Combine hand and machine knitting for faster, better results. Learn when to switch, what to knit by hand, and how to adapt patterns to your machine.
The speed and precision of machine knitting are what attract many knitters. Whether you have a huge stash of yarn or endless project ideas, machine knitting helps you bring them to life—faster.
While you don't need to be a hand knitter to succeed at machine knitting, hand knitters bring some valuable skills to the table:
Consider knitting the fun stuff by hand and the boring stuff by machine. A round yoke sweater is a perfect example—hand knit the yoke, then work the body and sleeves on the machine. You’ll wear the sweater in a fraction of the time.
If you don’t have a ribber, hand knitting ribbing is a great option. Want to add garter or seed stitch? Instead of re-forming stitches on the machine, knit those sections by hand.
Even if you don’t hand knit, you can still draw inspiration from hand knitting patterns. Few designers write patterns for machine knitting—but that doesn’t mean you’re out of luck.
Hybrid knitting gives you the best of both worlds. Use your machine for speed and consistency, and your hands for finesse and detail. There’s no right or wrong way—just knit what brings you joy!
Not at all. Many successful machine knitters never pick up needles. But if you do hand knit, your understanding of stitch construction and finishing techniques can be a big help.
Absolutely! Many knitters call this hybrid knitting. Hand-knit ribbing, yokes, or garter edges pair beautifully with machine-knit bodies and sleeves.
Speed and even tension are major advantages. Machine knitting lets you produce garments faster and often with more consistent results than hand knitting.
Many are! With a few tweaks and a bit of translation, you can adapt hand knitting patterns for your machine using tools like the Knit it Now Machine Knit-Able series.
No problem—hand knit the ribbing and hang it on your machine to continue. Many knitters do just that!
Swatching is the only way to match gauge. Change your hand knitting needle size or your machine carriage tension and swatch.
Most times I will hand knit the rib. It is a personal decision. Depending on the yarn, I think hand knit rib forms better rib. I do the neckline, hem and cuffs.
I love the idea of doing the fun stuff by hand and the boring stuff quickly in the machine. I have discovered some really nice hand knit patterns over the last year. Since my preferred machine is the LK150, I can't match the pattern close to a punchcard, and I don't want to hand manipulate already knitted purl stitch(es). I never thought to knit the pattern, or multicolor sections, which is fun by hand, and then use the machine. I just did the ribbing by hand. If I did a pattern stitch, I would only use it on the bottom 2/3 or top 1/3 of the sweater or cardi because I like a mix. I could then hang on the machine before or after that section. Cool.
Thanks for this helpful and inspiring blog post!
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