Crocheting and knitting are NOT the same thing.
Yes, they share a lot of similarities—including the fact that both crafts involve using yarn to create awesome handmade items—but they have a number of significant differences which set them apart.
In today’s post, we’ll discuss the KEY differences and similarities between these two crafts…and tell you which one is easier and faster to learn/do.
Similarities:
Let’s start with the similarities between the two crafts…
1. Both crocheting and knitting require you to have the same skillsets. These include hand-eye coordination, affinity for fiber, an eye for color as well as design, ability to plan your project from start to finish
2. Both of them involve the use of fiber or yarn to create similar types of items like sweaters, wraps, blankets, shawls, scarves afghans, mittens, hats, socks, to name but a few.
3. Knitters and crocheters usually work from patterns and make use of abbreviations. In some cases, you’ll find that some abbreviations used by both parties are the same.
4. Whether you’re stitching or knitting, you’ll enjoy the same list of health benefits. These include relieving depression, building up your self-esteem, relieving your anxiety, reducing/postponing dementia, helps with grief processing, you can knit/crochet through insomnia, among others.
5. For you to be successful in both crafts, patience is critical. This will help you to keep working stitch after stitch until you complete your project.
Differences:
1. The tools required. When it comes to the supplies needed to work on any project successfully, you’ll find that the two requires varying tools sets.
In the crocheting case, you just need to use only one crochet hook of your preferred size. No needles are used here. Besides, you’ll work on your crocheting project by hand from start to finish, instead of using a machine.
Up to now, it has been impossible to duplicate the intricate crochet movements, which explains why no one has been able to come up with a crochet machine.
Knitting, on the other hand, requires you to use the pointy knitting needle. These needles usually come in various types and in a set of two (though this isn’t always the case).
Apart from hand knitting, you can also opt to work on your projects with a machine knitter or loom knitter. You’ll come across small machines which you can use to knit i-cord socks or other smaller projects. You’ll also come across larger machines for knitting larger items like sweaters, garments, etc.
There are also extra-large circular machines usually used for mass production in the garments industry.
2. Type of Yarn Used. Though there are numerous types of yarns that can be used in both crocheting and knitting, it’s worth noting that there are some yarns which work better for one craft than the other.
Generally, the thread is reserved for the tiny crochet needles and isn’t popular in knitting.
3. Structural appearance of the final products. You’ll also be fascinated to discover that there exist some significant structural differences between the two crafts.
The two crafts involve manipulation of yarn. In weft knitting (something close to crocheting), the loops are usually build upon each other in such a way that multiple active loops get held on the needles. Each stitch then relies on the support of stitches below it.
With the traditional crocheting, there’s usually one or a few loops at a time. The stitches typically build on top of each other, with the active loop remaining as the only spot from which the fabrics gets susceptible to unraveling.
Overall, knitting will unravel more than crocheting. Frogging is quite easier in crocheting than I in knitting.