Many people associate knitting with elderly women sitting in rocking chair on their porches while they rock back and forth knitting all day long. I have that same picture in my head when I think of knitting. However, knitting is a great hobby to take up. Despite what many people think, knitting is not just for older women. On the contrary, knitting can be a very useful skill to have.

Knitting Is Therapeutic

Knitting is a great way to exercise your fingers and get yourself distracted in a positive manner. Knitting does take skill to master, so you learn to be patient and focused when you start to learn it. Also, it is also a relaxing and therapeutic hobby that can take your mind off of the pressures of everyday mundane life.

Yes, knitting takes practice and patience. If you need a healthy distraction or need to do something that is a little different from your usual activities, knitting can be a great hobby to take up.

Keep Your Fingers Nimble

If you are a little clumsy or feel like your hands need to become a little bit more nimble, knitting is great to help you do this. Knitting needles and yarn are very small and thin objects that take much nimbleness in order to hold and use properly. If you knit often, this can do some good to cure a little bit of clumsiness in the hands.

Knitting Produces Useful Things

Think of all the things that you can knit. The possibilities are numerous! You can knit sweaters for yourself or make them as gifts for your family members and friends. You could make custom and very original beanies in all kinds of designs and colors. You could even make custom seat covers. There are patterns for all kinds of knitting projects. You can go wild and create all sorts of knits! Yes, the possibilities are endless when it comes to knitting. Test out and release your creative juices!

If you do not wish to use the knits that you create, you could make some extra cash by selling the fruits of your labor.

So, if you are in need for some sort of relaxation therapy, if you would like to improve the nimbleness of your hands and fingers, or if you would like to take up a hobby and learn a skill that will product useful things, knitting is for you. So, when you think of knitting, do not think of an elderly woman on her porch. Instead, think of the great benefits that you would receive if you were to take up knitting.

Knitting is something we are all familiar with, but surprisingly we know little about when and where the art of hand knitting started. This is because yarn fibers are biodegradable. One thing we do know is that the oldest form of knitting (crossed knitting) was practiced since before the birth of Christ. A pair of knitted socks discovered in Egyptian tombs from the 3rd to 6th centuries A.D. is the earliest archaeological evidence of knitted garments. The earliest knitting needle is a brass rod that dates back to the early Iron Age. Spinning wool started around 4000 B.C. near the Mediterranean Sea. The first wool factory in England was build by the Romans in 50 A.D. The kind of knitting that we are used to was not practiced till quite recently, however.

The oldest form of knitting is crossed knitting, also known as single-needle knitting and pseudo knitting. In crossed knitting, the stitches are rotated a half turn instead of aligning vertically. This knitting method was highly developed by the Nazca culture in Peru (100 B.C.-A.D. 700) in the fringes of their woven cloths. Frequent color changes in these fringes were used to create intricate human and animal figures.

The origins of knitting are hard to trace but there are several theories. Some people believe that knitting started in Persia, others that it started in Israel, Jordan and Syria. Still others believe that it started in the mountains of North Africa, or even Japan or China. Some people believe that knitting grew out of the knitting of fish-nets by men.

Some socks and other items made with the crossed-knitting technique have been found in Egyptian burials possibly dating as far back as the 4th or 5th century B.C. There have been knitted socks found in Egyptian tombs (3rd and 6th centuries A.D., knitted pieces found at the Dura-Europas site near the Euphrates River (about A.D. 200), and sandal socks apparently from Saudi Arabia (about A.D. 350). It is possible however that these earliest socks were worked in nalebinding; which is an ancient craft which often looks very similar to true knitting, and could be confused with true knitting by archaeologists with no training in the history of needlework. A pair of patterned cotton socks from Egypt, dating from A.D.1100 may be the earliest example of “true” knitting or that may be nalebinding too. Socks and stockings were the first items to be knitted because knitting was ideally suited for shaping a garment to fit the foot at a time when fabric and sewing woven cloth were less flexible.

The Complete Encyclopedia of Stitchery by Mildred Graves Ryan says that most historians agree that knitting was probably spread by (probably male) Arabian sailors and merchants who traveled throughout the Mediterranean. Many people believe that knitting was first invented by Arabian nomads who carried the craft into Egypt, probably in the 5th century A.D. Knitting was then carried through North Africa, and into Spain. From Spain, traveling Catholics picked it up and spread it quickly throughout Europe.

It was not until the early 14th century that we have the first references to true knitting in Europe. At that time, the purl stitch was unknown, which meant that in order to produce plain knitting, people had to knit in the round and then cut it open if they needed to. The first reference to purl stitch was not until the mid 16th century, but the knowledge of how to do it may have preceded that a little.

Although nobody knows exactly where true knitting started, it would seem that knitting was probably spread by Arabian sailors and merchants who traveled throughout the Mediterranean. Then, evidently, traveling Catholics quickly spread it throughout Europe. True knitting, as we know it, is a relatively recent craft. Crafts similar to true knitting, such as cross-knitting and nalebinding, however, have a very long history, dating back to before the birth of Christ. They evidently were practiced in a lot of different countries and cultures too, from Japan to Egypt to Peru. Knitting clearly filled a need in people’s making of garments which is still continuing and growing.

There is a lot of fun in using knitting patterns when you are a beginner. This is because you will be able to produce some exceptionally beautiful things, without (relatively speaking) too much trouble or experience. The best advice for any beginner is to start with something very simple and learn how to use both knitting needles and knitting machines with ease.

In order to enjoy this hobby, you need to get all the requirements together before you start, such as a good brand yarn, needles, patterns, etc. This way you can concentrate solely on enjoying the experience and worry about nothing else.

Do not get stuck with knitting books initially, since you will not need to practice intricate designs. Stick with basic knitting patterns that are easily available on the internet for free. Acrylic yarn is fine to use in the early stages and you should choose your needles according to the thread/yarn you buy.

Many people want to get things perfect right from day one and get deeply frustrated when this does not happen. Keep in mind that in the beginning, your aim should be to get your hands into the rhythm of this hobby; therefore, you need not worry about anything else.

Practice is the greatest teacher. Ignore all knitting patterns initially and just knit for the sake of this hobby. It is helpful if you have someone to guide you, because as a beginner, it may take some time to familiarize yourself with this type of hobby or occupation. One very basic consideration is how tightly or loosely you make your looping stitches.

The best case scenario would be to learn from someone in your family or from a friend. If there is no one to help you, then you can find out more by joining a knitting club in your vicinity, where you will be able to discuss all of the knitting woes you have experienced during the day.

If you are a beginner, then knitting patterns will not be of much help to you because you need to practice and to familiarize yourself with the process, rather than trying to make something specific. There are knitting needles and crocheting needles, so just check out which style you like best and start practicing.

With a few attempts and a few hours of practice, you should be able to knit a decent scarf in no time. Once you have conquered the simple scarf, then you can move on and learn how to make more intricate items.