Angel Yarns Knitting Forums UK

I have a problem in that I have a very short attention span where my projects are concerned and I get easily distracted by the next project, or a new ball of wool etc.

A while ago I started a blanket from the Debbie Bliss book of Afghan Squares and managed to get about half way....so I mainly stick to baby stuff for friends, etc (althought I occassionally manage to finish the odd adult sized jumper).

I've recently read that the continental style of knitting is much quicker - especially for stocking stitch and have had a wee look at knittinghelp.com - it seems simple enough.

So - I was wondering - does anyone who usually knits 'English' style knit 'Continential' as well, and do they think it's quicker??

Years ago I remember experimenting with continental style knitting (which I always called "European style", maybe 'cause I'm American - and "English knitting" was "Anglo style", or something like that), and while I can see it can be faster, for me it manipulates the wool too much. I might be wrong about this, but it does seem in the video that she has to jut the needle upwards and thus twisting the worked piece as she draws it through.

I knit English stlyle with the right needle under my arm (anyone else do this?) and that is the way my mom taught me and is really the fastest if you ask me . For some reason I was under the misbelief that this was European style (as my mom is from Italy).

There is a website about Yorkshire knitters of the past and they knitted with the needle under their arm; that way they could walk about and tend the sheep (or whatever it was they had to do).

Shall we do a poll? How do you knit and which style is quicker?

Someone sent me this link the other day - it is exactly how I have always knitted.

Not necessary to actually hold the RH needle with this method, sometimes people tuck it under their arm and sometimes people use a holder, which can be attached to a belt. You can see this with last years Fastest Knitter who is a lady from Shetland - here is alink to the competition for Fastest Knitter 2005...!

Oh Fiona, you knit like a lady??? Do you hold the needle above your thumb like a pen as in the picture?? I find this slows me down and is awful footery. I knit sort of like Eliza but find it difficult to keep the needle under my arm (I am rather well endowed in the breat department and they get in the way) so it usually rests on the top of my leg - I also drop the needle to do the wrap bit, but luckily it doesn't affect my stitches
~elaine

Hi Elaine - I dont know what you mean, knit like a lady? But yes that is exactly how I knit, as in those pictures.

I dont actually hold the RH needle, it just needs something to rest on ie my thumb usually , as I tend to use circs these days when I am not making socks on dpns. (Its Tess's fault, if it wasnt for her I would never have got started on socks, I am now completely addicted.........lol.......) Using long needles I could (as I used to) work with it tucked under my arm.

I dont think its necessarily a particularly fast method ( I am living proof of that), I just thought that maybe it was interesting.

I had to post an update here. I followed the link to the Dutch website which was covering the "fastest knitter" competition in Holland:

http://www.handwerkbeurs.nl/snel_breien.htm

I emailed them to find out the result, and the result is that Miriam Tegels broke the world record by 2 stitches (ie she knitted 257 stitches in 3 minutes on size 4mm needles with 60 stitches cast-on).

They are apparently going to put up pics on the site soon so maybe we will see what style she knits.

Another update: I have been emailing a really nice lady called Janet who was an organizer for the Dutch handwork show where Miriam broke the record. From what she wrote, it sounds like Miriam is using the German aka Continental aka Left-Handed knitting method. I gave her the link to this thread to pass on to Miriam in case she feels like adding her thoughts on "continental" knitting to this thread. *fingers crossed*

On Dutch teletext this afternoon, there was a small item about how Miriam attributed her speed to the "left-handed" method. It also said that there is going to a "knit-off" between Miriam Tegels and Hazel Tindall, so that should be really interesting!!!

It shows how to knit the way we knit in Finland. Is this the continental style? I believe it is faster- or maybe it´s because I`m used to this style. http://www.kaspaikka.fi/neulonta-A&O/te ... mukka.html and then click "katso video". It might be a bit slow. :x

Interesting to see the video Anna - I have been saying for ages I must try that method and now I have no excuse!

Actually I've just started reading a *really* interesting book - its called 'Knitting in the Old Way' and its by Priscilla A Gibson-Roberts.

She explains about the differences between left hand carry (Continental) and right hand carry ( English) and also Western and Eastern styles, apparently in Eastern countries instead of the leading edge of the stitch being at the front of the needle, it is behind. Also she describes Combined knitting where knit stitches are worked in the Western style and purl stitches in the Eastern style. And Western, Eastern, or Combined knitting styles can all be done with either the yarn in either hand ( left or right hand carry). Oh and the yarn can also be tensioned around the neck!

I had never envisaged so many possibilities! Just when I thought I knew what I was doing......!! :?

Anyway she goes on to explain that none of these methods are particularly faster than another, they all have advantages and disadvantages, she says that the choice of style should just be what suits each individual knitter and speed depends on the knitters expertise.

Which makes sense to me actually. Its nice to have choices!

I really can recommend the book by the way, its fascinating.

@ Anna,

Yes, that's what English speakers call "continental style knitting". Most knitters in Holland seem to knit English-style though with a right yarn feed, so I'm not sure how true it is to call this method "continental".

Thanks for posting that link to the Finnish website!!! I have it bookmarked! I don't know any Finnish, but I am enjoying looking through that website! The video for purling on the that website looks alot more like the way that I purl than they way I have seen on knittinghelp.com - which looks like an English-style knitter who has converted to "continental style" knitting and is still trying to throw the yarn with her finger rather than grabbing with the needle.

I was taught to knit by a Swiss lady who knit "continental style" so that is how I knit, and I know that in Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Norway & Sweden this is the way that people knit (except I have read that in Norway, there is a different method of purling to the way they purl in Germany and Austria:

http://www.interweave.com/knit/interwea ... n_Purl.pdf

Video:
http://www.knittinghelp.com/knitting/ba ... s/purl.php (third video down)

@ Fiona



Interesting. Is Amy from knittinghelp.com then incorrectly referring to "Eastern knitting" as "combined knitting":

http://www.knittinghelp.com/knitting/ba ... s/knit.php (see third video on page).

In her video for "combined knitting", Amy knits through the back of the loop, and purls scoopwise through the front of the loop which sounds like what PGR is calling "Eastern knitting".

This is interesting. I think its exactly the same actually Salsa. Amy has it right.

The distinguishing thing is - according to PG-R - whether the leading edge of the finished stitch is at the front or the back of the needle.

If you look at the Combined knitting video, you can see that the stitches on the LH needle have the leading edge at the back - they have been worked Eastern style on the previous row. She then knits them and they end up on the RH needle with the leading edge at the front - ie Western style. (So the stitches have been purled Eastern style and knitted Western just like PG-R says.)

After that she shows how to work if knitting in the round - you need the stitches to be arriving with the leading edge at the back, this is different and is the same as the illustrations for Eastern style knitting in PG-R's book.

I dont seem to find a video for purling in Combined Knitting on that site but there is this which does make it look soooo easy..... Note the stitches on the LH needle have the leading edge at the front - ie they were knitted Western style, and on the RH needle they now have the leading edge at the back, ie Eastern style.

Maybe I need to learn to knit all over again!

Fiona, the video for combined/eastern purling on knittinghelp.com is here:

http://www.knittinghelp.com/knitting/ba ... s/purl.php (4th vid from top)

It's a simple little scoop which is what makes it so fast compared to a "continental" purl (like in the Finnish video that Anna linked to).

Fiona, THANK YOU, THANK YOU THANK YOU! You have just cleared up a mystery for me!!! At least I think you have...

In the combined knitting video where Amy shows knitting in the round to change the stitch mount the right way around for combined knitters, she knits through the back of the loop but she picks up the yarn from underneath (as opposed to picking up the yarn from over the top,which is the way we do it in "western style knitting"). So this is the Eastern knit stitch then!?!?!

So in actual fact, it is not humanly possible to knit "combined-style" in the round because the stitch mount will always be against you when you get to the next row, and what Amy is illustrating in her video is that "combined knitters" must switch to Eastern knitting in order to be able to knit in the round! Do I have that right??? (Please tell me I have that right?)


Why Fiona?!!!

You should knit however you feel comfortable knitting. Knitting is about relaxing and having fun creating a garment, right? If you want to speed knit, then maybe continental is faster (according to the lady who just broke the world record anyway ), but I have seen some ladies who can knit blindingly fast in the "English" style.

This is why I am a bit funny about threads where people ask "which way/technique is better/faster/easier?". It all depends on the person and what they feel comfortable doing, doesn't it? If something can be done a number of different ways, you can try them all and see what you like the best. If you see a new technique and you try it, and you like it for whatever reason, well that's what's important, right?

PS Fiona, in your PGR book, does she talk about "Eastern crossed" and "Eastern Uncrossed" knitting? I have seen these terms as well, and would like to know what they mean!

Aaaaaarghhhh! Guest above = me!

Yes, thats it exactly! However it does occur to me that there is no particular advantage to this..... why not just stay with Western, if thats what we are used to?



I'm not really serious, salsa - and I'm not worried about how fast I knit either, I just potter along - but it is a bit funny when having been knitting for 40 years to suddenly find out that there are all these other ways of doing things! I still cant get my head ( or my hands!) round the left hand carry for the yarn. Strangely I dont seem to have a problem with switching to Eastern style or Combined knitting though. But it doesnt really matter, I dont think....



Couldnt agree more!



She does mention crossed-stitch knitting, Mary Thomas described a piece of early 'knitting' as being done in this method, however it turned out that she was wrong and it was something along the lines of nalbinding ( ought to have little circle over the a, have no idea how to do that!!) which is Scandinavian.

But Eastern crossed or Uncrossed - nope sorry - at least not so far in the book! - and I cant see it in the index either.....if I come across it, I will let you know!

Woohoo! I understand at last! Thanks for explaining it Fiona.

Re the many ways of knitting, I didn't know about the eastern knitting thing I stumbled across things people said online about PGR and her socks. And then the knittinghelp website had those videos about combined knitting which really was interesting, and there are a few people over on that forum who are combined knitters and eastern knitters.



Fiona in PGR's "Simple Socks, Plain and Fancy" she describes her method for a short row heel/toe which uses Eastern yarn overs (although in this book she doesn't refer to them as such). Before I bought the book, I had read about her logic for these "wrapless" short rows. I can't quite remember it (nor where I read it), but it was something to the effect that the eastern stitches use less yarn, so her method utilises eastern yarn overs on short row turns because this is supposed to tighten up the fabric and therefore get rid of the holes that you usually get on short rows in socks. Something like that. (I still find I have holes in my short rows with PGR's method - unless I really pull my stitches as tight as I can).

I remember also reading something about the how PGR felt that you get better ribbing with a combined technique because that eastern purl stitch uses less yarn. It's all very foggy though. When I first read it and tried it, I thought that my ribbing did look better, but then wondered if I was imagining it and went back to my usual way.

In that sense I can see that there might be an advantage to eastern knitting. Well, "Knitting in The Old way" goes onto my "Books that I must read" list.