Become a Knitting Superstar™
Become a Knitting Superstar™
Become a Knitting Superstar™
Become a Knitting Superstar™
Become a Knitting Superstar™

Video Knitting Dictionary

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Video Knitting Dictionary


Before You Start

Knitting Terms and Abbreviations Defined

    ( ) – Refers to whatever is in the parentheses as a discrete group. As in “(K1, P2) 5 times.”
    1×1 Rib – K1, P1 Rib
    2×2 Rib – K2, P2 Rib
    Across – To the end of the row
    Around – To the end of the round
    BLCO – Backwards Loop Cast-On
    CH – Back loop only
    BO – Bind Off
    BO in Pattern – Knit the knit stitches and purl the purl stitches as you bind off.
    BOR – Beginning of Round
    Br-ssk – Brioche slip, slip, knit: Slip 1 st knitwise, slip next st knitwise. One of these sts will have a wrap. Slip the stitch along with its wrap. Knit slipped sts together.
    Break Yarn – Cut yarn. Always leave a six-inch tail for weaving in.
    British Crochet Terms – While the stitches are made the same way, British and American patterns have different words for the same stitch.
    Brk – Brioche knit: Knit the stitch together with its wrap
    Brp – Brioche purl: Purl the stitch together with its wrap
    CC – Contrasting Color
    CDD – Centered Double Decrease
    CH – Chain stitch
    Cn – Cable needle
    CO – Cast On
    DC – Double crochet
    DC – Dark color
    Garter St – Garter Stitch
    HDC – Half-double crochet
    In Pattern – According to the same stitch-pattern you’ve been doing
    Instep – The half of the sock that goes around the front of the ankle
    JMCO – Judy's Magic Cast-On
    JSSBO – Jeny's Surprisingly-Stretchy Bind-Off
    K – Knit
    K2TOG – Knit 2 Together
    K2togtbl – Knit 2 Together Through the Back Loops
    KFB – Knit Front and Back
    Kitchener St – Kitchener Stitch
    LC – Light color
    LH – Left-hand
    LTCO – Long-Tail Cast-On
    LYS – Local Yarn Store
    M1 – Make One
    M1L – Make One Left
    M1R – Make One Right
    Mattress St – Mattress Stitch
    MC – Main Color
    P – Purl
    P/u and Knit – Pick up and knit
    P2TOG – Purl 2 Together
    PFB – Purl Front and Back
    PM – Place Marker
    PSO – Pass Stitch Over
    PSSO – Pass Slipped Stitch Over
    Rem – Remain/Remaining
    Rep – Repeat
    Rep From * – Go back to the * and repeat. As in “K5, *(P2, K5), rep from * to end.”
    Reverse St St – Reverse Stockinette Stitch
    RH – Right-hand
    Rnd(s) – Round(s) – row(s) of round knitting
    RS – Right Side
    S2KP – Slip 2, Knit, Pass
    SC – Single crochet
    SKP – Slip, Knit, Pass
    Sl 1 – Slip 1
    Sl 1 wyif – Slip one with yarn in front
    SL ST – Slip stitch
    Sl1 wyib – Slip one with yarn in back
    SM – Slip marker
    SSK – Slip, Slip, Knit
    SSP – Slip, Slip, Purl
    St – Stitch
    St St – Stockinette Stitch
    Sts – Stitches
    TBL – Through the back loop
    To End – To the end of the row/round
    DC – Triple crochet
    Turn – Turn your work around so that the other side is facing you
    W&T – Wrap and turn
    Work Even – Continue in the same stitch pattern without increasing or decreasing.
    Work in Brioche stitch – On DC rounds, when you come to a DC stitch with a wrap, br-p (see above). When you come to a LC stitch without a wrap, yfsl1yo (see below). On LC rounds, when you come to a LC stitch with a wrap, br-k (see above). When you come to a DC stitch without a wrap, yfsl1yo.
    WPI – Wraps per inch
    WS – Wrong Side
    Wyib – With yarn in back
    Wyif – With yarn in front
    YF – Yarn forward
    Yfsl1yo – Yarn forward, slip 1, yarnover: Move yarn to front, slip next st, bring yarn over needle to back, making a yarnover. The yarnover will pass over the slipped stitch and sit next to it like a cape.
    YO – Yarnover

Gauge – Check Your Gauge

Make a swatch (a small square of knitting at least 3 inches wide), block it, and then check your gauge. If your stitches are too small, use a needle one size bigger. If your stitches are too big, use a needle one size smaller.

You don’t always have to check your gauge (I know, you won’t anyway), but please do it on projects that you really need to fit a certain size. Watch the video to see how it’s done.

Gauge is the number of knit stitches and rows that fit into a specified unit of measurement, usually one inch (2.5 cm). It’s important because if your stitches are too big or too small, your project will be too big or too small.

Checking your gauge is as easy as knitting a small sample square, called a swatch, and placing a ruler or a gauge-checker over the fabric, and counting how many stitches there are in a few inches, and then dividing by the number of inches to get the average number of stitches per inch.

Here are my tips for knitting a swatch and checking your gauge.

KNITFreedom - How To Measure or Check Your Gauge in Knitting
KNITFreedom - How To Measure or Check Your Gauge in Knitting

To Do the Gauge – How to Check Your Gauge on Flat Knitting:

  1. Knit a Stockinette-stitch swatch at least 2 inches x 2 inches. Block if blocking finished piece.
  2. Lay a ruler over the stitches. Count how many stitches (columns of Vs) in one inch. That is your gauge.

More Info:

Checking Your Gauge in the Round

To check your gauge in the round, knit a small tube (CO ~20 sts) on Magic Loop and lay your gauge-checker over the stitches to check.

If you will be knitting your project in the round, it’s important to check your gauge in the round. Your stitches may not be the same size when you are knitting every round as opposed to flat knitting, where you purl every other row.

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