If you are looking for a way to knit that is gentle on your hands and wrists, or you want to knit faster, or you just find purling too complicated, Eastern knitting (previously known as Russian knitting) is the way to go.
It solves all of these issues and helps you knit fast, with minimal strain on your wrists, with purling being as easy as knitting.
The Eastern knitting style is perfect for any project worked back and forth.
In this mini-course, we’ll start with the basics of this wonderful method – casting on, knitting, purling and binding off stitches.
This approach will let you learn Eastern knitting step by step without the overwhelm and additional pressure of too much information. As we follow each step, we’ll make a swatch, and then we’ll use all these newly acquired skills to make a simple (but not boring!) scarf.
This is the plan. Now grab some medium-weight yarn in a light colour and any knitting needles in a size that works with your yarn, and let’s get started.
STEP 1 – CASTING ON
Every project starts with a cast on, and projects worked using the Eastern knitting style are no exception.
The most common way to cast on stitches in Eastern knitting is the slingshot version of the long-tail cast-on method.
In Eastern knitting, we often do it by holding two needles in our right hand.
This simple trick makes the cast-on edge more elastic without losing its shape. It also makes it much easier to work the first row (no more struggle), and it doesn’t have a stiff slip knot sitting at the beginning of a cast-on edge. How clever!
This is just one of many tricks that make Eastern knitting so easy and efficient. After all, it was developed by people who were knitting to keep their families warm through the winter. It’s a powerful motivation to improve the technique.
We are lucky to have these knitting innovations. Let’s take advantage of them to make our own knitting easier, faster, and more efficient.
LET’S PRACTICE
Take your yarn and needles, and use the steps described over here to cast on ten stitches.
Then turn the work, and you are all set to work the first row.
STEP 2 – HOLDING YARN
Before we start knitting and purling, we have to make sure the working yarn stays where it should be.
When we knit using the Eastern knitting style, we hold yarn in our left hand, the same way as we do when we use the Continental knitting style. So if you are a “Continental knitter”, hold the yarn however you do it when you work on your projects.
If you normally use the English knitting style and hold yarn in your right hand, you will need to learn to work with the yarn in your left hand. It might feel awkward at first, but don’t worry – with just a bit of practice, you’ll easily get the hang of this technique.
Here are the step-by-step instructions that explain how to hold yarn in the left hand.
Once you settle the yarn in your left hand, take an empty needle in your right hand and – finally! – we are ready to knit the stitches of this swatch.
STEP 3 – KNITTING
The way we knit stitches in Eastern knitting is very different from knitting stitches using any of the classic knitting styles.
No matter whether you use the Continental or English knitting style, you will have to remember to work stitches differently.
The good news is – it is not hard at all. Eastern knitting is one of the easiest knitting styles out there, and the process of knitting a stitch happens in the easiest way possible – through the back loop.
Here’s how we do it step by step.
As you see, there is no need to move the right needle by over a hundred degrees to get into a stitch from left to right. We keep the needle straight and keep our wrists from twisting.
LET’S PRACTICE
Use this method to knit the ten stitches that you have on your needles. By the end of this row, you will feel how easy and efficient this way of knitting is.
And this is only the beginning of your discovery. Soon you will see how easy it is to purl stitches in Eastern knitting. Turn the work, and let’s get purling!
STEP 4 – PURLING
When we purl stitches in Eastern knitting, we don’t move needles or fingers too much. The needles are almost parallel to each other, and the yarn is picked by the right needle in the most efficient way.
Here’s how it happens step by step.
LET’S PRACTICE
Use this technique to purl all stitches of your swatch.
Don’t rush. Focus on performing each step rather than speed. It is a new method for you, and it will take some time to adjust to this new approach. Speed will come later, but right now, give your fingers time to remember the new moves.
Even the first row of purling will show how incredibly efficient this process is. There are no unnecessary movements. And there is no unnecessary strain on the fingers and wrists.
You now know how to knit and purl stitches, but there is another common thing that Eastern knitters do. We always treat the first and the last stitches of every row as selvedges.
STEP 5 – SELVEDGES
When my aunt taught me to knit, she didn’t even call them selvedges. She simply said – slip the first stitch and purl the last stitch of every row. I obeyed, and the side edges of my projects were always neat and tidy.
This is another clever trick that is common in Eastern knitting. Instead of leaving the look of the side edges to chance, we simply treat the first and the last stitches as selvedge. By default.
Here’s a tutorial that describes this simple way to make slip-stitch selvedges.
Let’s add this tip to our growing skillset of Eastern knitting tricks.
LET’S PRACTICE
Turn the work, slip the first stitch as demonstrated in this tutorial, then knit all stitches the Eastern way until you get to the last stitch of the row. Finally, purl the last stitch as we did in step 4 of this mini-course.
Turn the work, and use the same approach to work a purl row – slip the first stitch, purl all stitches to the last stitch of the row, and purl the last stitch.
Repeat these two rows until you feel that it is easy for you to knit and purl using the Eastern knitting style.
By that time, your fingers will learn the new moves, and you’ll start to feel the soothing, effortless rhythm of Eastern knitting. It will mean that you are ready to apply these new skills to make an actual project.
But first, let’s bind off stitches of this swatch.
STEP 6 – BINDING OFF
Like most techniques in Eastern knitting, binding off stitches is a very simple process.
There are only two steps, and they are so easy that even absolute beginners will feel confident repeating them. No struggling with the needles as we pass one stitch over the other!
Here’s how we bind off stitches in Eastern knitting.
LET’S PRACTICE
Use these two steps to bind off all stitches of your swatch.
As you look at your swatch, you will probably notice that the stitches are neater and more uniform. This is another benefit of the streamlined way to knit and purl.
Because we use the minimal movements, we don’t distort the fabric too much. As a result, the stitches are well-aligned and well-behaved.
This effect is especially noticeable when we use the Eastern knitting style to make ribbing. If you’d like to give it a try, here’s a tutorial that explains every step. Consider it your extracurricular activity 😊
Once you bind off all stitches of your swatch, cut the yarn and secure the last stitch.
Or, don’t cut the yarn, unravel the swatch and reuse the yarn to make something else.
Frugality is another characteristic of the Eastern approach. Everything has to be efficient. We use the least amount of effort when we knit or purl a stitch, and we use up every bit of yarn that we have.
For example, you can reuse the yarn from your swatch to make a Waffle Scarf – a lovely, textured, fully reversible scarf that you can make for yourself or as a gift for someone else.
With the skills you now have, you can easily make this scarf, or maybe even turn it into a blanket.
The pattern will give you step-by-step instructions with the tips that will help you make this scarf in any size you like.
And the detailed knitalong will show you every one of those steps up close to save you from confusion and second guessing.
It is the most efficient way to make your first Eastern knitting project, and all of that information is carefully presented over here.
Go ahead and practice Eastern knitting and purling as you make this scarf.
SAVE IT FOR LATER
