Knitting

Patterns, projects and techniques

Is Your Child Ready to Learn to Knit?

by

knit with kids Madame La MarchandeMy daughter is almost three, but she thinks she can knit. She likes to take my needles (usually pulling all the stitches out in the process), rub them together and call it “knitting.” It’s actually pretty cute (cuter than the ball of yarn she destroyed “knitting” me a “coat”), but the truth is she’s still pretty far from actually being able to teach how to knit.

I’ve heard of some people who learned as young as 4, but 5 or 6 seems to be the standard age to teach kids to knit. And of course you can try with the needles, or use a knitting device with knobs (sometimes called a knitting Nancy, a knitting doll or a French knitter, among other things) or teach them finger knitting.

If you’re ready to help your child or someone else young in your life get acquainted with the knitting life, check out these tips and ideas from Craft Foxes. If you ask me, it’s almost never too early to start raising up the next generation of fiber lovers!

Have any tips for knitting with kids? Spill ’em!

[Photo of Knitting with Kids kit from Madame La Marchande, via Craft Foxes.]

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Comments

  1. IT’S 6 MONTHS SINCE I’M TRYING CROCHETING.I MAKE SURE I TAKE SMALL PROJECTS THAT I COMPLETE IN A WEEK, THOUGH TRAINED PEOPLE CAN DO IN FEW HOURS. THIS GIVES ME THE JOY OF COMPLETION AND CONFIDENCE TO TRY MORE.THIS COULD BE A GOOD IDEA FOR KIDS TOO

  2. My six year old grand daughter really wanted to learn how to knit and crochet. I tried teaching her but it was difficult. We tried spool knitting but that was too tiny for chunky hands. Then my daughter discovered finger knitting on the internet. She bought big, soft, thick yarn at Zellers and they started finger knitting.
    They have made a very cute long scarf and are now working on a second.
    I have never heard of finger knitting and I am amazed at how fast and easy it is to do. Please pass this message along to all grandmas who want their grandchildren to learn the value of making useful items with their own hands.

  3. Have you discovered finger knitting? My daughter taught her little girl how to do this from an article on the internet. They bought big, chunky, soft yarn at Zellers and have made a really cute long scarf. What a fun and easy skill to learn that requires no tools, just your fingers.

  4. I have one friend who, when she teaches kids to knit, let them make their own needles as well. She takes dowel rods cut down to size, lets the kids sharpen them with a pencil sharpener, sand them and then make the ends with clay which she “cooks” for them. The kids love it and it makes them really want to use their needles for knitting since they made them too!

  5. I have been teaching my daughter (6) to knit and some girls (9-13) at a camp I attend. I found several little rhymes on various knitting sites that the kids found extremely helpful.

  6. When I teach kids to knit, I find that kids aged 7 or older manage better than younger kids. Also I teach with 2 different colored needles – I think it helps the kids to see the stitches better and makes it easier to explain the process.

Have you read?

Stitch Some Seagulls on Your Sweater

It’s been well documented that I love a knitting pattern with a bit of whimsy, so when I saw the Mine! Pullover from Sarah L. Kelly recently I knew I had to share it with you.

I mean, who wouldn’t want to knit a sweater with a yoke full of seagulls? And another seagull at the waist? Chasing little crabs?

The story behind the sweater (and you knew there had to be one, right?) is that while Sarah was traveling around Europe there were a lot of cheeky seagulls about. They reminded her of the scene in Finding Nemo where the seagulls say “mine, mine, mine” and thus the Mine! series of patterns was born. 

Oh yes, there’s a whole set. It was the sweater I saw first but there’s also a pair of socks (and the pattern says there’s a cowl, too, but I couldn’t find it as of this writing. If you see it let me know and I’ll add the link here!) so you can totally deck yourself out in pesky seabirds if you want.

But back to the sweater for now. This is worked in DK weight yarn from the top down in the round. The yoke and a section at the bottom are worked in stranded colorwork, with stripes on the body, though you could make the body a single color if you wanted. Details like the beaks and eyes are added with duplicate stitch to make the knitting a little easier.

The colorwork sections are charted. The pattern comes in 10 sizes, with a finished chest circumference ranging from 32 to 68 inches, or 80 to 170 cm.

The socks are worked in sock yarn and come in three sizes. There worked from the cuff down and change needle sizes to accommodate the less stretchy nature of stranded colorwork. You can choose from a side profile or a seagull that’s looking out from the sock. Make a matching pair or mix it up.

Both patterns are available on Ravelry: sweater and socks. If you make them I’d love to hear about it!

[Photo: Sarah L. Kelly]