Video: How to knit (the best knitting tutorials)
If you’ve ever tried searching for how to knit video tutorials on YouTube, you’ll know it’s a bit of a jungle out there in terms of quality. So we asked one of our favourite self-taught yarnists, Jessica Biscoe, to share her pick of the best videos.
Knitwear designer Jessica (you can get her fab book, Knitting Smitten, FREE when you subscribe to Mollie Makes before 30 June) first learnt how to knit while working a desk job in finance. “I felt a strong urge to learn a more practical, tactile skill,” she tells us. She started learning from YouTube knitting tutorials and, five years later, has left her job to design full time. Just goes to show where a new skill can take you…
“If you’ve ever searched for a knitting technique on YouTube you’ll undoubtedly have come across Staci of Very Pink Knits,” says Jessica “I’m not exaggerating when I say Staci taught me to knit. I watched her videos constantly when I was learning, and still do today.
My favourite knitting videos, unsurprisingly then, are all hers. I wanted to share the concepts that really opened doors for me, and helped me hone my style and preferred way of knitting. She also has a vast archive of basic stitches and techniques to set you on the right path.”
“In the early days I was so clumsy with my needles. It all became a lot clearer when I discovered the most comfortable way, for me, to hold them and control the working yarn – called flicking.”
“Learning to fix mistakes was really empowering for me – it made me feel calmer and more in control. Tinking, or ‘knitting’ backwards, is brilliant for getting back to a mistake if you catch it early.”
“Once I learnt to knit in the round I never looked back. Circular needles in particular were very inspiring and introduced me to innovative new ways to knit – I hardly ever use straight needles these days.”
“Hand in hand with knitting in the round, learning how to graft stitches together was invaluable. To do this I often needed a provisional cast-on to leave stitches ‘live’, and this video taught me how.”
“I’m sure I’ve watched this video over 100 times. I wanted to learn to make socks quite early on and needed something visual to show me how to work this technique for closing the toe seam.”
Do you have any favourite online resources that have helped you on your crafty journey? We’d love to hear them! Share them with us on Instagram, Twitter, Pinterest and Facebook
