"How Your Fingers Aren't Getting In The Way - And Why That's A Shame"

Problem: Scientists have found that there are more nerve connections between the fingers and the brain than between any other parts of the body. These are the most delicate instruments available to you, yet so many knitters avoid touching their knitting at all costs! Because of this, they don’t have nearly enough control over their stitches.

Fix: Use your fingers to help put your stitches where they need to be and to stop them from falling off your needles, as I show in the video.

Many knitters are afraid that their stitches will fall off the end of their left-hand needles. Here's how to prevent that from happening.

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• Speed Up Your Knitting! Avoid These Top Ten Mistakes That Will Slow You Down
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"Are You Buying The Right Needles For Your Project?"

Problem: If you are using regular Addi Turbos to do lacework, or any pattern requiring many increases and decreases, the blunt-tipped needles are probably slowing you down and making you work hard for those stitches!

Fix: Pointier needles like Addi Lace, KnitPicks Harmony, or Signature Needle Arts’ stiletto-tipped needles will make the job so much easier and faster. Here are three sets of needles attempting a simple K2tog. You can see which needles look like they are the best for this job.

Regular Addi Turbos are too blunt to easily do lace and most stitches.

Addi Lace Needles have a “grabby” coating and a sharp tapered point.

Signature NeedleArts Stiletto Tips have a very long taper,

but the points aren’t painfully sharp.

Problem: Bamboo needles may give you a feeling of security on silky, slippery yarns, but will slow you way down on “grabby” yarns.

Fix: For yarns with mohair, angora, or homespun wool, try a polished needle like Lantern Moon or Addi Turbo.

What are your favorite "tools for the job?" Leave a comment and let me know what needles and tools work best for you!

Mistake #8 - Letting Stitches Lag On Your Left-Hand Needle

Problem: Not advancing the stitches on your left-hand needle makes you work harder and harder to get into those stitches. Yet many people do it, because they are afraid their stitches will pop off if they get too close to the edge.

Fix: Get in the habit of pushing the stitches up onto the tip of your left-hand needle as you knit. Also see the video for Tip #6, Using Your Fingers To Help You (coming up in a few weeks), to solve this problem.

Please remember to comment if you have any questions or if there's a video you'd like to see. Stay tuned for Tip #7 - Not Using the Right Tools for the Job!

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Mistake #9 - Scrunching Your Stitches Up On Your Right-Hand Needle

Problem: If you do this, you may notice ten-twenty new stitches stacking up on the tip of your right-hand needle, in front of your fingers. This can slow you down, as your fingers are nowhere near the tips of your needles, helping you knit. Knitters who do this also tend to slow down for fear of losing stitches off the tips of the needles.

Fix: Every time you notice this happening, simply move your right hand up the needle, massaging your new stitches evenly down along the length of the needle, and place your fingers over the stitches.

Please remember to comment if you have any questions or if there's a video you'd like to see. Stay tuned for Tip #8 - Letting Stitches Lag On Your Left-Hand Needle!

Top Ten Mistakes Knitters Make that Slow Down Their Knitting (and How to Fix Them)

Are you making one of these classic mistakes? Don’t worry, almost everybody does. That’s why they made this top-ten list. Just read through and watch the videos to see if you are making your knitting experience harder than it should be - and what to do about it.

And just so you know, I’m not perfect, either. My top knitting mistake didn’t make it to the top ten, because it doesn’t really slow me down, per se, but it’s caused me a lot of frustration. I’ve been working on it, and I’m happy to say it doesn’t affect me now as much as it used to.

It’s that I would knit things out of colors that look bad on me. I used to pick a lot of pale, delicate colors, because they looked so good on models and in knitting magazines. Unfortunately, they make me look pasty and bland! So now I try to stick to deep, rich colors and bright jewel tones, no matter how good that sand-colored cardigan looks.

So, counting down from #10, your top mistakes and how to fix them are:

#10 Not Pushing Your Needle-Tips Far Enough Through Your Stitches

Problem: I see so many knitters doing this - they just barely push the tips of their needles through the stitches, and as a consequence, have to go really slowly and carefully to make sure that the stitches don’t fall off.

Fix: Easy! Push your needles all the way into your stitches, like I show in the video. Pair this fix with Tip #6, Using Your Fingers To Help You (coming up in a few weeks), and you should be golden.

This video tutorial is part of a popular new e-book called "Knit Faster!" Speed Up Your Knitting By Avoiding These Ten Mistakes. Click here to learn what they are and how you can fix them!