yarn between the stitches in the fabric. Make sure to hook it from front to back.
2. Knit into the back loop of the stitch. Slide off the old loop on the left needle. You have created an extra knit stitch.

• Make 1 Purl:

1. Using the left needle, you will hook the tip under the first horizontal strand of yarn between the stitches in the fabric. Be sure to hook it from front to back.
2. Purl into the back loop of the stitch. Slide off the old loop on the left needle. You have created an extra purl stitch.

• Yarn Over:

1. Bring the working yarn under the right needle from back to front.
2. Then, knit the next stitch as normal. You have created an extra loop on the right needle.

• Kfb (Knit in Front and Back):

1. Make a normal knit stitch in the next loop on the left needle. Don't push the old loop off the left needle yet.
2. Now, stick the tip of the right needle into the back of that same loop and make another knit stitch.

• Decreasing:
• Knit 2 Together (or Purl 2 Together):

1. Place your right needle tip through the next 2 stitches from left to right.
2. Make a usual knit stitch. You have decreased the loops by one. To purl 2 together, just insert the needle through 2 stitches like you would for a normal purl stitch.

• Double Vertical Decrease:

1. Place the right needle in the next two loops together like you would for a knit stitch then slip them to the right needle without stitching them.
2. Make a knit stitch in the next loop on the left needle.
3. Now, use the tip of the left needle to gather up the initial two stitches and drag them over the last loop placed on the right needle. You have decreased 2 stitches at once.

• Slip, Knit, Pass Over:

1. Place the right needle in the next loop like you would for a knit stitch then slip it to the right needle without stitching it.
2. Create a knit stitch in the next loop on the left needle.
3. Use the tip of the left needle to hook the initial stitch and drag it over the last loop placed on the right needle. You have decreased 1 stitch.

• Slip, Slip, Knit (or Slip, Slip, Purl):

1. Insert the right needle into the next two loops together like you would for a knit stitch then slip them to the right needle.
2. Place the left needle tip into the front of these two loops then make a knit stitch. To make a slip, slip, purl decrease, slip the two loops to the right needle then purl them together with the left needle through the back of the loop.

Once you reach the last row of your knitting project, it is time to cast off the loops still on the knitting needles. If you don't cast off, your piece will unravel and fall apart. This tutorial will teach you two methods of casting off that take no time to learn. Some patterns call this process binding off instead.

• Basic Cast Off:

This beginner cast off can be performed on the knit or purl side of a fabric.

1. First, you need to make 2 normal knit stitches into the next two loops on the left needle.
2. Stick the tip of the left needle into the second loop on the right needle.
3. Hook it up and pull it over the first loop and off the right needle. Now, you have only one loop on the right needle.
4. Knit the next stitch.
5. Repeat the above steps 2 through 6 until you reach the end of the row. Pull up a 6 inch length of yarn through the last loop then cut it.

• Note: You can make a purl basic cast off by following the same procedure. Use purl stitches instead of knit ones.

• Cast Off With Crochet Hook:

Some advanced knitters can perform this task without a crochet hook. However, it is much simpler to do with a crochet hook that matches the size of the knitting needles used to make the pattern. (If you find that your cast off tends to be too tight, go up to the next size in crochet hook.)

1. Hold the crochet hook in your right hand and the needle filled with stitches in your left hand.
2. Place the hook into the first loop like you would for a knit stitch.
3. Bring the working yarn over the hook from back to front then pull it through. Push the old loop off the left needle.
4. Once again, insert the crochet hook into the next loop on the left needle, yarn over and pull up a loop. After you push the old loop off the left needle, take the strand through the loop on the hook as well.
5. Repeat the last two steps until you reach the end of the row. Pull up a 6 inch length of yarn through the last loop then cut it.

• Weaving in Ends:

Weave in the 6 inch tail with a yarn needle. Carry the yarn in and out of the purl bumps.

Blocking your finished project is essential for a professional fit when creating knitted garments or squaring off items such as blankets. Blocking entails making the knitted fibers wet then stretching and pinning them in the desired shape that you want them to hold. Once it is dry, you have a finished piece. Be sure to read the care labels before blocking. This is especially important for man-made novelty fabrics.

• Blocking Supplies:
• T-pins
• Blocking board (or any heat resistant surface you can pin into)
• Steam iron
• Measuring tape
• Spray bottle

• Procedures:
• Spray:

1. Pin the piece in the desired shape to the board.
2. Using a spray bottle, spritz the surface. Do not over soak the fabric. It should just be damp to the touch.
3. Let it dry naturally.

• Wet:

1. Wet the knitted fabric. Remove excess water by rolling the item in a towel gently so that you don't agitate the fibers.
2. Now, pin the material to the board in the desired shape that you need to achieve.
3. Dry it naturally. It will take a few days for it to dry completely.

• Steam:

1. Pin the fabric to the blocking board. Stretch it into the shape that you need. (If it is too stiff, go ahead and steam it first before pinning.)
2. Dampen a sheet and place it over the material that you are blocking.
3. Iron over the sheet until the sheet is dry. (Some people like to just hover a steam iron over the piece and skip the sheet.)

• Specific Materials:

Knitty.com recommends the following settings for specific knitted fabrics: http://knitty.com/ISSUEwinter02/FEATdiyknitter.html

• Wool: It can handle any method of blocking. Consider using the wet technique if it has thick wool or cables.

• 'Cotton: Cotton should be steam blocked.

• Linen: You need to wet linen more than normal to get it to soak into the fibers. Use wet blocking to shape it.

• Cashmere/Merino/Mohair/Silk: Use the spray method on these delicate natural fibers to minimize damage.

• Man-made: Try using the spray technique on this class of fibers. However, make sure you read the label. Some man-made threads are not supposed to get wet.

• Alternative Process:

According to Chicknits.com, you can block most washable fabrics by rolling the knitted piece up in a damp bath towel and letting it stand this way overnight. http://chicknits.com/block.shtmlThen, pin the knitted pieces to a blocking board or place them on a Velcro-like rug to hold the position that you need. Let the material dry entirely. http://chicknits.com/block.shtml