Day 7: Is there a Wrong Way to Knit?

How many ways do you know how to knit?

Sometimes I have someone in my class that knits in the combination continental method (wraps her purls from underneath and knits into the back of her knit sts). This means that her K2tog is our SSK and vice versa. As I try to explain the reversal of these stitches, the question of the correct way to knit comes up. Is there a correct way?

There is definitely a way of knitting which makes it easier to follow North American patterns. There are ways of knitting which make it easier for other knitters to help you when you run into problems. But a right and wrong way to knit? As long as the fabric looks good and has no crossed stitches on the stockinette fabric, I don't think there's any wrong way.

There are advantages to knowing other ways to knit. I get tendinitis in my right elbow quite often. The cure is rest. Yay, right, no knitting, like that's going to happen!! On my way home after hearing this terrible news, I thought "what if I changed how I knit, that might work". So I knit for 2 weeks working the Portuguese method and the elbow pain went away. Wow, just like that.

Mix it up. Try a new style of knitting. Work across the knit row with one style and the purl row in another style. Work one project with your main knitting style and a second project in a different style. It can't hurt.

Deb
P.S. Thanks Jill, Sharon and Liz for your comments. I'm glad to hear you're knitting everywhere you go. I take my sock project with me when I buy a new purse because the project has to fit or I can't buy the purse no matter how much I might like it.