KNITTING, the art of forming a single thread or strand of yarn into a texture or fabric of a loop structure, by employing needles or wires. Crochet work is an analogous art in its simplest form. It consists of forming a single thread into a single chain of loops. All warp knit fabrics are built on this structure. Knitting may be said to be divided into two principles, viz., (I ) hand knit ting and (2) frame-work knitting. (See HOSIERY.) In hand knit ting the wires, pins or needles used are of different lengths or gauges, according to the class of work wanted to be produced. They are made of steel, bone, wood or ivory. Some are headed to prevent the loops from slipping over the ends. Flat or sel vedged work can only be produced on them. Others are pointed at both ends, and by employing three or more a circular or cir cular-shaped fabric can be made. In hand knitting each loop is formed and thrown off individually and in rotation and is left hanging on the new loop formed. The cotton, wool and silk fibres are the principal materials from which knitting yarns are manu factured—wool being the most important and most largely used.
"Lamb's-wool," "wheeling," "fingering" and worsted yarns are all produced from the wool fibre, but may differ in size, or fineness and quality. Those yarns are largely used in the production of knitted undervvear. Hand knitting is to-day principally practised as a domestic art, but in some of the remote parts of Scotland and Ireland it is pursued as an industry to some extent. In the Shetland Islands the wool of the native sheep is spun and used in its natural colour, being manufactured into shawls, scarves, ladies' jackets, etc. The principal trade of other districts is hose and half hose, made from the wool of the sheep native to the district. The formation of the stitches in knitting may be varied in a great many ways, by "purling" (knitting or throwing loops to back and front in rib form), "slipping" loops, taking up and casting off and work ing in various coloured yarns to form stripes, patterns, etc. The articles may be shaped according to the manner in which the wires and yarns are manipulated.