Becca J Norman

If you are a total beginner, please contact me prior to scheduling so I can steer you toward the right yarn and knitting needles for your needs. Yesterday's Bookstore is the default location, as the owner generously offers use of the space in the store for meetings and it's a great environment. If the store is unavailable or somewhere else is more convenient for you, we can of course meet at any cafe in the area that has enough space. For beginner children's and pre-teen's lessons, I highly recommend that a parent/guardian learn along with the child. Not only will this enable you to help them at home, but learning alongside your child is a great opportunity to strengthen your bond and build trust in the relationship. If you already know how to knit but need some help with a specific technique or work-in-progress, this is for you too! You can tell me a little about your experience and needs in the booking form, which will help me prepare for your lesson.

Over the course of 3 classes, you will learn the basics of knitting and make a coaster to put under a hot drink on a cold day (or you can put it under a cold drink or houseplant, or hang it on your wall; you do you, Boo!). The class pace will be based on how each student is picking up each new technique, and I will help with mistakes as they happen. Learning how to fix mistakes is an important skill! (Even advanced knitters make mistakes sometimes.) Yarn and knitting needles will be provided. We will loosely follow this schedule: Week 1: How to cast on and introduction to the knit stitch Week 2: Fixing mistakes and getting more comfortable with knitting Week 3: How to bind off and finish, and introducing strategies for future knitting success. For my faster learners, I'll teach you how to purl and throw in some extras so you don't get bored.

Are you stuck on a project and just need some quick tips? Do you not even know what you need to know? Book this free consultation to get a little more guidance and see how I can custom-tailor a way to meet your needs.

Mystery Yarn We all have some , whether we inherited it from a grandparent, found it at a garage sale, or it’s been in our stash so long the label fell off and we have no memory of where it came from. So what are you supposed to do with this unlabeled yarn of mystery? Cast on a sweater and pray it turns out? Um… Make 10 different gauge swatches? Lord no. Let it stay in stash purgatory for eternity? How about not. There’s a better way! You can identify the yarn weight even without a label by measuring wraps per inch (henceforth referred to as WPI ) If you’re unfamiliar with yarn weights, check out this old old video about how to identify them based on clues the labels offer. Supplies Mystery yarn Cheat Sheet Ruler That’s it! Get a printable version of the cheat sheet here or by filling out the form above. How to Measure: Carefully begin winding the yarn around the ruler, starting at an inch line. Continue wrapping the yarn around and around, keeping the strands as vertical as you can, and making sure they’re not overlapping or spaced apart from each other. The idea is for them to be just touching. Rubbing shoulders but not hugging. Don’t be intimidated. I promise it’s easy! Once a whole inch is covered, count how many revolutions the yarn made. Or count as you’re wrapping. That’s easier but sometimes I get lost in thought and forget. Repeat this process 2 more times, and average out the results. WPI isn’t really very precise, but this will help you find a more accurate measurement. (WPI + WPI + WPI) ÷ 3 = average WPI in case you weren’t paying attention in math class Consult the chart Find the matching number on the right side of the cheat sheet and see which weight it corresponds with. If it’s somewhere in between two of them, don’t sweat it. At least now you know where it falls on the yarn thickness spectrum and can more easily choose the knitting project that would be a good fit for this yarn. And besides, you know I’m never going to give you permission to skip the gauge swatch anyway. For more tough love, follow me on Instagram . Now What? Now, you take a picture of the yarn and add it to your Ravelry stash with all the known details. I’ve got another oldie for you here , explaining how to do that. It’s how I search through my stash without actually pulling everything out of the bin every time. Better yet, you can make a new label for the yarn and make sure it won’t fall off this time!

Don't skip it! Back in the old days, when I would finish knitting something, I would go straight to wearing it without pausing to block it. If I could go back in time, I would slap my hand and say “Stop it!” Why does it matter so much? Think of it kind of like ironing, without the iron, and more passive. Maybe that’s a bad example. I almost never iron, even though I know it makes clothes look so much better. Anyway, much like how ironing smooths out wrinkles and gives a nice crispness to the fabric, blocking your knits makes the stitches look more even, filled in, and just makes it feel better. Before blocking This is my Clarke Pullover before I blocked it. It’s a nice sweater but see how it just looks kinda… lumpy? The underarms are weird, the sleeves are a little short, and the fit at the waist and hips is all wrong. (The hip thing is partly due to me adding hip increases that weren’t called for in the pattern and not spacing them out enough. But watch to see what happens there…) The blocking method I’m teaching you today is “wet blocking” It’s not the only method, but it’s pretty basic and works well for most yarns. We’ll get into the other methods another time. For today, I want you to know that the yarn I used for the sweater I’m showing you is a wool blend and I measured my gauge swatch before and after blocking ( as per pattern instructions ) so I knew what to expect as far as how much it would grow lengthwise. Another thing to remember is that a whole sweater will be heavier than a little gauge swatch, especially when wet, so expect a little more growth in the length. Put that baby in a tub. Fill a (clean) sink, bucket, or bathtub with lukewarm water and place your finished knitted object into it, gently pressing it under the surface of the water. Let it soak for about 15 minutes. You can add a wool soak if you want, but to be honest, I just used plain old water here. after 15 minutes of soaking Squeeze Drain the sink or whatever you’re using, and gently squeeze the excess water out of the fabric. Don’t twist or wring! Easy peasy sweater squeezy Towel burrito Next, you’ll roll it up in a clean dry towel like a burrito or sushi and squeeze it again. Press out as much water as you can, and if the towel feels really wet, do it again with another fresh towel. It's probably more like sushi than a burrito... Or should I say gimbap? Spread it out Carefully lay it out flat on foam blocking mats or yet another clean towel. I like blocking mats because they don’t absorb the moisture, which allows the sweater to dry faster, and you can move it around without messing anything up. You can also pin into it if you’re blocking something with a precise shape or needs to be held in place. I got these mats from KnitPicks. Gently smooth out wrinkles with your hands and smooth the edges. Shape it Shape it into the desired shape and size, gently. For this one, I knew I needed the sleeves and body to be a little longer, and that the gauge swatch did grow lengthwise so I didn’t need to force anything. I did a little work on the hips, shaping them more like the shape of my body and coaxing out the lump I accidentally created when I graded up to a larger size below the waist. (This is the beauty of making your own clothes. You get to make the garment work for you instead of feeling like it’s your body that’s wrong.) The hardest part is waiting for it to dry. Pat it to get all the ripples out and make sure the side seams aren't crooked. If you have a small fan, place it nearby overnight. Once it’s completely dry, it’s done! Now you can wear it proudly. Don't I look proud? It feels so good. External links to things mentioned in this post: Clarke Pullover knitting pattern Foam blocking mats* My Ravelry project page for this sweater *affiliate link. When you use my affiliate links, you help support me so I can keep creating free content for you!

Knowing different ways to finish edges is one of the best ways to become a better knitter. Mastering all the stitch patterns in the world but only knowing one way to cast on or bind off will often leave your masterpeices looking amateur. This particular technique gives a wonderfully clean finish by creating a little tube that envelopes the stitches along the bound-off edge, and when worked in the round, it seamlessly joins at the beginning and end of the round. This is a great finish for sweaters, blankets, and really anything you want. It's moderately stretchy, although maybe not a great choice for finishing ribbing. I'll be demonstrating on my Duotone Sweater to finish the double knit edge I created. It's wonderful for double knitting. While it's not terribly difficult, it's what I call a compound technique , because it involves a few different techniques that could each be taught on their own. These are: Knitted cast on (also known as "cabled cast on") K2tog tbl Kitchener stitch I have a tutorial for the kitchener stitch on the blog, but for the others, continue reading and/or watch the video below. If your project is on circular needles, you can either continue with the same circulars, or if you prefer binding off with on double-pointed needle in your right hand, that will also work. If you've ever made an actual i-cord, you'll see the similarity in this technique. Step 1 Using the knitted cast on technique, cast on 3 stitches. Knit one stitch, but instead of slipping the old one off the left needle as you normally would, you will instead transfer the new stitch on your right needle over to the left needle without twisting. Repeat this 2 more times, each time knitting into the newest stitch that has been created. Step 2 Knit 2 stitches This probably needs no explanation, but you will now have only 2 stitches on your right needle, and the first stitch that you cast on will still be on the left. Step 3 K2 tog tbl ( or in the case that you're finishing double knitting like me, k3tog tbl ) "TBL" stands for "through the back loop." To do this, you insert the right needle purlwise through the legs of the stitches on the back side of the needle, as opposed to on the front like when you're purling. Then you can wrap the yarn around the right needle and pull it through like normal. This will join the cast-on stitch with the original stitch on the body. The right-hand needle is in the "back loop" of 3 stitches If you are binding off double knitting , the 3 stitches you are knitting together are: the first cast-on stitch, and 1 each right- and wrong-side stitch. Step 4 Slip all 3 stitches purlwise from your right needle back to the left needle. This how we get the i-cord in the i-cord bind off. Put these 3 stitches onto the left needle Repeat steps 2-4 until you have reached the end of the round, but this time leave the 3 live stitches on your right needle. End of round! If you're knitting a Duotone And you used my double knitting modification , you will have this sequence of stitches: purl stitch, 3 i-cord stitches, purl stitch, knit stitch. At this point, work k2tog tbl  3 times , then switch back to k3tog tbl  to catch the next purl stitch along with the last i-cord stitch. Continue as established above. How to finish Cut the yarn, leaving enough to weave in, plus a little extra. Turn the work 90 degrees counter-clockwise and switch hands with the needles. Insert a knitting needle into the 3 stitches you made at the very beginning. I find it easier to use a tapestry needle to find them, and then slide them onto a knitting needle. Double pointed needles are great here. Long circulars can feel a bit unweildly at this point. You will graft the 3 live stitches to the 3 picked up stitches using the kitchener stitch technique. Visit this blog post for a full tutorial. Once the stitches are grafted, use the working yarn to neaten up any loose or untidy stitches, and then weave it in and trim it off. If you are working on double knitting, you can thread it through the hollow space, pull it taut, and trim. It will disappear into the inside like magic! Finished!

Meet the dedicated team that takes care of business at Becca J Norman. Team Members Becca Norman CEO Becca Norman is the head honcho. She works hard to keep the business in line with the company values. Read More Becca Norman Customer Service Becca Norman is wholeheartedly committed to providing you with the best experience possible. Read More Becca Norman Creative Director Becca Norman's imagination is responsible for everything you see around here. You're welcome? Read More Becca Norman Knitting Teacher Becca Norman heads up the tutorials you see on the blog and is the instructor in our classes. Read More Becca Norman Web Designer Becca Norman worked way too hard building this site. She's pretty proud of herself. Read More Becca Norman Pattern Designer Becca Norman started designing knitting patterns a long time before publishing any. Read More

A list of all the imortant links that pertain to Becca J Norman. Recent blog posts Banul: the most popular yarn store in Seoul I-Cord Bind Off Tutorial Adding a Double Knit Band to Prevent Rolling Hems in Sweater Knitting Duotone Sweater: a knitting journal Classes and Lessons Beginner Knitting Class - February 2026 Read More Starts Feb 21 100 US dollars $100 Loading availability... Loading availability... Book Now Private Knitting Lesson Read More 1 hr 30 US dollars $30 Request to Book Popular knitting patterns Quick View Pattern PDF Felix and Felici Fox Price $5.00 Save 20% on Cooksmarts meal plans I've used them for years! It's how I manage to make healthy and delicious meals on a budget, while saving mental energy. See my favorite meals here Here's some books I like Purchase on bookshop.org if you'd like to help support independent bookstores instead of Amazon. My reading recommendations Shop KnitPicks.com They have the best selection of quality yarn and knitting tools for affordable prices. Shop here

Discover the benefits of knitting with Becca J Norman. Learn techniques, reduce stress, and create cherished items. Simple living and a lot of knitting Make quality items that will be loved for generations, while enjoying all the benefits that knitting can offer. Reduce your screen time by keeping your hands engaged, and nurture meaningful relationships with the people you love. Upcoming Classes Learn to Knit Beginner Register Now Check out these recent Blog posts Knitting Patterns Quick View Pattern PDF Felix and Felici Fox Price $5.00 Quick View Pattern PDF Master of Scarves Price $3.00 Quick View Pattern PDF Santiago Serape Price $5.00 Quick View Pattern PDF Football plushie Price $2.00