Knitting Starter Checklist

1. Gather your supplies

• A pair of medium knitting needles
• A skein of worsted weight yarn
• A pair of scissors
• A yarn needle for finishing

2. Your first project

3. Your first month, step by step

• Week 1: Get comfortable holding the yarn and needles. Practice casting on 20 stitches and the knit stitch over and over on cheap, light-colored worsted yarn. Do not worry about mistakes, just keep your hands moving until the motion feels familiar.
• Week 2: Learn the purl stitch and knit a small practice swatch in garter stitch (knit every row). Notice the difference between the smooth knit V and the bumpy purl. End the week by practicing how to bind off so you can finish a piece.
• Week 3: Start your first real project: a simple garter-stitch scarf. Cast on, slip the first stitch of each row for tidy edges, and knit a little every day. This is where the relaxing rhythm really sets in.
• Week 4: Finish and bind off your scarf, then weave in the loose ends with a tapestry needle. Try combining knits and purls in one row (like a rib) to prepare for hats and patterns. Celebrate, you are now a knitter.

4. Mistakes to avoid

• Casting on too tightly, which makes the first row almost impossible to knit. Cast on over two needles held together, or onto a needle one or two sizes larger, then slide it out. Keep your stitches loose enough to slide easily.
• Accidentally adding stitches so your rows keep getting wider. This usually means you wrapped the yarn over the needle and counted it as a stitch, or knit into the gap. Count your stitches at the end of every row until it becomes second nature.
• Dropped stitches that run down and leave a hole or ladder. Stop and stay calm. Use a crochet hook to catch the loose loop and pull each ladder rung through, working back up to the needle. Putting a stitch marker or safety pin in a dropped stitch keeps it from running further.
• Accidental yarn-overs that create unwanted eyelet holes. Make sure the working yarn sits behind the needle for a knit stitch and in front for a purl. If you see an extra loop that is not a real stitch, drop it off the needle before working it.
• Uneven, lumpy tension where some stitches are tight and others loose. Tension evens out with practice, so do not chase perfection early. Relax your grip, keep an even pace, and avoid yanking the yarn after each stitch.
• Splitting the yarn so the stitch looks fuzzy and frayed. Use needles with a slightly rounded tip for plied yarn, slow down, and insert the needle cleanly through the whole loop rather than through the middle of the strands.