Knitting Jargon

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Frequently in my knitting posts, I use knitting acronyms, slang, and terms. I thought I would list them here for readers who are nonknitters.

  1. Circular: two, shorter needles (made out of bamboo, metal, or wood) attached to one another with a cable
  2. DPN: double-pointed needles
  3. FO: finished object
  4. HFO: half-finished object
  5. K2tog: knit-two-together, knitting two stitches together through their front loops
  6. KAL: knit-a-long
  7. KIP: knit in public
  8. LYS: local yarn store
  9. NAKNISWEMO: National Knit a Sweater Month; read about it here.
  10. OOAK: one of a kind
  11. Ravelry: a FB-like site for those who crochet, dye yarn, knit, spin yarn, weave yarn where you can join groups, keep track of your needles and yarn, and note down the details of each project
  12. RS: right side that’s shown to the public
  13. SABLE: stash acquisition beyond life expectancy
  14. SEX: stash enhancement experience (buying yarn)
  15. US needle sizes: needle sizes are listed in the American standard and in the metric system (millimeters)
  16. WIP: work in progress
  17. WS: wrong side that lays against one’s body
  18. YO: yarn over, bringing the yarn over the left needle once like getting onto a horse and sitting in the saddle