Let's face it - the end product is usually made with wool and unless you have experienced either of these two age-old crafts, you may miss the difference. Both home crocheting and knitting are creating a piece of fabric from interlocking loops of thread or yarn. But the difference lies in the details and I will try to explain some of the differences to you.
Home crocheting is done with one single crochet hook. That is all that is required when you are crocheting. Yarn or cotton strands work with this age-old art, and you can use one strand or two, but the main thing is that crocheting is only worked with one hook.
Knitting is always done with two needles at minimum. If someone is knitting socks or other tubular objects, they may require another set of double-pointed needles. Whereas crochet hooks only come in one piece, knitting can sometimes be done on a circular needle which is one piece as well with a knitting needle attached to both ends.
Crocheting patterns always tell the crocheter to chain so many stitches whereas the knitting patterns tell the knitter to cast on so many stitches. This is where the main differences begin.
In crocheting, when the home crocheter is told to chain so many stitches they are creating a foundation to work into whereas the knitter, when told to cast on so many stitches is creating what is considered the first row of your project. I should mention at this time that sometimes instead of casting on some directions tell you to bind on so many stitches. They both mean the same thing in the knitting world.
When someone crochets, they have only one stitch active (on the hook) at any given time. You work it stitch by stitch. But when you knit, you have an entire row of stitches active at once (transferring them from one needle to the other as you make each stitch in a new row).
When you are knitting if you drop a stitch, that dropped stitch will cause a run or gap in your fabric and ruin your work. But in crocheting, it is impossible to drop a stitch. You may miss a stitch, but this will catch up to you later down the road. Sometimes you can find a way to recover that lost stitch and no one's the wiser for it. Sometimes, in crocheting, with a needle and thread, it is possible to stitch that thread so that no one sees the missed stitch; however, be careful that your pattern works out down the road because 9/10 times, it won't work out in about 2 or 3 rows and you end up ripping out to the missed stitch.
Finishing a crochet project is a matter of cutting the yarn, pull it through the loop on your hook and knotting the end securely. In knitting, you must bind off or cast off all the stitches one by one on the knitting needle and after the last one is completed, pull the yarn through the loop on your hook and knot securely.
When the projects are completed, if you snag a knit sweater the one snagged stitch will often pull and pucker the fabric or the sweater may develop a run. If you snag a crocheted sweater, only the one snagged stitch will be affected by the snag - if it breaks, the rest of the sweater will usually hold together long enough to give you time to fix it.
Knitted fabric typically has more give than crocheted fabric, but crocheted fabric may have more bulk to it.
One of the last and greatest differences between home crocheting and knitting is that knitting can be done by machine, but crocheting can't. Crocheting is a unique craft that can only be done by hand.
There is a wealth of information to be found at http://learningeasycrochet.com.
Not only is there information, but it supplies encouragement as well.
When you get stuck, as we all do sometimes, leave a question in the comment box and you will get an answer within 24 hours.
When you sign up for a membership, you will receive a crochet pattern of your choice along with the help you may need to complete that project!
In the members area, you will shown "how to" and much more along with tips and tricks to speed up your progress.
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