On this site you will find everything you need to know to knit to donate to charity—from the basic essentials of donating to charity to a list of charitable organizations that seek out donated knitted items to give to sick children, the homeless, premature babies and others in need; to how to work on your own or with other knitters to reach those in need…and even more.
Written by Knitting Stitches on January 7th, 2010
The needle gauge is a handy tool for a knitter. The gauge has 15 holes (sizes 1 to 19) to size your needle as well as a 2 ruler (in 1/4 increments) to check your stitch and row gauge. Handmade in the U.S.A. from fine hardwood and finished to a lustrous sheen.
Written by Knitting Stitches on December 26th, 2009
Learn the basics of knitting from casting on that first stitch to binding off the last row – from three expert instructors with The Knitting Guild of America. This easy-to-follow video takes you step by step through your very first project.
Written by Knitting Stitches on November 20th, 2009
Delightfully compact, beautiful bamboo needle set for those knitters who need variety on the go! This economical set includes: 6 pairs of bamboo needle heads, sizes US 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, and 10 and 4 cords to create 18″, 24″, 32″, and 40″ needles. Needles marked in U.S. and mm sizes.
Written by Knitting Stitches on October 19th, 2009
Want to teach a child to knit? Give him or her a DVD! On The Art of Knitting 4 Kids
Written by Knitting Stitches on October 18th, 2009
The “Learn to Knit” 3DVD SUPER SET – American Knitter
DVD 1 teaches the basics: casting on and off, knit, purl, garter and stocking stitches, increasing and decreasing. DVD 2 teaches intermediate techniques: the ribbing stitch, using stitch holders and markers, knitting gauge calculations, sizing for different people. In DVD 3 you’ll learn: patterns, cable stitches, changing yarn colors, double sided cables, blocking and tufts.
Each DVD is divided into chapters for each technique, allowing you to quickly find instruction on a specific topic. If for any reason you are not 100% satisfied with this product, return it within 30 days for a full refund.
Written by Knitting Stitches on August 14th, 2009
Since the bind-off edge should be the same tension as the knitted piece, stitches should be bound off evenly and according to pattern.
While most stitchers understand this rule as well as what to do if you bind off too tightly or loosely; trying to figure out how to keep the last stitch from becoming a shapeless loop can be elusive. Here are a few recommendations from experienced knitters.
Work the last two stitches together; pull the third stitch from the end over it and finish off.
Slip the last stitch; pull the next to the last one over it. Cut the yarn and pull through the slipped stitch and adjust the tension.
Bind off until one stitch remains on the left-hand needle; slip it to the right-hand needle and pick up the loop of the stitch one row below the slipped stitch. Return the slipped stitch to the left-hand needle and work the loop and the last stitch together.
On the row before the bind-off row, work the first stitch, give the yarn a tug and finish the row. The last stitch of the bind-off row will be tightened.
Written by Knitting Stitches on August 13th, 2009
Increases and decreases are used to shape knitted pieces. Increases make pieces larger; decreases make them smaller. For ease of working, increases and decreases are often worked on right-side rows either within the knitted piece or at the side edges. Here’s a summary of basic increasing and decreasing to shape a knitted piece.
The simplest increase technique is the make-one increase (M1) which most knitters usually learn to do first. Because it makes an invisible increase, it’s very effective when making increases within the middle of a row or the body of a piece. To do this increase, with the needle tip lift the strand between the last stitch knit and the next stitch on the left hand needle and knit into the back of it. One knit stitch will have been added. At the beginning of a row, to increase you knit twice in the same stitch to form two distinct stitches.
By working a specific decrease, you can slant the stitches to the right by knitting two stitches together (k2tog) or left (ssk) by slipping the next two stitches knit-wise, one at a time, to the right hand needle, inserting the tip of the left hand needle into the fronts of these stitches from left to right; and knitting them together. One stitch has been decreased. This is valuable to know when working pieces with shaping such as raglan armholes, where the slant of the edge is important. When the slant is unimportant, you can work either type of decrease. But the k2tog decrease is simplest.
Use these techniques for adding or subtracting one or two stitches at a time. When increasing or decreasing several stitches, you will need to use casting-on or binding-off techniques.
Written by Knitting Stitches on August 12th, 2009
From the moment you pick up your first pair of knitting needles and start to knit you acquire a skill rating. Everyone starts as a beginner but only a few knitters make it to the Experienced/Expert level. To determine your current knitting skill rating, consider the following explanations.
Ideal first projects that help the new knitter learn the basics. Basic knit and purl stitches are used throughout with minimal shaping required.
Includes knitting projects with basic and repetitive stitch patterns, simple color changes, and basic shaping and finishing.
Projects on this skill level have varied and more complicated stitch techniques like cables, lace, and simple intarsia. Knitters are introduced to double-pointed needles and knitting in the round. Mid-level shaping and finishing are learned.
These are usually challenging projects with complicated patterns that use advanced techniques and stitches such as short rows, Fair Isle, more intricate intarsia, cables, lace patterns. There are usually numerous color changes, involved shaping and finishing.
Written by Knitting Stitches on August 11th, 2009
Blocking is gently stretching or molding knitted pieces to the desired size and shape or according to a prescribed pattern for a professional finish. Here are four ways to block a knitting project.
This type of blocking is suitable for most natural fibers and some synthetics. It uses heat and varying degrees of moisture. A steam iron is used to lightly touch the wrong side of the knitted item. Moisture from the iron gently blocks the item into the desired shape.
Blocking using this method involves lots of moisture but no heat. It is especially suitable for wool with raised patterns and washable woolen yarns. Knitted items are soaked in cool water, gently squeezed to get rid of the excess, pinned into desired dimensions and left to dry.
This type of blocking uses just a little bit of water and no heat. It’s suitable for lightweight wools, cottons, linens and silks. The only moisture comes from a damp cloth or water sprayed from a bottle.
Knitted items with embellishments or bulky sweaters and coats rarely need blocking. With minimal blocking, all you have to do is gently steam the seams and allow the garment to dry.
Written by Knitting Stitches on August 10th, 2009
Knitting is one of the easiest needle crafts to learn. It is based on two stitches, the knit stitch and the purl stitch. All patterns–even the complicated ones are based on variations of these two stitches.
When first learning to knit, beginners make simple items using just the knit stitch. Row upon row of knit is called the garter stitch. It makes ridges on both sides of the work. When used for borders, garter stitch prevents the edges from rolling. To make the knit stitch, insert the needle from the front to back of each stitch.
The purl stitch is the second of the two main knitting stitches. Many stitchers consider the purl stitch a sort of backward knit stitch. It’s a little bit more awkward and for the most part is done on the wrong side of the work. To make the purl stitch, insert the needle from the back to the front of each stitch.
A row of knit on the right side of your work followed by a row of purl on the wrong side form the stockinette stitch. Although the two sides look different, the finished work is smooth on the right side. The knit side will look like little hearts or V’s and the purl side will look bumpy or ridged like a string of pearls.
Written by Knitting Stitches on August 7th, 2009
Once you’ve spent time and money knitting an item to donate to charity, you should attach instructions for care and maintenance to the garment so that the recipient will know how to clean it in the future.
Most care and maintenance instructions are found on the yarn label. Symbols are used for ease of recognition.
