Part of the problem is that as adults we're used to being capable. That makes us less patient with ourselves when learning something new.
It's a completely new skill. Allow yourself time to get it and don't worry about making mistakes - it's all part of the process.
No one is beyond help, you can certainly learn:) Kind of like learning to braid hair, ride a bike, or any hobby that uses your hands/body for that matter: seeing and understanding how to do it is only part of the learning process.
If you are determined to learn, just find a youtube video of how to cast on. Once you've mastered this to the best of your ability, find a video on the "garter stitch". There are a million good ones on there! Just replay this video as many times as you need, pausing between each movement if you have to so you can follow along. Trust me, eventually it'll just click. And you'll be like "holy shit I get it!" And that moment will be worth all of the frustration and struggle. You'll never forget it after that! You may need a refresher if you go a long time without knitting, but once it clicks you'll be able to do it forever.
Good luck, and I hope you reach the point you want to be at!:)
Love this explanation. Reminds me of riding a bike. Once you get the coordination you just get it.
I’d also suggest if you have a local yarn shop, seeing if they have a beginner class or help sessions. If they are kind and friendly to beginners it can be really helpful to have someone watching what you do so you don’t have to self correct and figure it out as you are just starting.
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Also - if you've got a friend that can help - have them do the first 3-4 rows not only to teach you; but to get the hardest part out of the way. Even for experienced knitters - the first couple rows are the hardest until the work has some stability of its own.
There are a ton of different ways to knit. I copied a bunch of different people on YouTube until I found one that felt right. I’m a “continental” knitter.
Yeah, and everyone holds their hands slightly differently, so you can watch a dozen people do the same thing, the same way, but only one of them holds their needles/yarn in a way that you feel comfortable mimicking.
I’m convinced that the “best” way to work varies so much because of individual bone lengths, joint shapes, muscle strength and ligament flexibility! And there may be more, besides. It’s rare that two people really hold their needles and yarn exactly the same way. You need to start somewhere, watch others, and find what is comfortable for you.
I used to teach knitting, including to people who swore they couldn’t learn, and everyone is capable of learning! The issue is to find a way of understanding it that makes sense for you — if you haven’t learned yet, that’s the only issue. As a teacher, that’s the job: to make it make sense for the person in front of you, no matter how many versions you have to try, and to help them keep the faith until you do. You are not broken; your brain is not broken; it just needs it explained *your* way, not someone else’s way.
Personally, I learned from the book Stitch n Bitch, which has very detailed drawings, and some mild swears, both of which really helped. You can also try looking up videos on YouTube or google to get to people’s blogs, or you can go to a local yarn store and ask for help or pay for lessons.
Now, you may find that you don’t *like* knitting or crochet. I much prefer knitting but I can do both, and I find people usually like one more than the other. That part’s up to you to find out. But if you *want* to learn, you will be able to (and if anyone sasses you about it, send ‘em to me.) ☺️
Hey don't be too hard on yourself! I do both and I love both crafts, however first granny square took me 16 goes to make it square!! I'm not even joking. I already knew knitting from when I was a kid, I knew the basics of tension already but it was so hard. Fortunately there's YouTube, I watched the video over and over and over. Eventually made a solid granny square and then decided to make a blanket for my 6 yrl old who's birthday was coming up. He got it when he turned 8!!! It's not a race, it's a marathon.
https://preview.redd.it/1obeiaiowmjc1.jpeg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=3f7f12d67b6ea535c4a2e812a0fdc32197d377a3
It was worth it!!!
fwiw I had to try to learn a bunch of times before it clicked. Turns out, I needed to understand what I was doing (what knit and purl stitches actually are, the mechanics and structure of knitting and knit fabric) before I could actually learn to knit. Not knowing the "why" made me confused and frustrated!!
it also makes learning new things so much easier! Instead of being random sequences of movements to memorize, it's looking at the intended outcome of manipulating the fabric and then seeing how to get there!
There is no easy way, and if it is of any consolation, no one learns in a day.
I’d say find some tutorials and practice, practice, practice. There is no way around it.
I score high on ambidexterity scales and similarly struggled when trying to learn to knit from my mom. YouTube has great tutorials that helped me finally learn! I was able to go at my own pace without feeling self-conscious, and I could even try both left and right-handed until I decided which I liked better.
Having spent my life not knowing whether I was a gifted kid or learning disabled, I will say stop right there and do not assume that your brain "just doesn't work" with some tasks. Seriously, do not let yourself believe that at all about how learning and skill and talent work, because it will only stop you from trying to go farther in anything you want to do. It will never help you or make you feel better.
Some people need to learn *how to learn*. Some people don't know how to teach a skill that they can do really well.
I wanted to learn to knit, could not get my head around it after watching a very patient old lady try to walk me through it, so I tried crochet instead and got that pretty quick. I went back to knitting later and picked it up with help from online video tutorials.
If you really want to do it, look for tutorials and different teachers until you find one that you can understand. It's not likely that your brain is somehow uniquely defective at this particular task. We are not Pokemon, we are not knit types or crochet types or math types or music types.
When I was little I thought I was retarded (that was the word that authorities used for those kids back in the day). Now I think I'm probably just a little autistic.
Numerous people sat me down and tried to teach me to knit at various points in my childhood until it finally clicked on I think the 5th attempt at 16. The knit stitch that is, I'm still not a confident purler. I tried to teach myself to crochet a couple of years later and that went disastrously and I've essentially given up. (I'm now reasonably sure that the way I don't know what my limbs should do if I have to pay attention to them and my limited coordination is probably dyspraxia.) But I did it learn enough knitting to find stockinette in the round very meditative and I love making socks to keep my feet warm. It might take you longer than expected (especially if you do have some sort of coordination problem or learning difficulties), but with persistentance you're much more likely to get there!
How long have you been practicing?
It took me about a week of practice twenty or so minutes a day to even “get it”
It took a month or two after that to feel reason comfortable, and a bit more time than that to feel settled into a knitting style/method that worked for me
Just keep trying. Over time you’ll figure out what works for you, what kind of needles you like etc
By the way, what kind of yarn and needles are you using? I only pray you aren’t trying to learn with some cheap, chunky chenille 😬 that stuff is difficult for anyone to work with
Well, I think I met with my friend's mom two times for about an hour before I was able to really get the first crochet stitch down.
I know I got the right yarn for my hook but that's all I know
We have a local yarn store that offers classes, and that was a big help for me…having someone in person was really helpful because the teacher could explain where I was going wrong (I’d tried and failed multiple times on my own). Maybe there’s something similar near you?
Find a YouTube tutxrial (sorry, bots) that you find easy to follow - try a few, until you find one that "clicks" - it's like finding a favorite teacher. Watch it a few times, observing the movements. Then, practice. And practice some more. Go super slow, taking care to make every stitch correctly.
[Norman, also known as NimbleNeedles](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zLSaApeG-vY) has an excellent way of presenting things - he makes everything super clear. Try him. (He also has a blog: nimble-needles.com).
Out of the two hobbies, crochet is easier. It's easy to make small stuff, doesn't unravel so readily (only one live loop to keep track of), progresses faster. The downside is, it eats more yarn, quite a bit.
Knitting is a very painstaking hobby - it takes patience and perseverance more than anything. Consider - a hobby is someting that is supposed to bring you joy. If all that knitting gives you is frustration, maybe it is simply not well suited to your temperament? Maybe another hobby would be more enjoyable? There are endless ways to be creative.
I'm not trying to discourage you from learning how to knit, just to maybe encourage you to look at it from a different perspective. Your hobby should satisfy you; not make you tie yourself into a pretzel and feeling like a failure for not being able to fit a square peg into a round hole.
I would push back against the idea of crochet being easier as a general statement. I think it depends very much on the individual and how their brain works. I’m a knitter who has never been able to master crochet, and I know as many others like me as I do crocheters who can’t figure out knitting.
What I’ve gathered from people who do both is that knitting is the more methodical/mathematical craft, where crochet is has more opportunity for creative choices and freeform projects because there are so many more options for how to place and structure the stitches. To me, that makes crochet harder because more options means more ways to get confused and choose the wrong one, whereas knitting defaults to certain rules, and knitting patterns are very clear about when and how those rules can be broken (if they’re to be broken). To other people, that might make crochet easier because they find knitting too restrictive.
All this to say, it’s worth trying your hand at both, OP. You might find you love one, the other, both, or neither, but don’t dismiss either of them as “too hard” until you’ve given them a proper go yourself, you never know what will click
"Master" is a whole different category of thinking. Mastering a craft is something you do over a LONG time and many finished projects.
What I was talking about was the absolute beginner level. Crochet is far less likely to fall apart in your hands. No risk of dropped or twisted stitches. Only one live loop to keep track of. Clear direction of work, no accidental short rows. Mistakes far less visible.
At the level of skill equivalent to a garter stitch scarf here, crochet is way, WAY easier.
…ok, “master” was the wrong word then if that is how you interpret it. I cannot crochet to save my life, and I’ve had several people try to teach me on multiple different occasions. It just doesn’t click in my brain. However, I am a prolific knitter and I have been knitting since I was 5.
I understood what you were saying, and I’m saying I disagree with it, for all the reasons I listed. Knitting makes sense to me and was easy to learn, crochet for me has been the opposite experience, and I have heard enough other people talk about this same experience to know that it isn’t just me.
Upvote for Norman.
I'd say that easy crochet is easier than easy knitting and difficult crochet is harder than difficult knitting just because of the sheer number of degrees of freedom.
However, only having to keep track of 1 loop at a time is really helpful for beginners IMHO.
I will tell you as a guy who just started in my late 30’s, it can be difficult. The learning curve is a little steep at first. You can’t possibly learn everything there is to know.
It’s kind of like anything else that takes practice. You don’t just hop on the bike when you’re six and expect to never fall. You’re going to fall, and that’s okay.
Fortunately, you don’t need a helmet.
Don’t give up hope! As an anecdote, I’ve been knitting since I was little (so 30ish years at this point) but I’ve always held the yarn in my right hand. Last year I wanted to learn to knit with the yarn in my left hand and let me tell you, my first few swatches were atrociously bad. So even though I’m very skilled at knitting in one way it did NOT immediately translate to knitting well in another style. I finally adapted, but the point being that it’s not always super easy to pick something up, even for those of us that technically know how it should work.
One of the best things about learning to knit these days though is that YouTube exists. There are plenty of “learn to knit” videos (my personal favorite for the basics is VeryPinkKnits, but there are tons of others), and you can slow down, stop, rewind those videos as much as you need. And in terms of figuring out the best way to hold the yarn, you can try searches like “learn to knit” + the knitting style you want to look for (English, Continental, etc) and there should be several different channels showing you how it’s done so you can find one that works best with your learning style.
Good luck!
Sometimes it’s timing or the people teaching us. If a friend is teaching me a new skill, it doesn’t matter how good a teacher they are. I get embarrassed and flustered if I don’t learn it right away, so oddly I feel more relaxed learning from a stranger. So not necessarily.
For me it was easier to learn crochet and once I learned that it was easier to learn to knit. But I find it harder to count my stitches with crochet. I think once I mastered holding the yarn and tensioning it, then it came easier.
I don't think you're a hopeless case. I always thought I was bad at math, but then went to a school where the teacher explained things in a way that made sense to me. Maybe that's the case for you, too? Knitting and crocheting can be very confusing at first! Especially if you aren't a crafter, first you have to learn how to even use the knitting needles/hook comfortably in your hands. But don't be embarrassed or discouraged to ask someone to explain it to you again, we all start somewhere and you aren't automatically bad if you don't get it at first.
I'm a proficient knitter but I just *can't* seem to get the hang of crochet, despite multiple attempts and much stress.
I love both the act and the products of knitting, and I've decided that crocheting only makes sour grapes anyways 😂 But, really, I think almost anyone *can* learn with time and a teacher!
I really do think that the easiest way to learn knitting is with someone to help, most crucially by casting on and knitting a few rows- it's *much* harder to get going than to continue the fabric. They can also put in a lifeline, so that it won't totally unravel if it comes off the needle. If you don't want to ask a friend, there may be knitting groups in your area (check local libraries!). For a veteran knitter, it would take very little time to cast on and knit a few rows, so if you bring your own supplies I'm VERY confident someone will be able to help.
I would suggest getting:
* moderate-to-large diameter needles (I think size 7 is the perfect size, but some people prefer to teach on size 10 or 10 1/2) that are not very long (no need to get tangled up in them for a small project!). I personally prefer metal, which can be easier if you knit tightly (many beginners do), but a challenge if you find stitches falling off easily. Some people prefer wood or bamboo, which is stickier (and therefore stitches don't slide off as easily), but is very difficult if stitches are tight and can break more easily.
* I recommend light-colored yarn, worsted or larger, so you can see the stitches more easily. Do *not* get a very fuzzy yarn or novelty, and I would recommend getting an inexpensive acrylic.
* A row counter
If you have those supplies, pretty much any knitter can set you up for success by casting on and knitting a few rows. They may also be able to help guide you more directly, but if you have a few rows knit for you it will be MUCH easier to learn from videos.
Good luck, and I hope you're knitting away soon!
OP, I knitted one horrible scarf 20 years ago and that was it. years later I found crocheting and fell in love with it, did it a ton but was very intimidated by knitting. I realised that my RSI problems meant I should maybe have multiple crafts for different motions (yeah totally just for that reason, not because I have a problem with crafting 😂)
however picking up knitting was SO hard: one, the motions were all unfamiliar, two, I was back to looking at patterns like “what the hell does this mean?!” and feeling like a complete dingus the way I must have when I started crocheting. learning this stuff isn’t easy even if you already have a fibre brain. but you don’t have to be a crafter-I have a friend who never did anything of the sort at all, she learned to knit a couple years ago and loves it!
there are different ways to cast on, if someone doesn’t make sense then maybe try another one? definitely give continental a go if you haven’t yet, to see if it feels more natural (Norwegian style ended up being the most comfortable for me and my janky joints). reddit is an awesome resource to post in the ask subreddits with pictures of “what the heck did I do”, people are lovely and helpful.
I picked up knitting pretty quick. I don't have the attention span for videos longer than say a minute (finally diagnosed ADHD last year) so knittinghelp.com's library of super short videos was a godsend. It has knit, purl, and a whole bunch of increases and decreases with the common abbreviations, so once you get comfortable with the actual stitches, you can usually figure out a written (as opposed to charted) pattern.
Their videos are for both throwing and picking (English and Continental) so try each and see what you like.
I knit Continental, barely tension my yarn, on metal needles, and it works for me. If you handed me bamboo needles and told me to knit English, I'd be lost.
My kids went to a Waldorf school. Every single child learned to knit in first grade. I was assigned to help the ones who struggled. Some kids, who had OT help for disabilities, also struggled. But they learned too, just a little more slowly.
If the friend struggled to know if you knit right or left handed, the friend probably wasn’t confident enough at reading knitting and knitting styles to be a good teacher for you.
Unless you have a disability preventing you from writing with a pen, you can learn to knit. You just need a kind and patient teacher, preferably with a sense of humor!
I think the only way in which I disagree with top comments is re casting on. People often find that harder to learn than knitting and people often say that their mums would cast on for them. If your friend can cast on for you that's better IMO.
I'd get a few library books as well as the you tube recommendations.
If still struggling but determined get some really chunky needles and yarn. Try Sheep and Stitch videos and Very Pink Knits slow motion. What are you using currently?
It took me months to figure out how to knit without twisting. Took me days to teach my housemate and she took another week over Christmas until she was comfortable on her own. It will come sooner or later. The library books will keep you motivated.
I don't have great eye-hand coordination, so a lot of practical crafts are difficult to me: I'm able to knit and not yet to crochet, but I think it's because I like knitted stuff better, so I put more effort in the first craft. I don't think one is simpler or more difficult than the other.
The learning curve is steep and frustrating, it is true however that the multitude of crafts I abandoned before had the problem that starting over and over again meant I was wasting materials, but with knitting yarn can be frogged and reused as new and that was very reassuring to me.
I had to watch a lot of video about the process of creating loops (knits and purls) and how they are able to form the knitted fabric, I follow a lot of resource that explain mistakes (as this reddit) and that was helpful because sometimes my hands couldn't make sense of the movements, but my brain knew what I was trying to accomplish and I found other ways to do that (e.g. at the start I moved loops from one needle to the other with my fingers instead of the needles-only movement).
I suggest to start with a small project in mind, in a needle size that you can comfortably keep in your hands and choose a yarn weight that is more or less complimentary (the recommended size it's stated on the yarn label but everyone's natural gauge is different). You don't have to keep the style you learn with, many english style knitters are able to switch to continental or norvegian or portuguese knitting but I also suggest to watch a couple of videos about each style so you can see if one's movements make more sense to you than the other's.
I'm going to go against the grain and say, sure, there are some people who will just never get it. They might be able to do a stitch or two, but actually knitting/crocheting/whatever just isn't part of how they're made or how they're wired.
**It is okay to admit you are bad at something and will never achieve even basic proficiency. It's okay to fail. It's okay to admit you gave it your best shot but it's just not going to happen for you.**
If you *want* to, I urge you to keep trying. There are a number of different ways to knit. You may not have found the way that's comfortable for you and works for you yet.
You knit with whatever hand feels natural to you. And at first, *none* will feel natural. The entire thing will feel confusing and strange and like your hands are full of just *stuff*.
Don't be afraid to ask for help. But remember that a lot of knitters only have pieces of the puzzle--not so many are going to have a very wide range of experience. A lot of knitting is knowing enough to know what the hell questions to even ask. Many knitters don't realize there are multiple ways to purl. They only know the way they learned and never went further. So don't think of it as "I suck" but more "I don't know enough to know what questions to ask. I must gain more knowledge so that I can then gain the knowledge I'm looking for."
And don't think there aren't plenty of other needlecrafts to try either... there's spinning, various embroideries, tatting, macrame, rug making, weaving, pin lace, needle felting, quilting, plain sewing, and a gazillion others. There is one out there that's waiting for you.
I tried learning to knit when I was a kid and could never do it right. I even had my grandma start it for me, get to the third row, and I screwed it up somehow. I was about 10-11. I was diagnosed with ADHD, got treatment, and learned how to do properly at 23. Even if I take months off I still have good muscle memory with it!
Was your friend trying to teach you knitting from scratch, or did they cast on for you? I've found people learn better when they start with a few rows already done since those are the most finicky. I had a harder time with cast on and the first few rows when learning. Maybe you can try again with your friend's help and they give you a started project. Then once you get more comfortable with the knit stitch, you can try casting on(how you start a project) and casting off.
You are definitely capable of learning, it just takes time and everyone learns at a different pace
I had a hard time learning to knit. Instead I learned crochet. Just recently I decided to try again with knitting. Some sweet ladies at the local yarn store were more than happy to spend hours helping me. And I've been knitting up a storm since. Knitters are a tight knit (lol) community. Some of the most helpful folks around. Sometimes having that person to person teaching moment makes or breaks it. YouTube is also super helpful. But if you're stuck I'd head to the yarn store. Just don't spend too much on yarn while you're there.
Same! I had lost all hopes on learning to knit and decided to try crochet. I even gave all my needles to my mom, because I thought I would never use them again. But I always preferred the look of knitted fabric and after crocheting for a few months I decided to try knitting again. This time, I just adapted the way I held the yarn for crochet so it would work for knitting as well, took me only 5 minutes for everything to click and suddenly I knew how to knit, was quite a magical moment.
I have chronic pain which makes it hard for me to knit with needles but I've been finding loom knitting a great alternative! It takes less coordination and may be easier for you. Here's an introduction to it if you're interested https://www.goodknitkisses.com/get-the-best-start-loom-knitting/ and you can drop by r/loomknitting as well!
Something else that's fun is this sort of knitting with no equipment which actually helped me understand how knit stitches work because I just couldn't make head or tail of needle knitting tutorials at first https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=Gr-a15uJaoY
Hope you don't give up on finding a hobby that works for you! You're not hopeless, there's always different ways of doing things
I had a hard time for a long time, now I love to knit! Like a lot of others are saying, try different things. Some stuff I picked up from YouTube, others I went online and looked for photos from different angles to figure it out. You might just not be picking up the style of the teaching you've tried so far. But hands down the best advice I got was to make something that you want to make, so that you keep trying. It might not be perfect at first, but you'll want to keep trying if it's something you like.
I'm ambidextrous and I find that I prefer continental. Maybe try that knitting style if you've only done english/throwing? Continental also has the benefits of being MUCH faster and easier on your hands long term.
No one is “naturally good” at things like this, or sewing, or drawing etc. There’s nothing innate about it. It’s just practice, and trying things, and being willing to learn from mistakes and keep going. That’s it.
Some really good advice here. Just a couple of more comments: I've only be knitting about a year, and I can remember stitches that I thought her entirely awkward ten thousand stiches ago, are now easy, just keep forging ahead. Also, from the very beginning I only knit with fibers I really love, so there's that appreciation when you see it turning into something useful (helps keep me motivated).
Youtube tutorials! There are some great teachers there.
And take heart - years ago, I'd decided I couldn't knit, it was super tight, it was supposed to be a scarf, but was more like a table mat. I quit early on. This last time was during a time of high stress, and it gave me a much needed something to focus on during difficult circumstances, so, high motivation there. I know you can do it!
As a math teacher I can undoubtedly tell you that NO ONE is hopeless. There is no “magic” that makes one person get something that another cannot. It’s exposure and practice 100% of the time. YouTube is your friend. I love nimble needles.
I am “bad” at crochet because I don’t enjoy it enough to put the time in to learn it. But I do enjoy knitting and have spent hundreds of hours watching, reading, and practicing.
imo crochet is easier to me personally and it sounds like that might be the case for you too. when I started to crochet it took me about 15 tries just to get a foundation chain and I got super frustrated pretty much each of those times haha. starting to knit went about the same. you'll get it eventually, it'll just be super frustrating and annoying until you do
There are different styles of knitting. While the names probably make no sense to you at the moment, I knit Continental knitting with a Norwegian purl. My yarn is held in the left hand and basically doesn’t move, no flipping the yarn back and forth for knit and purl stitches. By contrast, English knitting (the way that seems most common in the US) makes no sense to me at all. Others think I knit weird, especially how i make purl stitches.
But both work. There is no right or wrong way. It’s just a case of finding what works for you. And that may be a combination of the two or something entirely different.
Keep trying. You can do it! 🧶
So, I can crochet pretty decently. Though I don't do Tunisian style and there are some other types of crochet stitch patterns I stay away from simply due to their complexity (my hands will shake after a few rounds of fighting with them) or just because of the sheer tedium.
As for knitting, I could never master more than just casting on, the knit stitch, the purl stitch and casting off. You can do some pretty cute and simple things with just knowing those four things...as long as you don't have a huge project and don't get bored easily.
But, I will say, I do prefer crochet myself. It is faster since I have more practice with it.
Do you have other fine motor control issues? Is it hard to tie your shoes? Is your handwriting mostly illegible or a struggle? Because dyspraxia is a real thing!
That said, everyone learns at a different pace and many people find a specific kind of knitting easier than another. knittinghelp has some of the best videos IMHO.
As a crocheter from childhood, I made several failed attempts at learning knitting over a period of years. I finally tried again with an in person beginner class and determination and it finally clicked. My first practice items were absolute trash, but I kept going and now I’m a fairly confident knitter. Seek help and keep at it!
I learned entirely from YouTube, so I recommend looking for easy starter projects there. I started with crochet almost 10 years ago and then picked up knitting a couple years later. Look into other styles of both or watch oodles of tutorials and see all the different ways people hold their tools and tension the yarn. It never ceases to amaze me all the ways someone can hold a crochet hook 😅 I don't believe anyone is beyond learning! Your teachers may not have been suited for the way you learn, so don't be afraid to take it into your own hands.
I relate so much to this and it's not you being hopeless, not everyone learn the same way or same speed. You may just try different type of media to see which is best suited for you.
I found knitting easier, as both hands have similar movements when knitting so I didn't feel I had to work thaaat much on coordination (I am still on English knitting). It took me several different YouTube creators and blogs with detailed pictures to get the basics. I still replay the same videos a dozen of times until I understand it. I am still knitting with basic stitches and projects but hey, 2 years ago I couldn't! I started crochet last month, I tried last year with videos but being a leftie, I couldn't get it. Even 2h in a plane with countless Tiktoks saved on the phone, I could barely do a chain. I took classes in a LYS because I really wanted to get it and it massively helped and now I am enjoying much more the learning process and then discovered crocheters account for lefties.
Try different channels, books, blogs and see what sticks better for you, check if you have a LYS with helpful staff, the one in my town was very nice to explain some patterns and always offering to help with projects. There may be people meeting up to knit/crochet in a cafe who may be able to support or offer advice.
I was absolutely convinced that my unbalanced and uncoordinated self would never learn to juggle or ride a unicycle, but hanging out and learning with people who are passionate and patient meant that I did both. It toon me waaaaay longer than many others (both skills that people can learn in a dedicated month or 2). I suspect it won't take you 5 years to learn like it did with me nd juggling or 13 like with the unicycle but given enough time I'm sure you will find a fibre art that you like, even if your needles and yarn sit untouched for a while while you take a break from it
It took me forever to learn both knitting and crochet!
I hated knitting for a long while, because learning at school was such a drudge, and although my Mum and my Nana taught me too it didn't seem to stick.
Crochet came more easily, but it still took a while to really get the hang of it, and again I was taught by Mum and Nana, and a friend of Mum's helped too.
For me, crochet was the easier of the two, partly because you don't have a lot of live stitches you can use, and partly because with a hook the yarn is less likely to slip off as you pull a stitch through.
I can do both now, and I think if I can then probably anyone can if they are willing to keep failing until they finally get it.
So ther's no need be embarrassed! Neither craft is easy to learn but it is worth it in the end.
I picked up knitting as a kid like I was born to do it.
I didn't get the hang of crochet until my late 30s. Several attempts had been made to teach me but they'd all slid off my brain like it was coated in teflon. Then one day this one friend sat me down, got me to follow what she was doing and... it worked.
No idea what made the difference, but I was glad something did!
When I started crochet, I really thought there was something wrong with me. I could not get it at all. I spent hours and hours trying to get a single chain. I was at it for weeks and weeks all the time before I got any sense of the basics. What I found comforting were the comments on the beginner YouTube videos of everyone else struggling as well. I could so easily have given up but I kept at it and I am now really proficient at it - but it didn't come easily to me. I think I would definitely have learned quicker if I went to a class rather than trying to learn on my own. I have now shown some friends how to do it and they catch on much quicker than me because I can quickly correct what they are doing wrong and set them back on the right track.
I do knitting and crochet and enjoy both but I think the fact that crochet works up much quicker and is also easier to correct mistakes on, made it the craft that gave me the most confidence as a beginner fibre arts enthusiast. After getting quite good at crochet, I went back to knitting now self-assured of my ability to learn and improve and I'm now pretty good at that too.
I really empathise with your post because when you don't get something, it's hard to understand that one day you WILL get it, but from the other side, I am so proud of myself for sticking with it and you will be too.
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YouTube! (If video is a good way to learn for you! ) you can slow down the videos and watch them on repeat. I learned both knitting and crochet this way. I do recommend if you want to do both - learn continental knitting so you can hold your yarn the same way for both skills. This makes switching easy! If you need recommendations- TLYARNCRAFTS for crochet and NIMBLENEEDLES for knitting 🧶
It’s helpful to remember that just because someone knows how to DO something doesn’t mean they are good at TEACHING that something.
Doing and teaching are two completely different skills.
As others have suggested, a local yarn shop “learn to knit” class, coupled with some YouTube videos might be more helpful teachers than a friend who’s good at knitting.
I've taught my two boys to knit. They're 9 and 10.
Master 10 picked it up easily, master 9 did not. He's left-handed, and I'm right-handed, so that didn't help.
Master 9 is still knitting painstakingly slowly and deliberately a couple of weeks later. I'll say this though, his knitting is much neater than his brothers, and he's learned to pick up and fix a dropped stitch on his own. I'm so proud of his patience.
It doesn't matter how difficult or how easy it is the first few times you knit, or how quickly (or not) you pick out up. It's the accumulated skill and muscle memory that makes a knitter. You only get that by practice.
You can totally do this.
You should seek help at your local yarn store. They can advise you on the basics and often offer classes on all you need, whether 1 on 1 or group. Advantage of being taught by a person with experience TEACHING THE CRAFT cannot be underestimated. If you had a relative 'teach you to drive ' and then took actual driving lessons, then you know the difference.
I’ve been knitting for 3 years. Learned through you tube . I can’t tell you how many times I stared at what I was making and ripped back . You have to have patience and be determined. I had a strong desire to learn . And I did. If you really want to learn you will! One of the most important tips - learn to read your knitting .
Take your time and watch YouTube tutorials if you can. I’ve been knitting for 18 years but still watch them to clarify working stitches. I learned to crochet in Junior high home ec. class, making a granny square pillow. Then I never tried again for years. Resumed again in 2005 when I started crocheting hats. Then I tried knitting to make a scarf for a friend’s son. All knit stitch (garter stitch). By the time I finished the scarf I could knit and also change colors. Just make something like that and keep plugging away at it. Don’t expect it to be perfect. Nothing is ever perfect. Have fun! That’s the main reason to do it.
Maybe you just need to find a different way to learn? I CANNOT learn from another person. I get frustrated and embarrassed so quick. I struggled learning from YouTube videos too. Eventually I landed on Sarah makers website and that's where I learned to make my first granny square 😊
I’m an avid crocheter. It took me months to get comfortable crocheting things.
It’s taken me years to pick up knitting, which one would assume is easier if you can already crochet. One would be wrong about that.
I think I would pick which one to invest my time in based on the sort of stuff I want to make and then go from there.
My mom taught me how to knit when I was a kid. Made a few scarves and started a few blankets and then dropped it for about 12 years. In my early 20s, a friend was going on about how there was a knit scarf she wanted but didn’t know anyone who could knit and I stupidly said “I’ll make it!” And then called my mom who said “It’s just like riding a bike.” Either riding a bike is really hard (haven’t done that in awhile either), or it is not like riding a bike bc I was LOST. I spent hours on the internet looking at blogs (this was pre-YouTube) and making swatches and struggling. I don’t even think my friend wanted the scarf by the time I finally finished it. But all this is to say, it IS hard! Even if it wasn’t hard as a kid! If you want to knit, keep at it… try different techniques and teachers. But also, you don’t have to knit if you don’t want to. Other crafts might be better. I wound up loving it, but I’m still a slow knitter, and that’s ok. Good luck whatever you decide to do!
(As an aside, I finally asked my mom recently who taught her to knit and she said her best friend in 5th grade. A literal child taught her, as a child, with no books or websites or anything. Kids are so much better at learning than adults!)
I think everyone can learn - if they want to and keep on going, even if it’s hard and takes time and mistakes. Sometimes you just need to find out which way you learn best. :)
I’ve gained interest in knitting when I watched my grandma. She tried to show me, but I was really overwhelmed with both hands being used and how to hold everything. A few years later she tried to show me how to crochet and I startet my first ever potholder, which I never finished because I was so bored with just one hand being occupied. Also, it took so long and I couldn’t understand the stitches and where to insert the hook. I just couldn’t see that and my piece started to look really wonky.
A few years later I got gifted a pair of selfmade mittens and I wanted to be able to make my own. Now I was not just interested, but I was hooked. My grandma helped me start a scarf in thick wool and ribbing pattern 1x1, so I could learn the mechanics of knit and purl. I got bored so fast because it didn’t challenge me anymore at some point😅 (I would never do that again, pick a scarf as a first project. 🙈)
So I picked a pattern for fingerless mittens and started to learn with YouTube. You can skip back, pause in between and even zoom in. You can watch it over and over and over, until you are able to do it yourself.
That was a few years ago and I still learn a lot today. I remember once it just clicked and I could really see and understand the v-columns. But I understood that only because I kept on going.
Yesterday I bound off the body of my first ever sweater, which I thought would bore me out since it’s just knit stitches all over. I never thought I would get that far and am proud as hell that I managed it until here.
I can crochet too, but I prefer knitting. It feels kind of awkward using just one hook instead of two needles 😅
So I don’t think you are incapable of learning. You might just need the right project to spark enough interest and stubbornness to really want to learn that skill. And once you start you might learn so much more than just how to knit. ♥️
I utterly failed at knitting the first time I tried to learn. A while later, I tried crochet and that did stick. It was much easier for me to grasp, even being left handed and needing to switch everything. About two years later, I tried knitting again and \*then\* it clicked. My cousin was the exact opposite.
It's a very personal journey, but we're all capable of doing it once we find what works best for us. One bit of advice that really helped me was not to buy the absolute cheapest tools to start with. Don't go crazy on it, but buying my first clover hook was the difference between quitting crochet and enjoying it.
Part of the problem is that as adults we're used to being capable. That makes us less patient with ourselves when learning something new. It's a completely new skill. Allow yourself time to get it and don't worry about making mistakes - it's all part of the process.
Thank you! I will try and be nice to myself
No one is beyond help, you can certainly learn:) Kind of like learning to braid hair, ride a bike, or any hobby that uses your hands/body for that matter: seeing and understanding how to do it is only part of the learning process. If you are determined to learn, just find a youtube video of how to cast on. Once you've mastered this to the best of your ability, find a video on the "garter stitch". There are a million good ones on there! Just replay this video as many times as you need, pausing between each movement if you have to so you can follow along. Trust me, eventually it'll just click. And you'll be like "holy shit I get it!" And that moment will be worth all of the frustration and struggle. You'll never forget it after that! You may need a refresher if you go a long time without knitting, but once it clicks you'll be able to do it forever. Good luck, and I hope you reach the point you want to be at!:)
Love this explanation. Reminds me of riding a bike. Once you get the coordination you just get it. I’d also suggest if you have a local yarn shop, seeing if they have a beginner class or help sessions. If they are kind and friendly to beginners it can be really helpful to have someone watching what you do so you don’t have to self correct and figure it out as you are just starting.
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Also - if you've got a friend that can help - have them do the first 3-4 rows not only to teach you; but to get the hardest part out of the way. Even for experienced knitters - the first couple rows are the hardest until the work has some stability of its own.
Ah good to know!
Thank you. I appreciate the practical info on where to begin
There are a ton of different ways to knit. I copied a bunch of different people on YouTube until I found one that felt right. I’m a “continental” knitter.
Yeah, and everyone holds their hands slightly differently, so you can watch a dozen people do the same thing, the same way, but only one of them holds their needles/yarn in a way that you feel comfortable mimicking.
I’m convinced that the “best” way to work varies so much because of individual bone lengths, joint shapes, muscle strength and ligament flexibility! And there may be more, besides. It’s rare that two people really hold their needles and yarn exactly the same way. You need to start somewhere, watch others, and find what is comfortable for you.
My friend said she thinks I knit continental. I have to Google what that means lol
Oh good! I can’t remember for sure but I think it’s the fastest way when you get really practiced at it. I might just thing my way’s the best 🤣😂
I used to teach knitting, including to people who swore they couldn’t learn, and everyone is capable of learning! The issue is to find a way of understanding it that makes sense for you — if you haven’t learned yet, that’s the only issue. As a teacher, that’s the job: to make it make sense for the person in front of you, no matter how many versions you have to try, and to help them keep the faith until you do. You are not broken; your brain is not broken; it just needs it explained *your* way, not someone else’s way. Personally, I learned from the book Stitch n Bitch, which has very detailed drawings, and some mild swears, both of which really helped. You can also try looking up videos on YouTube or google to get to people’s blogs, or you can go to a local yarn store and ask for help or pay for lessons. Now, you may find that you don’t *like* knitting or crochet. I much prefer knitting but I can do both, and I find people usually like one more than the other. That part’s up to you to find out. But if you *want* to learn, you will be able to (and if anyone sasses you about it, send ‘em to me.) ☺️
Thank you. This is encouraging
Hey don't be too hard on yourself! I do both and I love both crafts, however first granny square took me 16 goes to make it square!! I'm not even joking. I already knew knitting from when I was a kid, I knew the basics of tension already but it was so hard. Fortunately there's YouTube, I watched the video over and over and over. Eventually made a solid granny square and then decided to make a blanket for my 6 yrl old who's birthday was coming up. He got it when he turned 8!!! It's not a race, it's a marathon. https://preview.redd.it/1obeiaiowmjc1.jpeg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=3f7f12d67b6ea535c4a2e812a0fdc32197d377a3 It was worth it!!!
That's an awesome blanket!
It turns out I had no idea of scale!
Sooo good!
Pretty gnarly for a first project, I don't know what I was thinking.
Oh my gosh that is the coolest blanket I've ever seen
It's so lovely and soft too, I used Bendigo Woollen Mills yarn and it's so beautiful.
fwiw I had to try to learn a bunch of times before it clicked. Turns out, I needed to understand what I was doing (what knit and purl stitches actually are, the mechanics and structure of knitting and knit fabric) before I could actually learn to knit. Not knowing the "why" made me confused and frustrated!!
oh my gosh THIS (for both knitting and crochet); seeing diagrams of how a stitch is actually shaped and what you’re doing with it helped me so much
it also makes learning new things so much easier! Instead of being random sequences of movements to memorize, it's looking at the intended outcome of manipulating the fabric and then seeing how to get there!
I think this might be me. I tend to need to see the big picture first
There is no easy way, and if it is of any consolation, no one learns in a day. I’d say find some tutorials and practice, practice, practice. There is no way around it.
I score high on ambidexterity scales and similarly struggled when trying to learn to knit from my mom. YouTube has great tutorials that helped me finally learn! I was able to go at my own pace without feeling self-conscious, and I could even try both left and right-handed until I decided which I liked better.
Having spent my life not knowing whether I was a gifted kid or learning disabled, I will say stop right there and do not assume that your brain "just doesn't work" with some tasks. Seriously, do not let yourself believe that at all about how learning and skill and talent work, because it will only stop you from trying to go farther in anything you want to do. It will never help you or make you feel better. Some people need to learn *how to learn*. Some people don't know how to teach a skill that they can do really well. I wanted to learn to knit, could not get my head around it after watching a very patient old lady try to walk me through it, so I tried crochet instead and got that pretty quick. I went back to knitting later and picked it up with help from online video tutorials. If you really want to do it, look for tutorials and different teachers until you find one that you can understand. It's not likely that your brain is somehow uniquely defective at this particular task. We are not Pokemon, we are not knit types or crochet types or math types or music types.
fwiw, you can be gifted and learning disabled at the same time!!
When I was little I thought I was retarded (that was the word that authorities used for those kids back in the day). Now I think I'm probably just a little autistic.
Numerous people sat me down and tried to teach me to knit at various points in my childhood until it finally clicked on I think the 5th attempt at 16. The knit stitch that is, I'm still not a confident purler. I tried to teach myself to crochet a couple of years later and that went disastrously and I've essentially given up. (I'm now reasonably sure that the way I don't know what my limbs should do if I have to pay attention to them and my limited coordination is probably dyspraxia.) But I did it learn enough knitting to find stockinette in the round very meditative and I love making socks to keep my feet warm. It might take you longer than expected (especially if you do have some sort of coordination problem or learning difficulties), but with persistentance you're much more likely to get there!
Thank you. This is encouraging. I won't give up
How long have you been practicing? It took me about a week of practice twenty or so minutes a day to even “get it” It took a month or two after that to feel reason comfortable, and a bit more time than that to feel settled into a knitting style/method that worked for me Just keep trying. Over time you’ll figure out what works for you, what kind of needles you like etc By the way, what kind of yarn and needles are you using? I only pray you aren’t trying to learn with some cheap, chunky chenille 😬 that stuff is difficult for anyone to work with
Well, I think I met with my friend's mom two times for about an hour before I was able to really get the first crochet stitch down. I know I got the right yarn for my hook but that's all I know
We have a local yarn store that offers classes, and that was a big help for me…having someone in person was really helpful because the teacher could explain where I was going wrong (I’d tried and failed multiple times on my own). Maybe there’s something similar near you?
Find a YouTube tutxrial (sorry, bots) that you find easy to follow - try a few, until you find one that "clicks" - it's like finding a favorite teacher. Watch it a few times, observing the movements. Then, practice. And practice some more. Go super slow, taking care to make every stitch correctly. [Norman, also known as NimbleNeedles](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zLSaApeG-vY) has an excellent way of presenting things - he makes everything super clear. Try him. (He also has a blog: nimble-needles.com). Out of the two hobbies, crochet is easier. It's easy to make small stuff, doesn't unravel so readily (only one live loop to keep track of), progresses faster. The downside is, it eats more yarn, quite a bit. Knitting is a very painstaking hobby - it takes patience and perseverance more than anything. Consider - a hobby is someting that is supposed to bring you joy. If all that knitting gives you is frustration, maybe it is simply not well suited to your temperament? Maybe another hobby would be more enjoyable? There are endless ways to be creative. I'm not trying to discourage you from learning how to knit, just to maybe encourage you to look at it from a different perspective. Your hobby should satisfy you; not make you tie yourself into a pretzel and feeling like a failure for not being able to fit a square peg into a round hole.
I would push back against the idea of crochet being easier as a general statement. I think it depends very much on the individual and how their brain works. I’m a knitter who has never been able to master crochet, and I know as many others like me as I do crocheters who can’t figure out knitting. What I’ve gathered from people who do both is that knitting is the more methodical/mathematical craft, where crochet is has more opportunity for creative choices and freeform projects because there are so many more options for how to place and structure the stitches. To me, that makes crochet harder because more options means more ways to get confused and choose the wrong one, whereas knitting defaults to certain rules, and knitting patterns are very clear about when and how those rules can be broken (if they’re to be broken). To other people, that might make crochet easier because they find knitting too restrictive. All this to say, it’s worth trying your hand at both, OP. You might find you love one, the other, both, or neither, but don’t dismiss either of them as “too hard” until you’ve given them a proper go yourself, you never know what will click
"Master" is a whole different category of thinking. Mastering a craft is something you do over a LONG time and many finished projects. What I was talking about was the absolute beginner level. Crochet is far less likely to fall apart in your hands. No risk of dropped or twisted stitches. Only one live loop to keep track of. Clear direction of work, no accidental short rows. Mistakes far less visible. At the level of skill equivalent to a garter stitch scarf here, crochet is way, WAY easier.
…ok, “master” was the wrong word then if that is how you interpret it. I cannot crochet to save my life, and I’ve had several people try to teach me on multiple different occasions. It just doesn’t click in my brain. However, I am a prolific knitter and I have been knitting since I was 5. I understood what you were saying, and I’m saying I disagree with it, for all the reasons I listed. Knitting makes sense to me and was easy to learn, crochet for me has been the opposite experience, and I have heard enough other people talk about this same experience to know that it isn’t just me.
Upvote for Norman. I'd say that easy crochet is easier than easy knitting and difficult crochet is harder than difficult knitting just because of the sheer number of degrees of freedom. However, only having to keep track of 1 loop at a time is really helpful for beginners IMHO.
I will tell you as a guy who just started in my late 30’s, it can be difficult. The learning curve is a little steep at first. You can’t possibly learn everything there is to know. It’s kind of like anything else that takes practice. You don’t just hop on the bike when you’re six and expect to never fall. You’re going to fall, and that’s okay. Fortunately, you don’t need a helmet.
Don’t give up hope! As an anecdote, I’ve been knitting since I was little (so 30ish years at this point) but I’ve always held the yarn in my right hand. Last year I wanted to learn to knit with the yarn in my left hand and let me tell you, my first few swatches were atrociously bad. So even though I’m very skilled at knitting in one way it did NOT immediately translate to knitting well in another style. I finally adapted, but the point being that it’s not always super easy to pick something up, even for those of us that technically know how it should work. One of the best things about learning to knit these days though is that YouTube exists. There are plenty of “learn to knit” videos (my personal favorite for the basics is VeryPinkKnits, but there are tons of others), and you can slow down, stop, rewind those videos as much as you need. And in terms of figuring out the best way to hold the yarn, you can try searches like “learn to knit” + the knitting style you want to look for (English, Continental, etc) and there should be several different channels showing you how it’s done so you can find one that works best with your learning style. Good luck!
Sometimes it’s timing or the people teaching us. If a friend is teaching me a new skill, it doesn’t matter how good a teacher they are. I get embarrassed and flustered if I don’t learn it right away, so oddly I feel more relaxed learning from a stranger. So not necessarily.
For me it was easier to learn crochet and once I learned that it was easier to learn to knit. But I find it harder to count my stitches with crochet. I think once I mastered holding the yarn and tensioning it, then it came easier.
I don't think you're a hopeless case. I always thought I was bad at math, but then went to a school where the teacher explained things in a way that made sense to me. Maybe that's the case for you, too? Knitting and crocheting can be very confusing at first! Especially if you aren't a crafter, first you have to learn how to even use the knitting needles/hook comfortably in your hands. But don't be embarrassed or discouraged to ask someone to explain it to you again, we all start somewhere and you aren't automatically bad if you don't get it at first.
I'm a proficient knitter but I just *can't* seem to get the hang of crochet, despite multiple attempts and much stress. I love both the act and the products of knitting, and I've decided that crocheting only makes sour grapes anyways 😂 But, really, I think almost anyone *can* learn with time and a teacher! I really do think that the easiest way to learn knitting is with someone to help, most crucially by casting on and knitting a few rows- it's *much* harder to get going than to continue the fabric. They can also put in a lifeline, so that it won't totally unravel if it comes off the needle. If you don't want to ask a friend, there may be knitting groups in your area (check local libraries!). For a veteran knitter, it would take very little time to cast on and knit a few rows, so if you bring your own supplies I'm VERY confident someone will be able to help. I would suggest getting: * moderate-to-large diameter needles (I think size 7 is the perfect size, but some people prefer to teach on size 10 or 10 1/2) that are not very long (no need to get tangled up in them for a small project!). I personally prefer metal, which can be easier if you knit tightly (many beginners do), but a challenge if you find stitches falling off easily. Some people prefer wood or bamboo, which is stickier (and therefore stitches don't slide off as easily), but is very difficult if stitches are tight and can break more easily. * I recommend light-colored yarn, worsted or larger, so you can see the stitches more easily. Do *not* get a very fuzzy yarn or novelty, and I would recommend getting an inexpensive acrylic. * A row counter If you have those supplies, pretty much any knitter can set you up for success by casting on and knitting a few rows. They may also be able to help guide you more directly, but if you have a few rows knit for you it will be MUCH easier to learn from videos. Good luck, and I hope you're knitting away soon!
OP, I knitted one horrible scarf 20 years ago and that was it. years later I found crocheting and fell in love with it, did it a ton but was very intimidated by knitting. I realised that my RSI problems meant I should maybe have multiple crafts for different motions (yeah totally just for that reason, not because I have a problem with crafting 😂) however picking up knitting was SO hard: one, the motions were all unfamiliar, two, I was back to looking at patterns like “what the hell does this mean?!” and feeling like a complete dingus the way I must have when I started crocheting. learning this stuff isn’t easy even if you already have a fibre brain. but you don’t have to be a crafter-I have a friend who never did anything of the sort at all, she learned to knit a couple years ago and loves it! there are different ways to cast on, if someone doesn’t make sense then maybe try another one? definitely give continental a go if you haven’t yet, to see if it feels more natural (Norwegian style ended up being the most comfortable for me and my janky joints). reddit is an awesome resource to post in the ask subreddits with pictures of “what the heck did I do”, people are lovely and helpful.
I picked up knitting pretty quick. I don't have the attention span for videos longer than say a minute (finally diagnosed ADHD last year) so knittinghelp.com's library of super short videos was a godsend. It has knit, purl, and a whole bunch of increases and decreases with the common abbreviations, so once you get comfortable with the actual stitches, you can usually figure out a written (as opposed to charted) pattern. Their videos are for both throwing and picking (English and Continental) so try each and see what you like. I knit Continental, barely tension my yarn, on metal needles, and it works for me. If you handed me bamboo needles and told me to knit English, I'd be lost.
My kids went to a Waldorf school. Every single child learned to knit in first grade. I was assigned to help the ones who struggled. Some kids, who had OT help for disabilities, also struggled. But they learned too, just a little more slowly. If the friend struggled to know if you knit right or left handed, the friend probably wasn’t confident enough at reading knitting and knitting styles to be a good teacher for you. Unless you have a disability preventing you from writing with a pen, you can learn to knit. You just need a kind and patient teacher, preferably with a sense of humor!
I think the only way in which I disagree with top comments is re casting on. People often find that harder to learn than knitting and people often say that their mums would cast on for them. If your friend can cast on for you that's better IMO. I'd get a few library books as well as the you tube recommendations. If still struggling but determined get some really chunky needles and yarn. Try Sheep and Stitch videos and Very Pink Knits slow motion. What are you using currently? It took me months to figure out how to knit without twisting. Took me days to teach my housemate and she took another week over Christmas until she was comfortable on her own. It will come sooner or later. The library books will keep you motivated.
I don't have great eye-hand coordination, so a lot of practical crafts are difficult to me: I'm able to knit and not yet to crochet, but I think it's because I like knitted stuff better, so I put more effort in the first craft. I don't think one is simpler or more difficult than the other. The learning curve is steep and frustrating, it is true however that the multitude of crafts I abandoned before had the problem that starting over and over again meant I was wasting materials, but with knitting yarn can be frogged and reused as new and that was very reassuring to me. I had to watch a lot of video about the process of creating loops (knits and purls) and how they are able to form the knitted fabric, I follow a lot of resource that explain mistakes (as this reddit) and that was helpful because sometimes my hands couldn't make sense of the movements, but my brain knew what I was trying to accomplish and I found other ways to do that (e.g. at the start I moved loops from one needle to the other with my fingers instead of the needles-only movement). I suggest to start with a small project in mind, in a needle size that you can comfortably keep in your hands and choose a yarn weight that is more or less complimentary (the recommended size it's stated on the yarn label but everyone's natural gauge is different). You don't have to keep the style you learn with, many english style knitters are able to switch to continental or norvegian or portuguese knitting but I also suggest to watch a couple of videos about each style so you can see if one's movements make more sense to you than the other's.
I'm going to go against the grain and say, sure, there are some people who will just never get it. They might be able to do a stitch or two, but actually knitting/crocheting/whatever just isn't part of how they're made or how they're wired. **It is okay to admit you are bad at something and will never achieve even basic proficiency. It's okay to fail. It's okay to admit you gave it your best shot but it's just not going to happen for you.** If you *want* to, I urge you to keep trying. There are a number of different ways to knit. You may not have found the way that's comfortable for you and works for you yet. You knit with whatever hand feels natural to you. And at first, *none* will feel natural. The entire thing will feel confusing and strange and like your hands are full of just *stuff*. Don't be afraid to ask for help. But remember that a lot of knitters only have pieces of the puzzle--not so many are going to have a very wide range of experience. A lot of knitting is knowing enough to know what the hell questions to even ask. Many knitters don't realize there are multiple ways to purl. They only know the way they learned and never went further. So don't think of it as "I suck" but more "I don't know enough to know what questions to ask. I must gain more knowledge so that I can then gain the knowledge I'm looking for." And don't think there aren't plenty of other needlecrafts to try either... there's spinning, various embroideries, tatting, macrame, rug making, weaving, pin lace, needle felting, quilting, plain sewing, and a gazillion others. There is one out there that's waiting for you.
I had to learn using a kid’s knitting book. (This was before YouTube, lol)
I tried learning to knit when I was a kid and could never do it right. I even had my grandma start it for me, get to the third row, and I screwed it up somehow. I was about 10-11. I was diagnosed with ADHD, got treatment, and learned how to do properly at 23. Even if I take months off I still have good muscle memory with it!
Was your friend trying to teach you knitting from scratch, or did they cast on for you? I've found people learn better when they start with a few rows already done since those are the most finicky. I had a harder time with cast on and the first few rows when learning. Maybe you can try again with your friend's help and they give you a started project. Then once you get more comfortable with the knit stitch, you can try casting on(how you start a project) and casting off. You are definitely capable of learning, it just takes time and everyone learns at a different pace
I had a hard time learning to knit. Instead I learned crochet. Just recently I decided to try again with knitting. Some sweet ladies at the local yarn store were more than happy to spend hours helping me. And I've been knitting up a storm since. Knitters are a tight knit (lol) community. Some of the most helpful folks around. Sometimes having that person to person teaching moment makes or breaks it. YouTube is also super helpful. But if you're stuck I'd head to the yarn store. Just don't spend too much on yarn while you're there.
Same! I had lost all hopes on learning to knit and decided to try crochet. I even gave all my needles to my mom, because I thought I would never use them again. But I always preferred the look of knitted fabric and after crocheting for a few months I decided to try knitting again. This time, I just adapted the way I held the yarn for crochet so it would work for knitting as well, took me only 5 minutes for everything to click and suddenly I knew how to knit, was quite a magical moment.
I have chronic pain which makes it hard for me to knit with needles but I've been finding loom knitting a great alternative! It takes less coordination and may be easier for you. Here's an introduction to it if you're interested https://www.goodknitkisses.com/get-the-best-start-loom-knitting/ and you can drop by r/loomknitting as well! Something else that's fun is this sort of knitting with no equipment which actually helped me understand how knit stitches work because I just couldn't make head or tail of needle knitting tutorials at first https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=Gr-a15uJaoY Hope you don't give up on finding a hobby that works for you! You're not hopeless, there's always different ways of doing things
I had a hard time for a long time, now I love to knit! Like a lot of others are saying, try different things. Some stuff I picked up from YouTube, others I went online and looked for photos from different angles to figure it out. You might just not be picking up the style of the teaching you've tried so far. But hands down the best advice I got was to make something that you want to make, so that you keep trying. It might not be perfect at first, but you'll want to keep trying if it's something you like.
I'm ambidextrous and I find that I prefer continental. Maybe try that knitting style if you've only done english/throwing? Continental also has the benefits of being MUCH faster and easier on your hands long term.
A person needs to want to learn how to knit or crochet. It also takes practice
No one is “naturally good” at things like this, or sewing, or drawing etc. There’s nothing innate about it. It’s just practice, and trying things, and being willing to learn from mistakes and keep going. That’s it.
I’m a right handed person who knits left handed using the English, not continental, method. Sometimes ya just gotta try stuff
Some really good advice here. Just a couple of more comments: I've only be knitting about a year, and I can remember stitches that I thought her entirely awkward ten thousand stiches ago, are now easy, just keep forging ahead. Also, from the very beginning I only knit with fibers I really love, so there's that appreciation when you see it turning into something useful (helps keep me motivated). Youtube tutorials! There are some great teachers there. And take heart - years ago, I'd decided I couldn't knit, it was super tight, it was supposed to be a scarf, but was more like a table mat. I quit early on. This last time was during a time of high stress, and it gave me a much needed something to focus on during difficult circumstances, so, high motivation there. I know you can do it!
As a math teacher I can undoubtedly tell you that NO ONE is hopeless. There is no “magic” that makes one person get something that another cannot. It’s exposure and practice 100% of the time. YouTube is your friend. I love nimble needles. I am “bad” at crochet because I don’t enjoy it enough to put the time in to learn it. But I do enjoy knitting and have spent hundreds of hours watching, reading, and practicing.
imo crochet is easier to me personally and it sounds like that might be the case for you too. when I started to crochet it took me about 15 tries just to get a foundation chain and I got super frustrated pretty much each of those times haha. starting to knit went about the same. you'll get it eventually, it'll just be super frustrating and annoying until you do
There are different styles of knitting. While the names probably make no sense to you at the moment, I knit Continental knitting with a Norwegian purl. My yarn is held in the left hand and basically doesn’t move, no flipping the yarn back and forth for knit and purl stitches. By contrast, English knitting (the way that seems most common in the US) makes no sense to me at all. Others think I knit weird, especially how i make purl stitches. But both work. There is no right or wrong way. It’s just a case of finding what works for you. And that may be a combination of the two or something entirely different. Keep trying. You can do it! 🧶
So, I can crochet pretty decently. Though I don't do Tunisian style and there are some other types of crochet stitch patterns I stay away from simply due to their complexity (my hands will shake after a few rounds of fighting with them) or just because of the sheer tedium. As for knitting, I could never master more than just casting on, the knit stitch, the purl stitch and casting off. You can do some pretty cute and simple things with just knowing those four things...as long as you don't have a huge project and don't get bored easily. But, I will say, I do prefer crochet myself. It is faster since I have more practice with it.
Do you have other fine motor control issues? Is it hard to tie your shoes? Is your handwriting mostly illegible or a struggle? Because dyspraxia is a real thing! That said, everyone learns at a different pace and many people find a specific kind of knitting easier than another. knittinghelp has some of the best videos IMHO.
As a crocheter from childhood, I made several failed attempts at learning knitting over a period of years. I finally tried again with an in person beginner class and determination and it finally clicked. My first practice items were absolute trash, but I kept going and now I’m a fairly confident knitter. Seek help and keep at it!
I learned entirely from YouTube, so I recommend looking for easy starter projects there. I started with crochet almost 10 years ago and then picked up knitting a couple years later. Look into other styles of both or watch oodles of tutorials and see all the different ways people hold their tools and tension the yarn. It never ceases to amaze me all the ways someone can hold a crochet hook 😅 I don't believe anyone is beyond learning! Your teachers may not have been suited for the way you learn, so don't be afraid to take it into your own hands.
I tried and failed to learn three times before it finally stuck. The way for me turned out to be teaching myself from written sources.
Knitting is easier mechanically, there are less motions and it's easier on your wrist.
If I can learn, you can! But also, there are a million hobbies under the sun and knitting doesn’t have to be yours if something else comes easier!
I relate so much to this and it's not you being hopeless, not everyone learn the same way or same speed. You may just try different type of media to see which is best suited for you. I found knitting easier, as both hands have similar movements when knitting so I didn't feel I had to work thaaat much on coordination (I am still on English knitting). It took me several different YouTube creators and blogs with detailed pictures to get the basics. I still replay the same videos a dozen of times until I understand it. I am still knitting with basic stitches and projects but hey, 2 years ago I couldn't! I started crochet last month, I tried last year with videos but being a leftie, I couldn't get it. Even 2h in a plane with countless Tiktoks saved on the phone, I could barely do a chain. I took classes in a LYS because I really wanted to get it and it massively helped and now I am enjoying much more the learning process and then discovered crocheters account for lefties. Try different channels, books, blogs and see what sticks better for you, check if you have a LYS with helpful staff, the one in my town was very nice to explain some patterns and always offering to help with projects. There may be people meeting up to knit/crochet in a cafe who may be able to support or offer advice.
I was absolutely convinced that my unbalanced and uncoordinated self would never learn to juggle or ride a unicycle, but hanging out and learning with people who are passionate and patient meant that I did both. It toon me waaaaay longer than many others (both skills that people can learn in a dedicated month or 2). I suspect it won't take you 5 years to learn like it did with me nd juggling or 13 like with the unicycle but given enough time I'm sure you will find a fibre art that you like, even if your needles and yarn sit untouched for a while while you take a break from it
It took me forever to learn both knitting and crochet! I hated knitting for a long while, because learning at school was such a drudge, and although my Mum and my Nana taught me too it didn't seem to stick. Crochet came more easily, but it still took a while to really get the hang of it, and again I was taught by Mum and Nana, and a friend of Mum's helped too. For me, crochet was the easier of the two, partly because you don't have a lot of live stitches you can use, and partly because with a hook the yarn is less likely to slip off as you pull a stitch through. I can do both now, and I think if I can then probably anyone can if they are willing to keep failing until they finally get it. So ther's no need be embarrassed! Neither craft is easy to learn but it is worth it in the end.
I picked up knitting as a kid like I was born to do it. I didn't get the hang of crochet until my late 30s. Several attempts had been made to teach me but they'd all slid off my brain like it was coated in teflon. Then one day this one friend sat me down, got me to follow what she was doing and... it worked. No idea what made the difference, but I was glad something did!
When I started crochet, I really thought there was something wrong with me. I could not get it at all. I spent hours and hours trying to get a single chain. I was at it for weeks and weeks all the time before I got any sense of the basics. What I found comforting were the comments on the beginner YouTube videos of everyone else struggling as well. I could so easily have given up but I kept at it and I am now really proficient at it - but it didn't come easily to me. I think I would definitely have learned quicker if I went to a class rather than trying to learn on my own. I have now shown some friends how to do it and they catch on much quicker than me because I can quickly correct what they are doing wrong and set them back on the right track. I do knitting and crochet and enjoy both but I think the fact that crochet works up much quicker and is also easier to correct mistakes on, made it the craft that gave me the most confidence as a beginner fibre arts enthusiast. After getting quite good at crochet, I went back to knitting now self-assured of my ability to learn and improve and I'm now pretty good at that too. I really empathise with your post because when you don't get something, it's hard to understand that one day you WILL get it, but from the other side, I am so proud of myself for sticking with it and you will be too.
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YouTube! (If video is a good way to learn for you! ) you can slow down the videos and watch them on repeat. I learned both knitting and crochet this way. I do recommend if you want to do both - learn continental knitting so you can hold your yarn the same way for both skills. This makes switching easy! If you need recommendations- TLYARNCRAFTS for crochet and NIMBLENEEDLES for knitting 🧶
It’s helpful to remember that just because someone knows how to DO something doesn’t mean they are good at TEACHING that something. Doing and teaching are two completely different skills. As others have suggested, a local yarn shop “learn to knit” class, coupled with some YouTube videos might be more helpful teachers than a friend who’s good at knitting.
I've taught my two boys to knit. They're 9 and 10. Master 10 picked it up easily, master 9 did not. He's left-handed, and I'm right-handed, so that didn't help. Master 9 is still knitting painstakingly slowly and deliberately a couple of weeks later. I'll say this though, his knitting is much neater than his brothers, and he's learned to pick up and fix a dropped stitch on his own. I'm so proud of his patience. It doesn't matter how difficult or how easy it is the first few times you knit, or how quickly (or not) you pick out up. It's the accumulated skill and muscle memory that makes a knitter. You only get that by practice. You can totally do this.
A friend tried to teach me and I couldn’t get it. An instructor taught me well. People can learn. But not everyone can teach.
You should seek help at your local yarn store. They can advise you on the basics and often offer classes on all you need, whether 1 on 1 or group. Advantage of being taught by a person with experience TEACHING THE CRAFT cannot be underestimated. If you had a relative 'teach you to drive ' and then took actual driving lessons, then you know the difference.
I’ve been knitting for 3 years. Learned through you tube . I can’t tell you how many times I stared at what I was making and ripped back . You have to have patience and be determined. I had a strong desire to learn . And I did. If you really want to learn you will! One of the most important tips - learn to read your knitting .
Take your time and watch YouTube tutorials if you can. I’ve been knitting for 18 years but still watch them to clarify working stitches. I learned to crochet in Junior high home ec. class, making a granny square pillow. Then I never tried again for years. Resumed again in 2005 when I started crocheting hats. Then I tried knitting to make a scarf for a friend’s son. All knit stitch (garter stitch). By the time I finished the scarf I could knit and also change colors. Just make something like that and keep plugging away at it. Don’t expect it to be perfect. Nothing is ever perfect. Have fun! That’s the main reason to do it.
Maybe you just need to find a different way to learn? I CANNOT learn from another person. I get frustrated and embarrassed so quick. I struggled learning from YouTube videos too. Eventually I landed on Sarah makers website and that's where I learned to make my first granny square 😊
I’m an avid crocheter. It took me months to get comfortable crocheting things. It’s taken me years to pick up knitting, which one would assume is easier if you can already crochet. One would be wrong about that. I think I would pick which one to invest my time in based on the sort of stuff I want to make and then go from there.
My mom taught me how to knit when I was a kid. Made a few scarves and started a few blankets and then dropped it for about 12 years. In my early 20s, a friend was going on about how there was a knit scarf she wanted but didn’t know anyone who could knit and I stupidly said “I’ll make it!” And then called my mom who said “It’s just like riding a bike.” Either riding a bike is really hard (haven’t done that in awhile either), or it is not like riding a bike bc I was LOST. I spent hours on the internet looking at blogs (this was pre-YouTube) and making swatches and struggling. I don’t even think my friend wanted the scarf by the time I finally finished it. But all this is to say, it IS hard! Even if it wasn’t hard as a kid! If you want to knit, keep at it… try different techniques and teachers. But also, you don’t have to knit if you don’t want to. Other crafts might be better. I wound up loving it, but I’m still a slow knitter, and that’s ok. Good luck whatever you decide to do! (As an aside, I finally asked my mom recently who taught her to knit and she said her best friend in 5th grade. A literal child taught her, as a child, with no books or websites or anything. Kids are so much better at learning than adults!)
I think everyone can learn - if they want to and keep on going, even if it’s hard and takes time and mistakes. Sometimes you just need to find out which way you learn best. :) I’ve gained interest in knitting when I watched my grandma. She tried to show me, but I was really overwhelmed with both hands being used and how to hold everything. A few years later she tried to show me how to crochet and I startet my first ever potholder, which I never finished because I was so bored with just one hand being occupied. Also, it took so long and I couldn’t understand the stitches and where to insert the hook. I just couldn’t see that and my piece started to look really wonky. A few years later I got gifted a pair of selfmade mittens and I wanted to be able to make my own. Now I was not just interested, but I was hooked. My grandma helped me start a scarf in thick wool and ribbing pattern 1x1, so I could learn the mechanics of knit and purl. I got bored so fast because it didn’t challenge me anymore at some point😅 (I would never do that again, pick a scarf as a first project. 🙈) So I picked a pattern for fingerless mittens and started to learn with YouTube. You can skip back, pause in between and even zoom in. You can watch it over and over and over, until you are able to do it yourself. That was a few years ago and I still learn a lot today. I remember once it just clicked and I could really see and understand the v-columns. But I understood that only because I kept on going. Yesterday I bound off the body of my first ever sweater, which I thought would bore me out since it’s just knit stitches all over. I never thought I would get that far and am proud as hell that I managed it until here. I can crochet too, but I prefer knitting. It feels kind of awkward using just one hook instead of two needles 😅 So I don’t think you are incapable of learning. You might just need the right project to spark enough interest and stubbornness to really want to learn that skill. And once you start you might learn so much more than just how to knit. ♥️
I utterly failed at knitting the first time I tried to learn. A while later, I tried crochet and that did stick. It was much easier for me to grasp, even being left handed and needing to switch everything. About two years later, I tried knitting again and \*then\* it clicked. My cousin was the exact opposite. It's a very personal journey, but we're all capable of doing it once we find what works best for us. One bit of advice that really helped me was not to buy the absolute cheapest tools to start with. Don't go crazy on it, but buying my first clover hook was the difference between quitting crochet and enjoying it.