In former days, knitting served mainly for the manufacture of stockings, and even now, in spite of machines, hand-knit stockings, and numberless other useful and ornamental articles, such as shawls, counterpanes, cradle-coverings, gloves, laces etc. are in great request.
Besides its practical use, knitting is an easy and pleasant pastime that can be taken up at odd minutes and even carried on, whilst talking, or reading.
Knitting consists of loops, or stitches, as they are generally called, formed by means of a thread and two needles.
In round knitting, four, or five needles are necessary for the better handling of the work.
Through the loops formed in knitting, being connected together in unbroken continuity, a very elastic fabric is produced, which is specially suitable for making warm, and closely-fitting wearing-apparel.
Materials.—Threads with a slight twist, such as Coton à tricoter D.M.C, are the best. With regard to the thickness of the needles, whether they be of steel, wood, or bone, your choice must be determined by the quality of the thread used.
The accompanying table is intended to help inexperienced knitters to match their needles and thread, we advisedly say, help, as it is impossible exactly to determine the numbers that will correspond, because every hand knits differently, and a loose knitter has to use finer needles than a tight knitter.
Other materials are enumerated here, besides, what is properly speaking, called knitting-cotton, as for caps, lace edgings, insertions and so forth, finer kinds of thread and threads with a stronger twist which show up the pattern better, should be used.
