If you want to make money knitting, then being able to knit faster not only means you can get more done in a shorter space of time, it also means you are being paid more per hour of work – so it’s worth taking some tips from the worlds fastest knitter!
Miriam Tegels is in the Guiness Book of World Records for completing an amazing 118 stitches in one minute!
KnitPicks has released this video with tips from Miriam for increasing the speed of your knitting, and it’s really fascinating to watch her in action. Miriam knits in the continental style for competition, but her tips are still useful even if you knit in other styles.
To really get your needles burning, Miriam suggests:
• Don’t tense up – make sure you shoulders are relaxed
• Keep all your movements small, your hands should move as little as possible
• Keep your left index finger low, almost in line with the needle
• Drape yarn over your left index finger and down through the middle and ring fingers of your left hand. Keep tension by clamping down on the yarn with these fingers
• If you want to compete, practice continental style on size 8 needles with DK weight yarn, once you can knit more than 200 stitches in 3 minutes you’re ready!
If you’re not interested in competing, stick to your preferred style and just keep practicing! When you are knitting for profit it’s well worth the effort to increase your speed and productivity.
Another way to speed up your knitting is to choose projects that are simple and fast to knit. There are some good books available that specialise in fast projects, and remember to have a look at Ruth’s projects which are designed to be fast and easy too.