For visual learners, watching a video or someone live demonstrating a technique can be a lot more helpful that reading about that technique in a book or on a website. Such is certainly the case when it comes to learning how to knit, and the Knitting Korner DVD "Learn the Continental Style of Knitting with Nenah Galati" aims to help visual learners with the ins and outs of casting on, knitting, purling and binding off in the continental style.
While the DVD could have been a bit more polished, it's still a fine way for beginners to learn the basics and have a reference to refer to whenever they need it.
Knitting Philosophy
In the introduction to the DVD, Galati explains her philosophy that "the pleasure is in the process" when it comes to knitting and "whatever works for you is what you should do."
There's no right and wrong way to knit here, she's merely showing you the method that works for her.
This DVD is well suited to people who have never knit before or who are very new knitters. It spends a good amount of time going through the basic variations on a simple Garter Stitch scarf and a rolled brim hat using different kinds of novelty yarns and worked in different sizes.
She describes the basic materials needed to practice continental knitting -- size 8 US knitting needles and medium weight yarn -- as well as the basic tools like a tape measure, stitch markers and other things you might want to keep in a knitting bag nearby as you work.
Knitting Tutorials
The video covers the long tail cast on, knitting, purling and binding off, as well as providing an overview of three projects: a Garter Stitch scarf, a hat knit in the round in Stockinette Stitch, and a washcloth/dishcloth worked in Garter Stitch with yarn over increases and knit two together decreases.
It has good closeups on the action and she shows the same procedure repeatedly to help viewers grasp what's going on. It also illustrates some different ways to hold the yarn and form the stitches, which can be helpful for new knitters who don't feel comfortable using one method but also might not be confident enough to try something else on their own.
The DVD comes with a two-sided sheet of instructions to make the scarf, hat and cloth, but they're pretty short on details. They don't suggest how much yarn you might need for various sizes or even what a nice length and width for a scarf might be.
It would also be nice if the DVD included a project that incorporated purling, such as something with a bit of ribbing, so that students would have a chance to practice the purls more than just on a practice swatch.
For people who need to see what they're learning and want to watch a video over and over as they're learning, this DVD can be a valuable tool. Knitters who already know the basics (because they've been knitting English style for a while and want to learn continental) will want to skip the beginning chapters and just watch the sections on knitting and purling, making it slightly less useful for them.
