Book Review: Fun and Easy Finger Knitting for Beginners

I don’t know if this happens at every school, but at my daughter’s school in late elementary, finger knitting became a Thing. I guess they probably learned it in their tinkering class but it seemed like kids were finger knitting all the time, which of course I loved because any kind of fiber art is great for kids and adults alike.

If you or your kiddo wants to go beyond knitting up endless snakes of finger knitting, Vickie Howell’s Fun and Easy Finger Knitting for Beginners will show you what to do with all those stitches.

It opens with an overview of finger knitting over four, three or two fingers, as well as how to change colors as you knit, how to fasten off your knitting and how to finish it in different projects (such as using mattress stitch or whip stitch).

Projects are divided into wearables and accessories, and use a skill rating of one to three. You’ll start with a basic strand looped and sewn into a necklace, but there are lots of other options including bracelets knit with leather cord, a hat made of a finger knit tube stacked and sewn on itself, a flower for a headband and a twisted scarf, to name a few.

Accessories include ideas like a garland for a tree house, a bag made out of homemade T-shirt yarn, snakes (of course!), an animal pillow (the one in the book is a panda, but you could make it any animal you like), a bath mat, a jump rope and a planter cozy made out of jute rope.

It should be noted this is a republication of an older book of Vickie’s, Finger Knitting Fun, so some of the yarns used in the projects have been discontinued in the meantime. (You can see all the patterns from the original book on Ravelry.) It’s still a great source for ideas of what to do with all that finger knitting if your kid is already obsessed with making it, or a low-key entry point into yarn crafting for kiddos in late elementary and middle school.

About the book: 80 pages, paperback, 27 patterns. Published 2004 (adaptation of a 2015 release) by Quarry Books. Suggested retail price $14.99.

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I’ve shared a lot of Christmas stocking knitting patterns over the years (see posts 1, 2, 3 for example) but what if you want to knit a stocking for a non-human member of your family. If you’re looking for Christmas stocking knitting patterns for your cats or dogs, this is the post for you.

These large paw print stockings are perfect for either dogs or cats, so they’re great to knit if you have both. They are worked in the round using DK weight yarn, and the stocking measures about 17 inches/43 cm from the top to the heel. You can get the pattern from nicolaluke.

The K4 Project has a super cute Kitty Christmas stocking pattern, which is worked in worsted weight yarn. They also have a dog version, or you can buy both and get a discount if you have both dogs and cats to knit for. Both projects have two patterns, showing how to work the stockings flat or in the round.

Put your dog into a Christmas scene with this stocking pattern from ifanhourChild. It shows a dog in a dog house in the snow, and has room for the dog’s name at the top. It’s worked flat using worsted weight yarn and the pattern includes charts for many small and medium dog breeds (there’s a separate listing for bigger dogs) so you can stitch a dog that looks like yours.

Annie’s Woolens has both dog and cat stocking knitting patterns that are worked in worsted weight yarn in the round. You can change up the colors to suit your pet if you want, and they come with an alphabet chart for personalization. Or you can stick with holiday colors and buy a kit to make the dog or cat stocking.

Waiting for Santa Paws is a pattern from Kate Agner on Ravelry that would be cute for a dog or a cat. It looks like a leg with a paw print on the bottom part of the foot and more paw prints running around the top of the leg. This is a great option if you don’t want to mess with a heel turn because it doesn’t have a heel, because dogs and cats don’t have heels so why would their stockings?

Book Review – 20 to Knit: Tiny Christmas Toys to Knit

Book Review – Knit Christmas Stockings

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