Do you knit?

[kinetickid]

I'm learning to knit (my New Year's Resolution for 2011). Does anyone here knit?

[zibazinski]

I took a class and tried to learn. Guess it was like Algebra, you either get it or you don't.

[chiver78]

I did....I've thought about getting back into it. crocheting is so much less structured (read: pretty but lazy) and I've fallen into that instead. hope you enjoy though. it's all good stuff!

[whoisjohngalt]

I pretend to. I know the basics and even made a few items - sweater for DS1 (that is kind of falling apart) and two vests for my mom, but I need a LOT of hand-holding and unfortunately the amazing ladies who were doing that for me are in a different state than I am now. So, I only see them when I go back to visit my family, which is why I have been knitting a sweater for myself since June and probably won't finish it until the next time I am in MD.

Lena

[Deleted]

my wife knits.. I tried once and ended up with a piece of yarn along the length of which were strange and misshapen knots.

[The Walk of the Penguin Mich]

Yep, I knit. I used to knit a lot when I was younger and would knock out a couple sweaters each winter. When I moved to TX, it was too hot to knit so never really got back into it until recently.

[kinetickid]

Mich, I live in southern California, though there's a chance we're moving in a few months, so I, too, am concerned about making too many unnecessary sweaters. But I really love sweaters, and anything knitted.

I picked up a few things at Michaels and taught myself fairly quickly. The book I purchased turned out to be useless (e.g., take the piece of yarn connected to the ball...well, it's ONE piece of yarn! It's ALL connected to the ball!!!), so I found a website online. I did several rows of "cast ons" and knit stitches, then unraveled them and started over. At this point, I have those few basics down, and the knitting looks smooth and regular and pretty.

Do you have any recommendations for simple, beginner-level projects that aren't scarves? I mean, I'm more than happy to knit a scarf--I purchased four skeins of beautiful yarn to make one--but other projects would be appreciated.

For me, it's not entirely about knitting sweaters. I'm a fairly high-strung kind of chick and could use something meditative to calm down. Plus, I really am naturally creative and good with my hands. I think I could be a good knitter.

Any advice?

[Sam_2.0]

I like to crochet. Blankets are great projects to work on. Baby blankets, throws, bed-sized blankets. Hats are fun too. And, if you make baby blankets & hats, they can be donated to your local NICU.

Ravelry.com is a great site for knitting & crochet. There are a ton of different projects, and instructions on how to do the different stitches.

[The Walk of the Penguin Mich]

LOL....a coworker introduced me to ravelry. She also introduced me to a couple other web sites for purchasing yarn.

I'm a tactile person and there's a yarn shop in TD's town, across the street from his office. When I'd go to pick him up, he knew that that's where I'd be. At this point, I have to severely limit myself to purchases from there, I could do a lot of damage in very little time!

[seriousthistime]

Lately I have been knitting scarves for the Special Olympics. I don't knit all the time, but lately I've been doing more of it. I have nieces and nephews that are having babies and I love knitting blankets for them. When my sister and I were pregnant at the same time I knitted a few things for each of them (like buntings and such). Years ago I knitted hats and mittens and, of course, scarves. I knitted large Christmas stockings for all of us.

My son's girlfriend is an excellent knitter. My daughter-in-law knits and got my other son into it. He (a mathematician) is knitting a math-based scarf design he devised that only other mathematicians would appreciate! My daughter is now starting to get into it. All of them have very little time in their busy lives (son and daughter are grad/med students), but they knit for relaxation and the creative outlet.

I will have a look at ravelry. I've found YouTube is pretty good at online tutorials for the how-to of various knitting techniques. And there are so many free patterns on the Internet. It's great!

[Deleted]

I recommend finding a local independent yarn shop to learn to knit - not a big box craft store, but a local shop. They will probably have classes and drop in knitting nights where you can go to get the hang of things.

And then, join ravelry so the obsession can really take hold.

[DVM gone riding]

I knit some-my mother and Gma do a lot right now I am working on a pray shawl, it is really easy and pretty. you start with three stiches and every single row after the first you add one.

[dancinmama]

I would love to learn to crochet, but I have carpel tunnel syndrome so I rather doubt I'd be able to really do anywhere with it. I know a lady that would teach me, but I'm thinking that it would be a waste of her time.

[Deleted]

I knit. I'm pretty committed to it - I knit with a group of women every week at a local yarn shop. It's nice to have something to do with my hands when I'm watching tv with DH.

Most knit patterns are labeled easy, intermediate, hard. I'd start with something for your DD - a cute sweater, scarf, or dress. I knit a sweet pumpkin hat for DS. They are small projects but have everything in them - seaming, decreasing, etc - that you would do in a large project. Also when you have to pull out a few rows because of a mistake it's not quite as bad!

Many yarn shops are partnered with local police departments - you knit cute sweaters, vests and hats for the stuffed animals that the police give to scared children on their calls. My yarn shop provides yarn for free for those type of projects.

[sarcasticgirl]

i've never learned to knit, but my mother taught me to crochet when i was about 10 or so. I never did too much as a child but when I was visiting home over christmas, I picked it up again. I've crocheted two scarves so far (mostly just as practice), but the yarn is acrylic and clearly not too cozy.

I'd be interested in trying something beyond a scarf, but i need to find a nicer feeling yarn.

[chiver78]

sarcasticgirl, I've used Red Heart yarn for more granny-square afghans than I can count. it's warm and sturdy, and the twist colors don't have a dye lot.

[sarcasticgirl]

chiver,
The yarn i just started a new learning project is Red Heart. It's not as bad as the yarn i started with, that's for sure!

[Deleted]

I was thinking about taking a class at Joann's or ACmoore, but their $35 bucks... NO WAY. I'll watch a video on Utube for FREE~

[speechchick71]

Jan 16, 2011 11:37:56 GMT -5 seriousthistime said:

Lately I have been knitting scarves for the Special Olympics.

I crocheted 3 scarves for Special Olympics this year. I need to send them out on Tuesday...thanks for the reminder!

I learned to crochet from Debbie Stoller's "Stitch and Bitch"...very easy to follow and full of good information. My friend got the one for knitting and she said the same thing. I find it very relaxing too. Recently I have been making snowflakes because they are quick and easy (except for the thin string and small hook): If I have 45 minutes, I can get one done.

A local yarn shop is a huge help plus they will have some really nice yarns for projects!

[Deleted]

I knit and crochet exclusively scarfs... We have tons of scarves, in all colors, and my family would like me to stop now... or learn something new...

[kinetickid]

Jan 16, 2011 9:40:18 GMT -5 @sroo4 said:

For any knitters and crocheters out there, I highly recommend ravelry. It is the hands down biggest and best resource for fiber crafts. They have a database for free patterns as well as over a million users who can and will help with patterns and learning if you get stuck.

It's free, and they have pretty strict rules about spam and soliciting... www.ravelry.com/

You know what's funny, yesterday I referred a knitter from ravelry to these boards.... talk about karma

ETA: oops, I see I was beat out by a fellow raveler.

Thanks for the rec, y'all! I signed up. It looks like a great site. I've already found several projects I want to do, including a bag that I think could be a great summer project; after all, who needs a wool scarf in the summer here in SoCal?

[kinetickid]

Jan 16, 2011 12:12:03 GMT -5 DVM gone riding said:

I knit some-my mother and Gma do a lot right now I am working on a pray shawl, it is really easy and pretty. you start with three stiches and every single row after the first you add one.

Like, a tallis?

[kinetickid]

Jan 16, 2011 17:02:37 GMT -5 @anne81 said:

I knit. I'm pretty committed to it - I knit with a group of women every week at a local yarn shop. It's nice to have something to do with my hands when I'm watching tv with DH.
quote]

I found a couple local groups who get together, but I'm almost too embarrassed to join; after all, I'm just a newbie.

I do have an independent yarn shop right up the road from me (and, fortunately, right across the street from Starbucks ). I think I might check them out soon.

[cael]

Nothing wrong with being a n00b! Knitters are usually nice & will help you out if you need it.

I knit, sometimes too much I learned at 6 back in Waldorf school, and picked it up again about a year ago. All I knew was the basics and I've been slowly teaching myself more via youtube & books and experimentation... I do hats, scarves, wrist warmers. Going to learn socks & mittens soon, then move on to garments!

Be careful about yarn - I've become a yarn hoarder :/ before you know it you'll have a huge stash of yarn you'll likely never use, and not want to horrify yourself by adding up what you spent on it.

[seriousthistime]

The stockpile of yarn is an issue, but every so often I fill a paper grocery bag with it and send it into school with my friend who's an elementary school teacher. She puts it in the teachers' lounge and it's gone in a flash.

I have to send in my Special Olympics scarves tomorrow, too. Since I bought two skeins of both colors and will probably not use even one skein of each for the two I've committed to, I'm thinking of committing to do more scarves for some states that have later submission deadlines.

[The Walk of the Penguin Mich]

When I lived in Boston, I could knock out a couple sweaters each season. Then I moved to TX and quite frankly, it was just too hot to knit. To knit well, the yarn needs to move through your fingers smoothly and if your hands are the least bit sweaty, it becomes difficult to knit with an even gauge.

Another one of my issues is that if I am going to put the work into something, I am NOT going to use a shoddy product. Good yarn is expensive and many times, the wool for a sweater can cost a lot more than what you'd pay for a decent sweater at the store.

I'm thinking that since I'll be sitting on my tail for the next 6 weeks or so, this might be the time to start another big project.....

[Sam_2.0]

The Caron Simply Soft yarns are acrylic, but much softer than the Red Heart. Walmart has started to carry it, and Michaels does too. I think its $3.50-ish per skein. Not bad.

[seriousthistime]

Sam, I agree about the Caron's Simply Soft. They are very soft, almost silky, and have a gorgeous sheen to them. It is the only yarn I've used for baby blankets. I love their pink and their soft blue! The last time I bought some, Michael's had it for $2.50 per skein.

[mtlaura]

boy, do I knit! if I'm sittin, I'm knittin learned about 40 years ago, picked back up out of necessity--son in basketball, and I didn't want to be yelling at the refs. Of course, you could always tell what I thought of the officiating by the speed of my knitting. Ran out at a game one time--son looked at DH and said we were stopping for yarn on the way home!

For the newbies, or even those who've been at it a while, check out knittingdailyTV.com--they do a weekly program on PBS, and the website has videos of just about any technique. Just because you don't get it with one, try another. I agree with the You-Tube comment. Even try checking out those from the other side of the pond--just be aware that the English knitters have an entirely different vocabulary. Personally, I'm a picker, but started out throwing yarn (right handed pickers hold yarn in the left hand, and throwers hold it in the right). So, I'm still learning. See a knitter in public--just ask! it's not a competition...

Dancinmama--there are crochet hooks made specifically for those with carpel--is your carpel only in one arm? If so, you might look for a left-handed crocheter to learn from--that way, you'd only be holding your yarn/project in your right hand (I'm assuming you're right-handed). I tend to get a cramp in my right hand if I'm at it a while (and yes, I can spend 6+ hours a day knitting), so I use circular needles for most of my projects--the curve of the needle fits into my palm better and reduces both the cramps and those elbow wings that knitters sometimes develop!

[Deleted]

I found a couple local groups who get together, but I'm almost too embarrassed to join; after all, I'm just a newbie.

Read more: notmsnmoney.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=wir&action=display&thread=1679&page=1#ixzz1BM2mUD6v

They'll be glad to have you! Honestly it's much nicer to be one of the few newbies in a group - the more experienced people will have time to help you with your project. I'm the youngest one in our knitting group by far so I'm kind of their pet. It's been a blast for me because they are mostly older women with lots of different experiences and backgrounds - it's pretty fascinating to talk with them.

I love knitpicks! They have the cutest kits - I bought two to make Christmas ornaments with.