TINKING meaning: How to Unknit a Row

TINKING is a term used in knitting. Knitters have developed lots of interesting terminology that can seem cryptic to an outsider.

In this post you’ll learn what TINKING is and how it’s done!

TINK is KNIT spelled backwards! The term “tinking” is used when you have to unknit a bit of your project because you’ve found a mistake a few stitches or rows back.

Rather than rip out your entire project, TINKING is a method of slowly backing up and unknitting to the place where the mistake was made.

This video shows you how to TINK your knitting or how to unknit a row.

In the video am working a two by two basket weave stitch pattern. It includes both knits and purls. By watching the video you’ll learn how to undo both knit and purl stitches.

Here’s a recap of the video:

Hi Knitter! In today’s video, we are going to talk about what TINK is in knitting. Have you ever been knitting with someone or talking with someone and they said, “Oh, I had to tink my knitting.”

Well I’m going to tell you what that means.

Tink is actually knit spelled backwards. So in essence, you are unknitting.

Let’s say you come across a mistake that’s a row or two back in your knitting. It’s not far enough that you want to rip the whole thing out or rip back and have to pick up stitches. You just want to backup maybe a few stitches or a row.

What you’ll do is unknit.

I’m working on a 2 by 2 basket weave knitting pattern.

What I’m going to do is insert my needle into the last stitch that I worked.

Here’s the stitch that’s on the needle that I just made, but if I go in here it’s the row beneath it. You just slide that to the other needle and pull that previous stitch out. So you are going into the stitch that’s just below the stitch you just made and you are just backing up your knitting slowly.

Take your time with it so that you are not going into too many stitches below. It’s just that one right below that you’ll be going into.

Insert your needle and take that stitch off.

I’m going to back this up to the end so that you can see if you have to go to a previous row, what to do or what that looks like.

I have a few stitches left on this row. Now when you get to the end of the row, you’re going to need to turn your work just like you would if you were actually knitting it. Then you’ll continue with the same process.

That is how you tink your knitting! You’ve learned new knitting terminology and you have another technique to use.