Can You Answer These Knitting Questions?

A slip knot, used as the first stitch in knitting, is also known as a "stopper" knot, and it's undone simply by pulling its tail.

Purl stitch is commonly called the opposite of knit stitch. Both stitches are created the same way, but purl stitches are worked from back to front instead of front to back (as knit stitches are).

Whether you're making a scarf or a sweater, a pattern will walk you through the step-by-step instructions of how to get it done.

Casting on is how you get your yarn onto your needles -- and it's nothing more than making a series of loops. From long-tail cast-on to knitted cast-on, there are many ways to do it, although knitted cast-on is popular among beginners.

Garter stitch is the most basic stitch among several types in knitting, although its downside is its tendency to curl. Also known as "knit stitch," it's made by knitting every stitch in every row of your project.

A single "p" in a knitting pattern indicates that you'll use the "purl" stitch in that section of your project.

An I-cord is a long, skinny rope, which is a perfect project for your double-pointed needles. DPNs, as they're called, are great for knitting tubes or small circular objects, , like an I-cord, fingerless gloves, or the crown of a beanie, that are too small for circular needles.

Just like in writing, knitting moves in one direction -- from left to right. But how you hold your needles depends on the style of knitting you learned. Most Americans knit in the English style, which means the yarn is held in your right hand while you cast-on stitches in your left.

One of the most common reasons for extra stitches and holes to appear is accidental yarn overs. This happens when you accidentally bring the working yarn to the front of your work, which then creates an extra loop on your needle as you make a stitch.

The process of ripping out rows of your knitting because of a mistake is known as "frogging." If it's just a few stitches that need tearing out, you "tink" (which is "knit" spelled backwards) it.

You've finished your project -- but there's one final step to complete to be sure your project won't unravel and its edges stay neat. It's called binding off (which is also sometimes called "casting off"), and it's the same basic method no matter what stitch you've used.

Although we're talking about yarn weight, we're not talking about a number on a scale. We're talking about the thickness of a yarn strand, which is what determines how many stitches it takes to knit one inch.

While mega-knitting may use the same techniques as conventional knitting, it's done on a much larger scale. In addition to using jumbo yarns, the process is done on super-sized, hooked knitting needles that are at least half-an-inch diameter -- that's a size 17, at the minimum.

Stockinette stitch, one of the basic knitting stitches, is created by alternating one knit row with one purl row. It's popular not only because it's a relatively simple stitch, but because it's flexible enough to be used in everything from scarves to sweaters.

There's an easy way to check if you're knitting or purling a row: When holding your work in your left hand, look for the Vs. If the Vs are facing you, as opposed to bumps, you're looking at a row of knit stitch.

Because it comes wound in a large circle, before you can knit with a hank you need to wind it into a ball of yarn with an end you can pull. Spinners and dyers work with yarn this way.

When you change the width of your knitting, you either "increase" or "decrease" -- to make a piece wider, you increase, or add an extra stitch to the needle. You'll see it abbreviated as Make-one or M1 in knitting patterns.

Weaving in ends as you knit comes up when you need to join a new ball of yarn to your existing row or when you're tidying your edges of a project. To join a new ball, you loosely tie a knot with the new and old yarn, making sure to leave a yarn tail of no less than 4 inches -- any less and it's hard to weave in. (Remember, it's always easier to add a new ball of yarn when you're beginning a new row!)

Not only will blocking your project prevent it from curling, this wet-and-reshape technique also is used to help stretch and redistribute the stitches in your knitted fabric -- all in the effort to create the shape you want without damaging the fibers.

K2tog is the abbreviation for "knit two stitches together," and is a method used to decreasing the stitches in your work. To do it, insert the right needle into two stitches at the same time, and continue knitting.

Intarsia is a knitting method that's used to fit together different colors in different patterns in your project. The look appears as blocks of color inlaid in your knitted fabric.

Sometimes called "tension," gauge measures the number of stitches per inch for that project. If your knitting has fewer stitches per inch than the pattern says it should, using a smaller needle will help. Remember: The smaller the number of the knitting needle, the smaller the needle.

Knitting in the Continental method means you control the yarn in your left hand, and you "pick," as it's called, loops from the left needle to create stitches. Some argue that the movements in this method make for faster knitting.

The "gauge" of a knitted fabric refers to the number of stitches per inch of that fabric. For instance, if you knit with thicker or thinner yarn or needles than the project calls for, your number of stitches and rows per inch won't match the pattern.

A "dropped" stitch is a stitch that's come off the needle. While many knitters rely on a crochet hook to pick up the bottom-most strand in the ladder (always go in order!), you can also use the tip of your knitting needle.

Look to whip stitch when you need a good general seaming method in projects such as joining afghan squares. Outside of knitting and crocheting, it's a handy stitch for tacking up a fallen hem.

Also known as a slip-stitch decrease, the technique is usually abbreviated as "sl1, k1, psso," or sometimes as "SKP." This type of decrease will slant to the right in your final project.

Hanks or skeins of unrolled yarn need to be wound into balls before you can easily knit with them -- and unless you use a chair back to hold the yarn, that's where the yarn swift comes in.

Stitches running left to right, horizontally across the knitted fabric happens with the weft knitting technique. It can be done by hand or with a knitting machine, but, either way, the piece is knitted with just a single yarn.

To make a swatch, first, knit a 6 inch square. Then, count both the stitches over 4 inches and the rows over 4 inches. If what you counted doesn't match the recommended gauge on the pattern, you'll need to make adjustments.

To create a "bobble" with popcorn stitch, it works like this: you increase into a single stitch, work those stitches for a few rows, and then decrease back to one stitch. It got its name from its appearance, a puff in the fabric otherwise known as a "bobble."

The duplicate stitch is actually embroidery that you do on the surface of your knitted fabric. It's a good way to add a colorful design -- or correct small mistakes -- to your project after the project is finished.

Knitting entrelac, fabric knitted with interconnected squares, resembles a textured basketweave -- and you only need to know how to knit and purl to create it.

All that is required is hot water and agitation to felt a knitted fabric made of wool yarn. The technique shrinks and bonds the wool fibers together, making the fabric dense and soft, and can be done by hand or in your washing machine.

Binding off and blocking your work are important steps in finishing up your knitting project. But, additionally, weaving in the ends -- which is working the extra yarn tails into the "wrong" side of your work -- is one piece you have to do before you call this project done.