Resources

🧶 Welcome to Knitting — From the BZBs

New to knitting? We’re so glad you’re here.

Whether you’ve never picked up needles or you’re trying again after years away, knitting is something anyone can learn — especially with the right beginner resources.

Here in Palm Desert, knitting is especially lovely during our beautiful winter season. Grab a cup of coffee, sit outside in the sunshine, and take it one stitch at a time.

Below are our favorite beginner-friendly resources to help you get started.

🧺 Supplies to Buy First

You don’t need much to begin.

Start with:

  • One skein of smooth, light-colored yarn
    Avoid very dark, fuzzy, or novelty yarn at first.
  • One pair of straight knitting needles
    Size US 7 or 8 is a great beginner size.
  • Small scissors
  • Tapestry needle (for weaving in ends)

That’s it. No need to buy a full toolkit right away.

🧵 Getting Started – The Basics

Start Here: Learn the Core Skills

Before jumping into patterns, focus on these five basic skills:

  1. Casting on
  2. The knit stitch
  3. The purl stitch
  4. Binding off
  5. Fixing simple mistakes

These foundational skills will allow you to complete many beginner projects like scarves and dishcloths.

Suggested Resources:

  • Sheep & Stitch – Clear, beginner-friendly written tutorials with photos that walk you through the basics step by step.
  • VeryPink Knits – Slow, easy-to-follow video demonstrations that are excellent for visual learners.

🎥 Prefer to Learn by Watching?

Videos are great because you can:

  • See the hand movements up close
  • Pause and rewind
  • Practice along at your own pace

Knitting is muscle memory — it gets easier every time you practice.

🧶 Easy First Projects

Once you know the basics, try:

  • Dishcloths
  • Simple scarves
  • Washcloths
  • Basic cowls

Helpful tip:
👉 Choose light-colored yarn so you can see your stitches clearly.

Knitted Dishcloth Patterns Free (Best For Beginners)

For beginner patterns, many knitters use:

  • Ravelry – Search for “Beginner” or “Easy” and filter for free patterns (free account required).

Start simple. Confidence builds quickly.

🛠️ When You Make a Mistake

Dropped a stitch? Added one by accident?

It happens to all of us.

Most mistakes can be fixed without starting over. Look for tutorials on:

  • Fixing a dropped stitch
  • Counting stitches
  • “Tinking” (unknitting one stitch)
  • “Frogging” (removing rows)

3 Beginner Mistakes and How to Fix Them

And remember — yarn is very forgiving.

If you’re unsure what to choose, bring your questions to a meeting — we’re happy to help.

🤝 Knit With the BZBs

Come join us.

Bring your yarn. Bring your questions. Bring your “I’m not sure what I did” projects.

We love helping new knitters get started.

Take it one stitch at a time — you’ve got this.

— The BZBs 🐝 🐝 🐝