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Machine Knitting
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Machine knitting is basically what it says on the can-knitting is done on an actual machine! There are a lot of types of knitting machines ranging from the simple non-mechanical, which use elbow grease (that's you!) -to the highly complex and electronic, which can be very expensive. Whichever method of machine knitting you use will provide various types of knitted fabrics, usually either flat or tubular and can be of varying degrees of complexity if you wish.
When thinking about knitting machines , we automatically think of the big heavy duty noisy mechanical ones, but other things such as knitting boards or knitting looms are classed as a knitting machine too did you know? The mechanical knitting machine produces a fabric of a more even texture than with hand knitted fabric which is really noticeable on large areas of plain stockinette stitch and can be an advantage.
It is also much quicker to produce garments on a knitting machine, so if you have a quota to fill, or a deadline to reach, perhaps a machine knitting could be what you need to do? Some stitch patterns, such as tucks stitch are much easier to produce with a knitting machine but others, such as garter stitch, can take a little longer to produce but are still much faster than hand knitting. The standard gauge 200 needle machine can knit the finest yarns while the heavier yarns knit better on a mid gauge or bulky knitting machine.
Although machine knitting saves a considerable amount of time, it does take the fun and enjoyment out of hand knitting. It also requires the knitter to learn to operate the machinery correctly. Nearly all hand knitting patterns can be worked up on a machine and it is possible to even link up your machine to a computer to design patterns of your own!
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