Another knitting help request. Mayday, mayday!

[Warlord1986]

Hey y'all. I've got an emergency. I've been working on a shawl for my mother and I dropped a stitch, as you can see from the photos. Is there anyway to fix this? I've spent the better part of the month working on this and I would hate to have to have to unravel it and start over again. Any advice is welcome.

Thank you.

[aetherie]

Don't panic! Dropped stitches are fixable. Get a crochet hook or something similar and try this tutorial: https://www.thespruce.com/pick-up-a-dropped-knit-stitch-2117257

[Poundwise]

+1 to aetherie's post.  The crochet hook will help you pull the loops through loops and you will be all set. The only possible issue is the direction you pull from (front vs back). You have a 50% chance of getting it right. If it looks wrong, then pull out the loop you just made and try it from the other side.

[Warlord1986]

Alright, I 'unknitted' to the point where I messed up and used a crochet hook to pull the loops through the loops. It's not perfect by a long shot, but nothing seems to be unraveling. I hate that the yarn isn't as tight, but I keep reminding myself that it's only a few stitches out of the whole project. Which isn't done yet.

Thank you for all your help! I had a mini panic attack when I noticed that mess.

[anotherAlias]

When I fix dropped stitches, I will knit on for a  couple more inches and then tug gentley in both directions.  That usually helps the stitches even out a bit.  The rest seems to even out better after the first wash.

[AliEli]

You could consider it a design element?

But if it bugs you, you could rip it back to the knit rows where it is easy to pick up all of the stitches again.

[Poundwise]

The uneven stitches won't be noticeable because of the pattern and use of multicolor yarn, but if they really bother you, after you finish the scarf you can use the tip of a knitting needle to gently pull the purl loops on either side of the ridge of knit stitches to tighten them up.  Also, regular wear and stretching in different directions tends to even out stitches over time.

[Warlord1986]

It's very likely that Mom won't notice the hiccup in the yarn at all, so I'm going to stop worrying about it and keep knitting. The further in time I move away from the incident, the better.

You guys are wonderful. :)

[RetiredAt63]

When you block it most unevenness comes out. If you have already evened them out a bit they will even out just fine.

[Warlord1986]

It's evened out a teensy bit already, so my panicking was an over-reaction. My mother has had a rough time and I wanted to give her something nice so when I messed it up lots of feelings came out.

I've never blocked out knitting before.

[HildaCorners]

As everyone said, the uneven area will shift itself around over time and use. In a month you won't be able to find the pace you fixed.

[I'm an occasional knitting teacher and designer, and make a small amount of passive income from self-published knitting books. Bring on the questions!]

[Jtrey17]

As everyone said, the uneven area will shift itself around over time and use. In a month you won't be able to find the pace you fixed.

[I'm an occasional knitting teacher and designer, and make a small amount of passive income from self-published knitting books. Bring on the questions!]

I am so happy to read this! I am new to knitting. Is there a progression that I should follow? I did two basic wash clothes and thought that the next step would be a scarf, which I've started. Also, I'm teaching myself via watching YouTube videos and writing down the patterns so I don't forget them. Is there an easier way? Thank you so much!

[HildaCorners]

It depends on how you learn ... I'm an all-in, over my head and figure it out type, so my very first knitting project was an all-over cable sweater-jacket!

If you learn at a more human pace :-) the next skills you'll want to get are knitting to gauge and shaping through increases and decreases. Once you have those down, you can knit almost any beginner pattern, and some intermediate ones.

If you learn from books, check out Knitting Without Tears by Elizabeth Zimmermann. It's old, but still in print. She has a video series, EZ's Knitting Workshop, that starts about where you are now. Also very old, but knitting hasn't changed in centuries, so something from the 1980s is still good.

For modern stuff, visit Ravelry.com It's a very heavily trafficked social forum with extras; you can find almost anything knitting related there.

By the way, don't ever assume knitting will save money. Yarn worth knitting with isn't cheap ... the $100 you spend on yarn may make a $1,000 "designer" sweater, but you can buy a perfectly nice sweater for $30 (or less) at the consignment shop. Knit because you love to knit, not to be frugal.

[RetiredAt63]

I'm not big on scarves for beginner knitters, unless you need a scarf.  Long and repetitive.  A hat?  A cowl?  A shawlette?  Mittens?  Handwarmers? Socks?  Tea cosy?  Small and fun and with new stitches and techniques.

[Poundwise]

As everyone said, the uneven area will shift itself around over time and use. In a month you won't be able to find the pace you fixed.

[I'm an occasional knitting teacher and designer, and make a small amount of passive income from self-published knitting books. Bring on the questions!]

I am so happy to read this! I am new to knitting. Is there a progression that I should follow? I did two basic wash clothes and thought that the next step would be a scarf, which I've started. Also, I'm teaching myself via watching YouTube videos and writing down the patterns so I don't forget them. Is there an easier way? Thank you so much!

+1 on Ravelry.  Do join, so many ideas and cool patterns there!

A knitting circle can't be beat if you are interested in learning directly from people.  You can find a local meetup through Ravelry.

For patterns, I like: http://knitty.com/archive.php
They are sorted by how easy they are. "Mellow" = easiest.