Hello lovelies!
It’s been another busy few weeks here at LAD HQ, with lots going on behind the scenes. We’ve had team meetings about new designs and new yarn 🙊 as well as more creative content and even some festive ideas (it’s never too early in our world!) Plenty to be announcing soon, but first up is this week’s blog.
We ALWAYS get asked about our patterns – which ones are best for new knitters, if you’ve only done knit and purl, which ones would you be able to manage, and also lots of questions when you’re mid pattern too. So I though I would list our patterns this week according to skill level, and hopefully it will answer a few of those questions for you.
What's my knitting skill level?
We grade our knitting patterns in the following order: Beginners, Confident Beginners, Intermediate & Advanced. Here’s how we anticipate you would choose where you fit, based on your skill level…
Skill Level: Beginner
If you’ve never picked up a pair of knitting needles before, this is where you’d start. Absolutely beginners need to learn the very basics of knitting, including Casting on, knitting a stitch and casting off. We’re not even attempting purl stitch with our absolute beginner kits, because it can be pretty daunting starting to knit for the first time and we want to help you get your basic techniques nailed before the next step.
So which patterns should you try first? Well these, are always where we recommend you start.
Either of these three patterns are great place to learn how to knit. Some people will prefer the scarf & snood as they are smaller projects, but if you want to give a bigger project a go to get really good at knitting, go for the blanket! All three of these patterns just use cast on, knit, and cast off.
Got the hang of knit stitch? What’s next?
If you’re still a beginner but you want to try a different stitch, you can move on to these patterns. They take your learned skills of cast on, knit and cast off and add in purl stitch. Some of the kits require a little bit of sewing up at the end, but this is a case of just weaving in and out of stitches. If you can cast on, you can definitely manage this!
Skill Level: Confident Beginner
So you’ve grasped the basics, now I’ll put you at a confident beginner skill level and at this point we’ll start to introduce knitting two stitches together, and stitching up using Mattress Stitch. This means you can start to make clothes! How exciting 😍😍
Our confident beginner section looks like this…
A lot of people go straight to the confident beginner range, and this is totally possible – but do be aware there are techniques that may seem a little tricky because we do suggest having a bit of knowledge of knitting before trying them out.
Skill Level: Intermediate
This is where it gets nice and juicy – loads of new techniques to start learning once you’ve got knit stitch, purl stitch, knitting two together and mattress stitch nailed!
Now you can start to explore increasing, picking up and knitting, changing colours, and knitting on circular needles. If you’re feeling brave you can also have a go starting cable knitting too! Please do note, all the following patterns we would only recommend if you’re confident in the previous techniques I’ve mentioned.
Skill Level: Intermediate to Advanced
Now we’re hitting the big time! If you’re here you can pretty much knit anything (well… maybe not quite anything but you’re doing amazing!)
These patterns use different increasing methods such as M1 L & R, you’ll be using stitch markers and stitch holders, get introduced to colour work and try out some fiddly picking up along edges that you may not have picked up from before!
Like the intermediate category, these patterns are only really for those who are experienced knitters and not phased with a bit of a step up.
Skill Level: Advanced
There’s not a lot of difference from the last stage, but we’ve popped these in this category because they use DPN (double pointed needles) They can be tricky to get used to, and the socks especially do tend to require a bit more brain work than the others 😂
Hopefully that gives you more of an idea as to what patterns will suit where you are on your knitting journey. Please do be aware that some people familiarise themselves with knitting a lot quicker than others, and for some people it takes a little longer. This is a skill that takes practice, and is to be enjoyed. Try not to rush getting to the next level, just enjoy where you are right now. We try and design patterns that suit everyone’s skill level so hopefully you’ll be able to find a pattern that you love, and you’re able to complete.
Once you have got the hang of it though, the challenges are to be relished! You’ll be pushing yourself in no time, determined to finish the next project and move on to a trickier design! It is totally addictive, and we want you to revel in the enjoyment.
For further reading, we’ve got a great blog post on how to read a knitting pattern if you’re a beginner, as well as all our knitting knowledge pages with abbreviations, top tips and how to videos.
Please do let me know which patterns you’ve loved the most, and if there are any gaps you think we’ve missed – we always appreciate your feedback and we can’t wait to start releasing some more of our new patterns really soon!
Have a great week gang,
Hugs,
