Do you want to learn how to loom knit, but are unfamiliar with it, or traditional knitting? I’ll talk about some elements of loom knitting, needle knitting, how it’s the same, different, and also different from crochet. Loom knitting is closest to needle knitting due to the types of stitches and fabric it makes. I chose loom knitting because I can’t needle knit at all, and found it easier to work over the pegs than to work with needles.
Loom knitting is closer to needle knitting than crochet because the stitches you use loom knitting have the same fabric that you would if you followed a needle knitting pattern. In the round, garter stitch is the same and stockingette stitch is the same, for those familiar with needle knitting. Patterns can be translated easily, although you can’t increase in the round unless you have specialized looms, which are becoming popular, made at CinDwood looms.
Loom knitting also has 4 different types of knit stitch:
- ewrap: the basic stitch most knitters start with and most patterns call for. It’s the loosest, easiest to move from peg to peg, and most commonly used in lace and cable projects
- u-wrap: it’s slightly tighter than the e-wrap and can be used for lace. It creates the same fabric, but a slightly different texture
- the reverse purl, or true knit stitch: this stitch is more difficult to do, but works best with ribbing
- flat knit stitch: easy to do, creates a very right fabric
If you’re knitting in the round on a loom, which is going in a circle without stopping and reversing, you can use any combination of stitches you like. If you’re following a needle knit pattern, you can translate the pattern exactly, unless there are increases or decreases, if you have the same amount of pegs. Garter stitch in the round is garter stitch on the loom: Knit one row, purl on row. Stockingette stitch in the round is stockingette stitch on the loom, knit all rows.
In needle knitting, however, there is a right side and a wrong side when you’re using needles because you’re stitching from one needle to the next. In loom knitting, you’re going left to right, then right to left, but on the same side of the fabric. This means that you aren’t switching from one side to the other, and you have to disregard the RS and WS instructions and make all the stitches the same, or reverse all the WS stitches.
This is where it gets confusing! Garter stitch on the loom is knit one row, purl one row, in the flat as well. It would be considered stockingette stitch for a flat needle knit pattern. Stockingette stitch is knitting all rows, it would be considered garter stitch in needle knitting.
Loom knitting can be a bit slower for certain projects, such as a 200-stitch top-down shawl, where each stitch is worked individually. However, the modular approach can make large shawls more manageable, allowing for a gradual build-up in sections.
Loom gauges are determined by the space between pegs, with different loom sizes catering to various yarn weights. For example, a sock loom is usually 1/4″ between the centre of one peg to the centre of the next and considered fine gauge, or extra fine gauge. 3/8″ would be small gauge, 1/2″ is regular gauge, 5/8″ is large gauge, and so on.
One thing you may see people do is use crochet hooks for casting on and off. This doesn’t really mean it has anything to do with crochet, it just makes a nice edge at the beginning and end of your project. There are several ways to cast on and off and this is a fun, fast, awesome looking method.
You can make pretty much everything on knitting looms that you can needle knitting. The biggest differences are that it is not that easy to increase or decrease mid-row, or at all in the round, unless you’ve got a loom designed for it. There is no wrong side, so patterns are easier to translate when you’re knitting in the flat, by using a chart. Gauge isn’t exactly the same and you should use a gauge swatch because it will depend on which knit stitch you use, too.
I hope this helps!