Knitting
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Knitting is a craft by which thread or yarn may be turned into cloth. Similar to crochet, knitting consists of loops called stitches pulled through each other. Knitting differs from crochet in that multiple stitches are "active", or in use, at the same time. The active stitches are held on a knitting needle until another loop can be passed through them with a second needle.
Knitting may be done by hand or by machine. By hand, there are numerous styles and means for knitting. Some of these produce an entirely different end-product; some produce very similar results. Flat knitting, which is done on two straight needles, produces a length of cloth, while circular knitting, which is done on circular or double-pointed needles, produces a tube of cloth.
Different yarns and knitting needles may be used to achieve different end products, by giving the final piece different colour, texture, weight or integrity.
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[edit] Types of knitting
[edit] Weft knitting versus warp knitting
There are two major varieties of knitting: weft knitting and warp knitting.[1] A weft-knitted fabric consists of horizontal, parallel courses of yarn and requires only a single yarn. By contrast, warp knitting requires one yarn for every stitch in the course, or horizontal row; these yarns make vertical parallel wales. [2] Warp knitting is resistant to runs, and is common in lingerie fabric such as tricot.
Warp knitting is generally done by machine, whereas weft knitting may be done by machine or by hand (Spencer 1989:11-12). Knitting machines use a different mechanical system to produce results nearly identical to those produced by hand-knitting.
[edit] Flat knitting versus circular knitting
Circular knitting (also called "knitting in the round") is a form of knitting that creates a seamless tube. Knitting is worked in rounds (the equivalent of rows in flat knitting) in a spiral. Originally, circular knitting was done using a set of four or five double-pointed knitting needles. Later, circular needles were invented. A circular needle resembles two short knitting needles connected by a cable between them. Flat knitting, on the other hand, is used, in its most basic form, to make flat, rectangular pieces of cloth.[3] It is done with two straight knitting needles and is worked in rows, horizontal lines of stitches.
Circular knitting is employed to create pieces that are circular or tube-shaped, such as hats, socks, mittens, and sleeves. Flat knitting is usually used to knit flat pieces like scarves, blankets, afghans, and the backs and fronts of sweaters.
[edit] History and culture
One of the earliest known examples of knitting was finely decorated cotton socks found in Egypt in the beginning of the first millennium AD.[4] The first knitting trade guild was started in Paris in 1527. [5] With the invention of the knitting machine, however, knitting "by hand" became a useful but non-essential craft. Similar to quilting, spinning, and needlepoint, knitting became a social activity.
Hand-knitting has gone into and out of fashion many times in the last two centuries, and at the turn of the 21st century it is enjoying a revival. According to the industry group Craft Yarn Council of America, the number of women knitters in the United States age 25–35 increased 150% in the two years between 2002 and 2004.[6] Additionally, many contemporary knitters have an interest in blogging about their knitting, patterns, and techniques.[7]
There are now numerous groups that are not only growing individually, but also forming international communities. Communities also exist online, with Blogs being very popular, alongside online groups and social networking, through mediums such as Yahoo! Groups, where people can share tips and techniques, run competitions, and share their patterns.
[edit] Properties of knitted fabrics
The topology of a knitted fabric is relatively complex. Unlike woven fabrics, where strands usually run straight horizontally and vertically, yarn that has been knitted follows a loopy path along its row, as with the red strand in the diagram at left, in which the loops of one row have all been pulled through the loops of the row below it.
Because there is no single straight line of yarn anywhere in the pattern, a knitted piece will be stretchy in all directions. This elasticity is unavailable from woven fabrics, which only stretch along the bias. Many modern stretchy garments, even as they rely on elastic synthetic materials for some stretch, also achieve at least some of their stretch through knitted patterns.
The basic knitted fabric (as in the diagram, and usually called a stocking or stockinette pattern) has a definite "right side" and "wrong side". On the right side, the visible portions of the loops are the verticals connecting two rows, arranged in a grid of V shapes. On the wrong side, the ends of the loops are visible, both the tops and bottoms, creating a much more bumpy texture sometimes called reverse stockinette. (Despite being the "wrong side," reverse stockinette is frequently used as a pattern in its own right.) Because the yarn holding rows together is all on the front, and the yarn holding side-by-side stitches together is all on the back, stockinette fabric has a strong tendency to curl toward the front on the top and bottom, and toward the back on the left and right side.
Stitches can be worked from either side, and various patterns are created by mixing regular knit stitches with the "wrong side" stitches, known as purl stitches, either in columns (ribbing), rows (garter, welting), or more complex patterns. Each such fabric has different properties: a garter stitch has much more vertical stretch, while ribbing stretches much more horizontally. Because of their front-back symmetry, these two fabrics have little curl, making them popular as edging, even when their stretch properties are not desired.
Different combinations of knit and purl stitches, along with more advanced techniques, generate fabrics of considerably variable consistency, from gauzy to very dense, from highly stretchy to relatively stiff, from flat to tightly curled, and so on.
[edit] Texture
The most common texture for a knitted garment is that generated by the flat stockinette stitch—as seen, though very small, in machine-made stockings and T-shirts—which is worked in the round as nothing but knit stitches, and worked flat as alternating rows of knit and purl. Other simple textures can be made with nothing but knit and purl stitches, including garter stitch, ribbing, and moss and seed stitches. Adding a "slip stitch" (where a loop is passed from one needle to the other) allows for a wide range of textures, including heel and linen stitches, and a number of more complicated patterns.
Some more advanced knitting techniques create a surprising variety of complex textures. Combining certain increases (a process by which the number of loops in a horizontal row is increased) which create small eyelet holes in the resulting fabric with assorted decreases (by passing one loop of yarn through two existing stitches, for example) is key to lace knitting, a very open fabric resembling lace. Changing the order of stitches from one row to the next, usually with the help of a cable needle or stitch holder, is key to cable knitting, producing an endless variety of cables, honeycombs, ropes, and other Aran sweater patterning. Entrelac forms a rich checkerboard texture by knitting small squares, picking up their side edges, and knitting more squares to continue the piece.
The appearance of a garment is also affected by the weight of the yarn, which describes the thickness of the spun fibre. The thicker the yarn, the more visible and apparent stitches will be; the thinner the yarn, the finer the texture.
[edit] Colour
Plenty of finished knitting projects never use more than a single colour of yarn, but there are many ways to work in multiple colours. Some yarns are dyed to be either variegated (changing colour every few stitches in a random fashion) or self-striping (changing every few rows). More complicated techniques permit large fields of colour (intarsia, for example), busy small-scale patterns of colour (such as Fair Isle), or both (double knitting and slip-stitch colour, for example).
Yarn with multiple shades of the same hue are called ombre, while a yarn with multiple hues may be known as a given colorway — a green, red and yellow yarn might be dubbed the "Parrot Colorway" by its manufacturer, for example. Heathered yarns contain small amounts of fibre of different colours, while tweed yarns may have greater amounts of different coloured fibres.
[edit] Process
A piece of knitting begins with the process of casting on (also known as "binding on"), which involves the initial creation of the stitches on the needle. Different methods of casting on are used for different effects: one may be stretchy enough for lace, while another provides a decorative edging — Provisional cast-ons are used when the knitting will continue in both directions from the cast-on. The number of active stitches remains the same as when cast on unless stitches are added (an increase) or removed (a decrease).
Most Western-style knitters follow either the English style (in which the yarn is held in the right hand) or the Continental style (in which the yarn is held in the left hand). A third but less common method, called combination knitting may also be used. [8]
Once the knitted piece is finished, the remaining live stitches are cast off. Casting (or binding) off loops the stitches across each other so they can be removed from the needle without unravelling the item. Although the mechanics are different from casting on, there is a similar variety of methods.
In knitting certain articles of clothing, especially larger ones like sweaters, the final knitted garment will be made of several knitted pieces, with individual sections of the garment knit separately and then sewn together. However, seamless knitting, where a whole garment is knit as a single piece, is also possible. Elizabeth Zimmermann is probably the best-known proponent of seamless, or circular knitting techniques. Smaller items, such as socks and hats, are usually knit in one piece on double-pointed needles or circular needles. (See Circular knitting.)
[edit] Materials
[edit] Yarn
Knitted cloth is made out of yarn, a length of continuous fibres. Yarn for knitting can be made from any number of natural or synthetic fibres. Depending on the kind of yarn used to knit, the end product may have different properties. For example, knitted cloth made out of wool yarn may be felted to shrink and be less stretchy; knitted cloth made with acrylic yarn cannot be blocked, or changed in shape due to moisture and heat.[9]
Yarns may be dyed to make knitted pieces different colours. Some yarns are dyed a single colour, while others are self-striping, or change colour every few yards, thereby automatically creating stripes on the finished piece.
Thinner yarns are generally used with smaller knitting needles, and thicker yarns are used with larger knitting needles.
[edit] Knitting needles
Most knitting needles (also called knitting pins) are long, slender sticks with either one or two tapered ends used to hold and bring the working yarn through active stitches. Knitting needles may be made out of a plethora of materials, including aluminium, wood, bamboo, and plastic. They come in many sizes, which give knitted fabrics a variety of elasticity and tightness.
Knitting needles used for flat knitting (pictured at right) are tapered at one end, with a knob at one end to prevent stitches from slipping off that side. Double-pointed knitting needles, which are used for circular knitting, or knitting tube-shaped pieces, are tapered at both ends, and usually come in sets of four or five, with all but one holding the active stitches through which the working yarn is pulled with the last needle. Circular needles, which are used for the same purpose as double-pointed needles, have two tapered ends connected by a piece of flexible plastic upon which active stitches are held. One of the tapered ends is then used to pull the working yarn through the active stitch on the other end.
Cable knitting requires a cable needle which is used to hold stiches behind or in front of the working stitches in order to create a "twisted" look. The "twisted" look is the result of working stitches out of order.
[edit] Industrial applications
Industrially, metal wire is also knitted into a metal fabric for a wide range of uses including the filter material in cafetieres, catalytic converters for cars and many other uses. These fabrics are usually manufactured on circular knitting machines that would be recognised by conventional knitters as sock machines.
[edit] See also
- Crochet
- Embroidery
- Finger knitting
- Loom
- Macrame
- Needlework
- Spinning (textiles)
- Tatting
- Textile manufacturing
- Weaving
[edit] Notes
- ^ Knitting Basics. Alamac American Knits LLC (2004). Retrieved on 2006-12-27.
- ^ A wale, according to Knitting Technology: a Comprehensive Handbook and Practical Guide, is "a predominantly vertical column of needle loops generally produced by the same needles at successive (not necessarily all) knitting cycles. A wale starts as soon as an empty needle starts to knit" (Spencer 1989:17).
- ^ Differently shaped fabric may also be created using special stitches within the work.
- See also: Increase (knitting), Decrease (knitting), and Cable knitting
- ^ Theaker, Julie (2006). History 101. Knitty. Retrieved on 2007-03-29.
- ^ Porter, Roy; John Brewer (1994). Consumption and the World of Goods. London: Routledge, 232-233. ISBN 0-415-11478-0.
- ^ Craft Yarn Council of America press release, CYCA News: Knitting & Crocheting Are Hot! craftyarncouncil.com Retrieved on 2006-12-13.
- ^ Cohan, Jillian. Women find creativity, comfort in knitting circle. The Witchita Eagle (November 9, 2006). Retrieved on 2006-12-13.
- ^ Finlay, Amy. How to do the knit stitch. Retrieved on 2006-12-28].
- ^ Masson, James (1995). Acrylic Fiber Technology and Applications. New York: Marcel Dekker, Inc., 172. ISBN 0-8247-8977-6.
[edit] References
- Hiatt, June Hemmons. (1988). The principles of knitting: Methods and techniques of hand knitting. Simon and Schuster, New York.
- "Knitting". The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition. (2003). Columbia University Press. Retrieved on 2006-12-21.
- Rutt, Richard (2003). A history of handknitting. Interweave Press, Loveland, CO. (Reprint Edition ISBN)
- Spencer, David J. (1989). Knitting Technology: a Comprehensive Handbook and Practical Guide. Lancaster: Woodhead Publishing. ISBN 1 85573 333 1.
- Stoller, Debbie. (2004) Stitch 'n Bitch: The Knitter's Handbook. Workman Publishing Company
- Thomas, Mary. (1938). Mary Thomas's Knitting Book. Dover Publications. New York. (1972 Reprint Edition ISBN)
- Zimmermann, Elizabeth. (1972). Knitting Without Tears. Simon and Schuster, New York. (Reprint Edition ISBN)
[edit] External links
- Knitting at the Open Directory Project (suggest site)
[edit] Instructional sites
- Expert Village: Knitting: Step-by-step videos on knitting for beginners
- Basic knitting: Beginner's instructions with clear illustrations
- KnittingFool: Knitting Abbreviations; Knitting Symbols; and free knitting patterns
- Knitting Help: Knitting videos and tutorials, with both beginner and advanced techniques
- Lets Knit2gether: Instructional Videos on knitting techniques
