slipknot

1. The slipknot becomes the first stitch. Hold the tail end of the yarn in your palm with your thumb. Wrap the yarn from the ball twice around your index and middle fingers.

2. Pull the strand attached to the ball through the loop between your two fingers, forming a new loop.

3. Place the new loop on the needle. Tighten it by pulling on both ends of the yarn to form the slipknot. To prepare for casting on, leave an extra-long tail when making the slipknot.

casting on

1. With a slipknot on the needle in your right hand, wind the tail end around your left thumb. Wrap yarn from the ball over your left index finger. Hold both ends in your palm.

2. Insert the needle upward in the loop on your thumb, then behind the loop on your index finger. Use the needle to draw the yarn up from the ball through the loop to form a stitch.

3. Take your thumb out of the loop and pull the tail end to tighten the stitch on the needle. Repeat steps 1 to 3 until the desired number of stitches is cast on.

making a knit stitch

1. The needle with the stitches is in your left hand, the first stitch near the tip. With the empty needle in your right hand, wrap the yarn around your fingers as shown. Insert the right needle from front to back into the first stitch on the left needle. Keep the right needle under the left needle and the yarn at the back.

2. Bring the yarn under and over the right needle, and pull it gently between the two needles. Use your right index finger to manipulate the yarn.

3. With the right needle, catch the yarn and pull it through the stitch on the left needle.

4. Slip the stitch off the left needle, leaving the new stitch on the right. Repeat steps 1 to 4 until all the new stitches are on the right needle.

the purl stitch

1. Hold the needle with the stitches in your left hand and the empty needle in your right hand. For the purl stitch, the yarn is held to the front of the work. Insert the right needle from back to front into the first stitch. The right needle is in front of the left needle, and the yarn is at the front of your work.

2. With your right index finger, wrap the yarn counterclockwise around the right needle, as shown.

3. Draw the right needle and yarn backwards through the stitch on the left needle, forming a loop on the right needle.

4. Slip the stitch off the left needle. Repeat steps 1 to 4 until all the new stitches are on the right needle.