Knit-Knack

By Holly Burnham

If you are a passionate knitter; you know who you are…..you are the person who, just for a fleeting second, wonder if it might be worth taking your knitting into the bathroom with you instead of a magazine. You are also the person who feels a smidgen guilty you spend too much time fondling yarn.

Recently there was a topic thread on a knitting forum I visit asking how much time we all spend knitting every day. I lied. It was a forum; I didn’t know any one personally on it….and I lied. I believe I recorded a quarter of the time I actually do knit every day. That was a clear cry for help.

That was also the day I started to think about my knitting passion and how it affects my life.

I am lucky enough to be a stay at home wife. My children are grown and have homes of their own, so I also have a lot more free time than I have had at any other point in my life.

You might think my house is clean, orderly and well run; that I make a point of keeping in touch with good friends; spend time nurturing my relationship with my children and projecting the essence of grandmothering onto my eight grandchildren by making and mailing them cookies as a treat. You’d think my husband would be greeted by a delicious home cooked meal every night when he came home from work and that my gardens are visual delights for neighbors who stroll by my yard. You’d think……but……I knit. I knit all the time. When I’m not knitting I’m reading about knitting, or I’m in knitting chat rooms talking about knitting.

I don’t know how many people out there might be quite as addicted as I am, but it’s a serious issue. If I were drinking or doing drugs there would be a number of well intended folks interested in stopping me and helping me to develop a more well balanced and productive life. But, I knit. It looks harmless. I sit in my rocker, and click needles. No apparent need for intervention. There appears to be no hope for a cure either.

I knit a few rows, leap up, put in a load of clothes in the washer, take the vacuum out of the closet and set it in the parlor….then, sit back down and knit. A few rows later I take the clothes out of the washer put them in the dryer and dust the parlor. The parlor gets vacuumed a couple of rows later. Now it’s mid-morning and I finally think about taking a shower and getting dressed, unless I’m turning a heel on a sock, which really can’t be interrupted. Exchange these chores for others and my days all pretty much follow this routine.

It is far worse in the warm months when I can sit on the screened porch or out on the patio….hours can pass. Also, during this period I am too far from the house to do any chores.

I have a knitting bag in the car for those long trips to the corner grocery store. I sat in a meeting last week in church trying to work up the courage to ask the minister if he really truly would find it vexing if I knitted during services on Sundays. If he were just going to be a little annoyed….well, then I think I might knit. After all, from time to time he annoys me too.

How do some knitters do it? How do they reasonably allot time to their knitting and maintain the rest of their lives appropriately? I have no will power or self discipline; to suggest I work this out on my own would be like expecting I’m only going to take one potato chip from the bag….right…..that’s going to happen.

If my Grandmother was right and we should always look for the silver lining, I do have to say, my husband and I have drawers full of wool socks for the winter, my grandchildren have warm sweaters in every imaginable color and style and even the cats have a hand knit wool pad in their bed.

The dust bunnies under the beds….well….does anyone know if they can be spun and knit?

Holly Burnham is a self admitted yarn addict. The addiction will be life long and there is no hope of remission. Her constant knitting has put the cleanliness of her home in peril. Her yarn stashes are havens for generations of moths. At the risk of contracting this affliction, visit her at http://www.knittinghaven.com

Article Source: Holly Burnham => I Am A Knitting Addict

By Alice Seidel

One of the things I love about knitting is that there is always something new to know about! So much information is out there, in magazines, knitting books, websites; it can become confusing very quickly if you don’t know just what is basic to your knitting needs.

After all, do you really need to know what brand of lighted knitting needles to purchase or which brand of silk yarn will knit up best with that advanced pattern you found, when you still want not-so-advanced information?

In this article, I’ve searched my files for the best basics for knitters! When you have this knowledge, so much of the rest will begin to make better sense.

Knitting Needle basics. There are the straight needles we all know and use, but what do you do with double-pointed & circular needles? Double pointed needles come in sets of four or five and are used to make items such as mittens, socks, and other round pieces. Circular needles are used when casting on a large number of stitches, i.e. 100 or more, and then you “knit in the round”. When you knit a large afghan or sweater, circular needles are wonderful. They are easy on your fingers, and can be taken anywhere.

Yarn basics. Does it matter which yarn I knit with? It sure does! With so many yarns available these days, choosing what to use can be a dilemma. So, I recommend read your instructions and read the yarn labels. There’s a whole host of info on those yarn labels.

When knitting baby items, use soft sport yarn or fine or fingering yarn. For sweaters use worsted yarn. For afghans, worsted, wool, DK or Aran yarn works best. For rugs or sturdy jackets, use bulky or chunky yarns. Be sure to find out how much yarn comes with each skein, as each project calls for a specific amount of yarn, and each skein/ball of yarn is different. Always buy enough yarn in the same dye lots, even if you have to buy one extra, just to be sure. In time, you’ll have quite a stash of extra yarn and that’s when you can use your best knitting creativity to use those all up!

Gauge basics. I see the word “gauge” in every pattern I find. Is it that important? It depends. If you are knitting a scarf or place-mats or other specialty items, then gauge is not that important. But, for items to wear or even afghans, it is very important to know how many stitches per inch and per row, you are knitting with. The required gauge is always specified in every pattern, and before you begin that project, make a gauge swatch to measure correctness. If your gauge numbers are too small, try using larger needles and vice versa. Some knitters knit more tightly than others, so never go by what someone else’s knitting produces.

It is mastering the basics, whether they be for knitting, cooking, painting, mothering, or brain surgery, that will make all the rest easy to do!

Remember, when you get to know the basics, you can create a world of knitting magic for yourself, that you will find, is just what you have been looking for! Knitting……..enjoy!

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Article Source: Alice Seidel => Got Knitting Questions? I Have Answers!