Twisted stitches: The most common beginning knitter's mistake

In talking to my various knitting friends over the years, it seems clear that of the most common mistakes for beginning knitters is knitting through the back loop (KTBL). This causes twisted stitches, uses up a lot more yarn than usual and creates a tight, almost awkward fabric that is inclined to bias (tilt to the side).

When you look at your knitting stitches on the left-hand needle, if your stitches are mounted correctly, the front leg of the stitch (the one to your right) should be in front of the needle (i.e. on the side facing you). The back leg of the stitch (the one to your left) should be behind the needle (i.e. on the side away from you).

If your stitches are mounted in the opposite fashion, with the front leg of the loop on the back of the needle, then your stitches are twisted.

Like many people, I only discovered I was doing it wrong when I finally encountered the knitting instruction to "knit through the back loop." I had been knitting for about six months at that point, and I was like, "What do you mean, through the back loop? That's how I always knit! Uh oh."

A slightly less common mistake is purling through the back loop. I have met a few knitters who were knitting properly (working the front loop, the one that is to your right) but were purling through the back loop. This creates a fabric where every other row is a line of twisted stitches. It is a much more insidious mistake, being more difficult to spot.

Whenever you work a stitch, unless the patterns specify otherwise, you should always be working the first leg of the stitch. This is the one which is closest to the end of the left-hand needle, and is to your right. It should also always be hanging off your side of the needle.

If something else is going on with your stitches, then my deepest sympathies!

Image courtesy Flickr/mollydot. In this picture, every other stitch is twisted to create a pattern. You can see the difference between the twisted and the "regular" stitches.