Any tips for casting on in knitting?

Question

I am an absolute beginning knitter, and just yesterday learned how to make the stitch to cast on. I think I've got it down now, although I haven't learned how to do anything else yet! I'm trying to teach myself a stitch now, but I've found that my cast-on stitches are too tight. How do I make them looser? No matter what I try, I always seem to get them too tight. My major problem with knitting so far is controlling the tension of the yarn. Also, any other tips for beginning would be great. Thanks!

Answer 1

I find that having the yarn around my finger and thumb when i cast on helps make the tension better, it works like threaded cotton in a sewing machine to regulate the tension.

One thing though,  don't beat yourself up, good and even tension in your knitting comes with lots of practice? Keep at it.

Answer 2

One very easy trick is to hold both needles together and cast on over both of them.  Then simply slip one needle out of the stitches to knit with them.

Answer 3

Try casting on over *both* needles held together, then remove one of them when you're done.  

Old book from which I learned a lot: Elizabeth Zimmerman's Knitting Without Tears.

Answer 4

My Granny taught me to cast on using 1 needle and my finger, do you know how to do finger knitting? This is quicker and easier to get looser stitches this way.

Answer 5

Try youtube for videos, there are loads, casting on, casting off, increasing etc etc. I can only knit a scarf...cant follow a pattern to save my life and I always forget how to cast off so I've now got a casting off video from youtube in my favourites.

Answer 6

If you are worried that the cast on stitches are too tight, try to cast onto a larger sized needle,  Then do your first row with the correct size called for in your pattern.

Here is a few websites to check out as they have illustrations on how to learn to knit.  

http://lionbrandyarn.com/

Click on the top left hand side.

http://www.diynetwork.com/diy/pac_ctnt_9...

http://www.freevintageknitting.com/

http://www.all-knittingpattern.info/

http://www.diynetwork.com/diy/shows_dkng...

http://www.purplekittyyarns.com/

I hope this hasn't over whelmed you.  Have fun learning to knit.

Answer 7

The cast on stitches are always tight, but when you actually start knitting they ease off a bit.  

As far as tension is concerned, I wrap/weave the wool through my fingers: wool over the little finger, under the middle two, and looped right round the index finger.  It's the way I was taught by my mum & gran.  My tension is good - practice makes perfect - and I knit neater than my mum and even neater than the professional knitter that makes jumpers for display in the wool shop window!