Continental, American or Both?

[debbiecakes]

Just out of curiousity, how does everyone knit?

I am continental knitting a super bulky queen-king sized blanket.
I am American knitting two different sport scarves.

For me:
Continental Style = loose, relaxed and quick.
American Style = Tight, tense and slooooow.

The super bulky blanket looks great but when I tried the sport weighted scarves, they ended up looking sloppy so I started over with the American style. Just a quick comparison, I casted on 12 when I started with continental but when I switched to American I had to cast on 26.

I've been knitting off and on for years but I still consider myself to be a novice. Fingers-crossed, with more practice my continental will shape up so I can ditch the American style. Over all I prefer continental because of speed, ease to switch from knitting/purling, and it feels more comfortable in my hands. :)

Comments

[eruanna]

I started out English style (self-taught, from a book) but switched to Continental after about a year. It feels more natural to me. I have hand and joint pain, and picking is much more comfortable for me.

Continental knitting was easy to learn; purling was awkward at first, but experimenting with a few different methods helped me find a comfortable style. Now, my hands don't get tired as quickly, and I don't aggravate my joints.