Knitting and crocheting and two different activities, but due to their similarities, people usually compare the two with each other. That’s why it wouldn’t be the strangest thing if you can actually put them together.
So, can you mix knitting and crochet?
Interestingly enough, you can mix knitting and crochet. But of course, there are a few things you need to know and do. Otherwise, you would just make a mess out of your knitting project.
With that said, in this guide, we’ll take a look at a few things you need to know in order to add knitting to crochet work successfully and seamlessly or even crochet to a knitting project. For starters, it would help if you understand why one would want to mix these two different textile work methods in the first place.
Why Would You Want to Mix Knitting and Crochet?
Apart from the difference in tools, knitting and crochet also differ in terms of technique and capability.
Put simply, some of the things you can do with crochet are incredibly difficult to do if you were to use knitting techniques. Similarly, things you can do with knitting might be difficult if you use a crochet hook.
For example, if you’re a long-time knitter, you might be familiar with the difficulty of knitting circles. Not only are circles difficult to knit, but the result is also not great. On the other hand, if you’re a long-time crocheter, that particular problem might not be familiar since circles are relatively easy to crochet.
That’s why although it’s not common, there are knitters who’d incorporate crochet if they want circles on their garments. More specifically, they’d use a crochet hook instead of a knitting needle to add the circles.
In other words, the main idea behind mixing knitting and crochet is to add elements that are much easier to accomplish with a crochet hook. It’s not much of a hassle or time-consuming either since you don’t really need to master crocheting or knitting in order to incorporate them into your project.
If you want to add circles to your knitting project, for instance, you just need to learn how to crochet circles. There’s no need to go beyond that, as you can easily crochet circles without learning the basics.
This also leads us to a relatively common question.
Which Is Faster, Knitting or Crocheting?
As you begin to incorporate knitting to crochet or crochet to knitting, you’ll notice that it takes a little bit of getting used to. After all, while both are similar textile work techniques, they also have several differences.
One of the most apparent differences is their speed.
To be precise, crocheting is much faster than knitting. That’s why if you want to add circles to your knitting project using a crochet hook, your pace would usually pick up, and you’ll progress faster.
There are two main reasons why crocheting is faster than knitting.
Connecting Loops
With knitting, you have to make sure the previous loop is connected to the next. In other words, you must spend a bit more time connecting the loops together. With crochet work, however, the loops are independent of each other, so you don‘t have to spend time connecting the previous loop to the next.
Longer Stitches
Crochet stitches are typically longer or taller than knitting stitches. That means each stitch would cover more ground, and therefore, you’ll need to make fewer stitches when it comes to crochet projects.
Let’s say you need to knit around 50 centimeters of fabric. On average, you need to knit three stitches per centimeter since knitting stitches aren’t that long. In total, you would need to make 150 stitches (50 x 3).
Since crochet stitches are a little bit longer, you may need just two stitches per centimeter. So, in that same instance, you only need to crochet 100 stitches. And this lower number also equals lower time necessary.
For these reasons, an item that would’ve taken a week to knit can very easily be crocheted in just a day or two. Though, of course, crocheting won’t always be faster than knitting. If you’re incredibly skilled at knitting, for example, you can progress faster in your knitting project than another person can crochet.
How Do You Add Crochet to Knitting?
Transitioning from crochet to knitting is typically easier because your crochet work would almost always have stitches to work into without putting in the extra effort. As such, it’s easier to put the knitting needle.
Here’s how the transition basically goes:
As you finish the final row of the crochet pattern, you must turn the garment and remove your crochet hook from the active loop. Now, you can very easily put your needle into the loop, and from that point, all that’s left is to transition to knitting. Of course, if knitting is relatively new to you, it may seem confusing.
What you basically need to do is stick the needle into the stitch, wrap the yarn, and pull it through. You must then continue doing that. People often find it confusing since they assume the knitting process would be different from what it normally is. However, if you reach the point where you have to knit, you just have to knit as if your crochet work was always a knitting project. The process is similar when it’s the opposite.
How Do You Add Knitting to Crochet?
Transitioning from knitting to crochet is much harder since you don’t immediately have a stitch where the crochet hook can go into. You must create that stitch yourself, and that stitch would be a bind-off.
A bind-off in knitting is when you bind off stitches at the end of the row. It’s similar to when you tie off the thread after you finish sewing. A bind-off secures the yarn or stitches to prevent them from unraveling.
To transition from knitting to crochet, you must first create a bind-off. Make sure the bind-off is looser than usual. For that, it’s advisable to set the size to one or two needle sizes bigger than the knitting needle you’ve been using up until now. In doing so, the crochet hook can fit in the loop more comfortably
Once that’s done, pull out the knitting needles from the active loop, then insert the crochet hook. Then, just like before, continue the project using the crochet hook as if it was a crochet project in the first place.
FAQs About Can You Mix Knitting and Crochet
Can You Transition Several Times in One Project?
Yes, it’s actually possible to start from knitting, then transition to crocheting, then back to knitting. Of course, you may encounter an issue along the way, but in theory, it’s possible to pull that off.
It’s also worth noting that the more times you transition from knitting to crochet and crochet to knitting, the higher chance the project would be jumbled. So, as always, while it’s possible, do it in moderation.
Can You Crochet and Knit With the Same Yarn?
If you do both crochet and knitting, you may have noticed that the fabric used for crochet and the fabric used for knitting vary in thickness. As such, it makes sense that it would be difficult to crochet and knit with the same fabric or yarn. To put it in perspective, crochet fabrics are often thicker than knitting fabrics.
That’s why crocheted sweaters are typically denser than knit sweaters. Similarly, it becomes a bit more difficult for the stitches to move against each other when you transition from knitting to crochet.
The good news is you can still crochet and knit with the same yarn despite this issue. But what you need to do, or at least what’s advisable, is when you transition to crochet, make sure you choose a crochet hook that is one or two sizes higher than the knitting needle size you’ve been using up until now.
Can You Knit With Two Different Yarns?
Yes, you can knit with two different yarns. In fact, it’s a legitimate and rather common technique among long-time knitters called double-strand. Not only is it doable, but it also gives your garment a really nice effect and texture. Though admittedly, it’ll be a bit more difficult than just using one type of yarn.
Wrapping Up
Can you mix knitting and crochet? This is a question many knitters are bound to ask, whether they want to make your project easier or you just want to mix things up a bit. Just as you’ve learned, it’s possible to mix the two, but it’ll take some skill to do so. However, if you manage to combine these two crafts, you can expect to have an easier time with your future projects.
If you want to further challenge yourself, you might be interested in our blog — What Is the Hardest Thing to Knit?
