Knitting on the Cheap

It's no secret: knitting is seriously not cheap. In fact, one might browse through some delicious-looking Noro sock yarn at $13 and call knitting downright dangerous, especially when one discovers that $13 is about average for a good sock yarn. And most socks need two skeins for a whole pair! Outrageous!

But there is hope out there for new knitters trying to get started on a tight budget. Sure, your more well-off knitting friends might be showing off their $34/skein (!!!) lace-weight yarn, and maybe you're feeling inadequate about your own measly stash. What you need is some reassurance, in the form of the following list:

What you need:

1. Quality tools. There are dozens and dozens of different kinds of knitting needles, and they all seem very different. In fact, they are all so different that I cannot tell you what kind of needles to get. This will depend on you. I would recommend going to an LYS (local yarn store) if there's one nearby, and chatting up the owner about your intentions with fiber. He or she should be able to help you select a few sets of needles that will be best for the kinds of things you want to make. Then, when they inevitably pull out the needles you will need, buy them. Trust me, it is a good idea to support your local yarn store, and if you're on a budget you probably won't be able to purchase a whole lot of yarn there.

If you have no LYS nearby, get to a knitting forum online (my favorite is www.ravelry.com) and ask! Announce what you want to make, and you will inevitably get a lot of really excellent responses. The Ravelry group is very helpful and can be an extremely useful resource (yeah, they'll show up a couple more times on this list).

When you finally decide to purchase your needles, spare as little expense as you can. Really...cheap knitting needles will break, and companies that make cheap knitting needles will not replace them. However, most of the more high-end companies that manufacture needles do have an excellent replacement policy, often on your word alone. Do your research and take advantage of the best needle - not just the best deal.

Alternately, you can make your own knitting needles using inexpensive dowel rods from your local hardware store. Here is a great tutorial for knitting needle construction using dowel rods and polymer clay. This could be extremely beneficial if you are patient, good with your hands, and currently not too concerned about the gauge of your needles.

2. Yarn. Yeah, you can't really get around that one, can you? Without yarn, your needles get very sad and lonely, so it's best to feed them a healthy supply on a regular basis. Head on into your LYS again, take a look around, feel the yarns if they'll let you (hey, some places don't!), and get an idea in your head of the kind of fiber content and yarn weight you like. Then, look at the prices and back away sloooowly. At some point, there may be a need to go to the LYS to purchase very nice, expensive yarn for a specific project, but for normal, everyday use, LYS yarn is very, very rich.

Do NOT head directly to your local big-box craft store. Sure, the prices might be better, but the yarn quality is often lacking, and nobody wants rough, scratchy yarn to knit with.

Instead, go to any one of the following websites:
-www.elann.com - This site sells patterns, tools, books, and best of all yarn at a steeply discounted rate. It typically picks up discontinued colorways from hot brands, so it has a limited number of skeins to begin with, but with prices ranging from $1.57 for basic cotton sport weight yarn to $7.00 for high-end luscious Alpaca, you simply cannot beat it with a stick. The selection is outstanding, and includes some of elann's own brand, which is very nice yarn as well.

-www.knitpicks.com - Knit Picks is notorious for their "Free Shipping" policy - all you have to do is load up with $50 worth of yarn, and spare yourself an additional $10-15 for shipping! Now, considering that shipping yarn can get pretty expensive, this is definitely a good deal. Knit Picks doesn't have outrageously low prices, but the yarn is very solid and dependable, the colorways are gorgeous, their selection is widely varied, and they're just an all-around crowd-pleaser. You'll never have to be embarrassed with Knit Picks in your stash.

-www.smileysyarn.com - Here's another potential threat to your financial well-being: Smiley's Yarns Online Store has a pretty good selection of discontinued yarns, and most of them cost between $1 and $3 per skein. The catch? There is a minimum order of $50. The bad news is, you have to spend at least $50 to shop there. The good news is, you could come out of it with 50 skeins of yarn, which would be an excellent boost to anyone's poorly-faring stash.

-www.yarn-and-threadbylisa.biz - Yarn and Thread by Lisa does not have a particularly pretty or easy-to-navigate website. What they do have, however, is unbelievable deals on well-known brands such as Red Heart, Lion Brand, Patons, and Sugar 'n Cream. They stock beautiful colorways, and the prices are, again, truly excellent. They even have a "garage sale" section in which they sell the "last chance" items. Be sure to check out their other craft sections such as quilting, embroidery, and sewing notions.

-www.discountyarnsale.com - At first glance, the $30 and $50 price tags on some of these yarns may seem gut-wrenching - until you discover that these are the prices for whole bags of yarn, anywhere from 6 to 10 skeins. It's sort of like wholesale shopping without the 100-skein minimum purchase required. I personally can't think of a better way to go about shopping for yarn if you have a large project ahead of you, such as a blanket or a long-sleeved sweater.

Additionally, go ahead and try your local Freecycle - I posted a message asking for free yarn, and got a response within 24 hours. You never know what people may have lying around that they don't want to use. Get involved in some knitting communities, both online and off, so you can be involved in any "destashing" that people need to do occasionally. Try ebay, but be smart about what you bid on - a lot of people have been overcharging on shipping and mis-representing the materials they have for sale.

Finally, in the spirit of "upcycling," try using clothing and other household fabrics for knitting material. Handknit sweaters can make excellent fodder for harvested yarn (simply do a search for "recycled yarn" to get a plethora of handy tutorials!), and t-shirts, sheets, extra fabric, even plastic grocery sacks can be cut into strips and knit into all kinds of interesting and fashionable items. Be creative!

3. Patterns and How-To Guides. Please, please, for the love of all that is knitting, do NOT pay for patterns! There are hundreds upon hundreds upon thousands of free patterns all over the Internet, and there is NO reason, unless you see something you simply must have, to pay for any of them! My two favorite places to go for patterns are: www.ravelry.com and www.knittingpatterncentral.com - both excellent and heavily-laden resources for free ideas and patterns.

4. Stitch markers. Actually, your need for stitch markers depends entirely on whether or not your pattern calls for using them. Stitch markers can be exceptionally handy in patterns that require many increases in the same spot, or for marking the beginning of a round. They keep you from needing to count your stitches every single time, and can generally be very useful, life-saving devices.

Do not buy stitch markers that people make and sell. It would be very nice to support the people who make them, and yes, it would be very nice to have pretty, beaded, sparkly stitch markers to use. And if that's important to you, beaded stitch markers aren't really all that expensive. But, if you're looking to save every penny you possibly can, you can feel free to use paper clips. Or binder clips. Or tiny bits of yarn tied into a small circle.

Or you can count the stitches if you want.

5. Patience. When browsing for yarn, whether you're online, at the LYS, or at a big-box craft store, it can be tempting to walk away with every pretty thing you touch. I am not exaggerating. Very, very tempting. However, just as with all other products, yarn cycles in and out of sales. Get on some mailing lists and keep an eye on the market. Shop around, and don't limit your loyalties to one location. Diversity is the key to success, and it is the key to success when shopping for cheap yarn. Exercise patience, and it almost certainly will be rewarded, regularly, and with great satisfaction.