Any knitters out there?

[PumpkinPie]

your mom sounds like me - I can knit anything as long as it`s square or rectangular!

 

[noelwr]

cool, this thread is revived! here is the piece that I finished last week. I wish I had made it a little longer, but will wear a tank top under it to hide my tummy.

 

[Octavia]

Noel, that looks great! I love the neckline. Where did you find the pattern?

 

[April20]

I totally forgot about this thread. I''m procrastinating on a Friday afternoon (shocker) and now want to procrastinate more and go dig out my knitting stuff and see if I can give it another go.

I''ve never tried the wooden needles. I''m definitely going to try those out. If I have time this afternoon, I''m going to head out to WallyWorld and see if I can get something inexpensive to test out while I figure out if I can do this or not.

Are there good websites that show stiches, etc. Surely there''s something out there on YouTube. I am so short of time with my work schedules these days, a class probably isn''t in the cards for me.

 

[Octavia]

April, if you''re buying new needles, I highly recommend going with circulars instead of straights. It takes so much of the weight off your hands/arms when you''re knitting because most of the knitted fabric rests in your lap instead of on the needles themselves. Happy knitting!

 

[April20]

Date: 3/12/2010 3:28:14 PM
Author: Octavia
April, if you''re buying new needles, I highly recommend going with circulars instead of straights. It takes so much of the weight off your hands/arms when you''re knitting because most of the knitted fabric rests in your lap instead of on the needles themselves. Happy knitting!

Are those the ones that are connected at the bottom?

 

[Octavia]

Yep, there is a relatively short needle at each end, connected by a flexible cord. Sorry to be so late in replying, I hope you found good needles of one sort or other this afternoon!

 

[VRBeauty]

Delster -- I''d really appreciate it if you could explain how you got that clean edge on your Juliette sweater. I remember it from the last knitting thread, and I''ve tried to replicate that edge, but so far I haven''t been able to.

Noelwr: both of those tops are really cute!

 

[rainwood]

I''m a beginning knitter and I love the circular needles. I thought they''d be harder, but they''re actually much easier to use, at least for me.

 

[Octavia]

VRBeauty, I don''t know if this is what Delster did or not, but when I want a clean edge, I slip the first stitch of every row purlwise. It makes the edge look like you''ve done a single-crochet border around it.

 

[VRBeauty]

Thanks Octavia -- I''ll give that a try!

 

[April20]

You guys are GENIUSES. I got bamboo circular needles and they rock! I am knitting a VERY basic dishcloth. I LOVE knitted dishcloths. I''ve crocheted a few over the years and had a couple knitted ones given to me, but they are falling apart from use. I''ve only done 6 rows but it is SO much easier than the last time I tried.

I''ll post a pic of my humble little dishcloth when I finish it.

 

[noelwr]

thanks Octavia! it is Sirdar Surfer Top.

April20 - can we see photos of your work of art in progress? people keep talking about knitted dishcloths, but I''ve actually never seen one.

 

[April20]

Here''s the one I''m knitting. I got the cotton yarn that''s got cream, sage green, pink and mauve in it. I''m hoping it''s a quick project!

 

[April20]

Here''s one of my crocheted ones. I probably made it 5 years ago or so. One of the only ones left not falling apart! I find that these type dishclothes just work so much better than the typical ones you can buy.

 

[noelwr]

ooh... pretty. is there a reason you are using garter stitch (where you knit all rows)? garter stitch is the most compact stitch so that you won''t have ''holes'' in between your stitches as you would with stocking stitch, but garter stitch knits so slowly because the rows are not as ''high'' vertically as with stocking stitch.

then again, with garter stitch you don''t have an obvious front or back, which I think is perfect for a dish cloth. also, the sides of your piece won''t curl as it would with stocking stitch.

 

[PumpkinPie]

wow noelwr - I love that shirt! I guess I''ll have to graduate beyond just knitting squares and rectangles! You did a great job

 

[April20]

Date: 3/13/2010 4:35:12 PM
Author: noelwr
ooh... pretty. is there a reason you are using garter stitch (where you knit all rows)? garter stitch is the most compact stitch so that you won''t have ''holes'' in between your stitches as you would with stocking stitch, but garter stitch knits so slowly because the rows are not as ''high'' vertically as with stocking stitch.

then again, with garter stitch you don''t have an obvious front or back, which I think is perfect for a dish cloth. also, the sides of your piece won''t curl as it would with stocking stitch.

Well, that would be because I don''t know how to do anything else yet.

It''s about 4-5 inches wide now and it is slow going. I figured if I could master this stich without jacking it up, I''d move onto the other ones. The videos I''ve found on YouTube have been really helpful thus far.

 

[noelwr]

well, you know how the knit stitch, which is the most important one.

all you have to do is learn the purl stitch, and then combining knit & purl will open a whole world of other stitches.

plus you obviously know how to cast on and by the end of your project you''ll know how to cast off, so I think it won''t be long til you''re a pro knitter!

 

[April20]

Well apparently I don''t know the knit stich. I finished my dishcloth, but when I was trying to figure out something for my next pattern, realized that I knit continental style, only I''m doing it BACKWARDS. Yarn is totally going over the needle the wrong way. Argh!!! Must untrain myself to do it the way I was.

 

[jenmarie]

I came across this thread about a month ago and it inspired me to start knitting again. I''ve been knitting on and off for about 8 years, but up until a month ago, my projects never got finished, and all I had to show for my skills were two ski hats, an unfinished sweater, and an afghan that''s halfway done.

My cousin''s wife was pregnant with a little girl when I stumbled upon this thread, so I looked for baby patterns and found a cute cardigan on the lion brand yarn website. From a failed crochet project (I''m a knitter and gave up on learning to crochet!), I had tons of pink yarn, so I went for it. For my first real wearable article of clothing, it came out pretty good, I think!

I didn''t have the right needles, so the pattern for 3-6 months worked out to about the estimated size for 12-24 months.

 

[VRBeauty]

Date: 4/9/2010 8:58:26 AM
Author: jenmarie
I came across this thread about a month ago and it inspired me to start knitting again. I''ve been knitting on and off for about 8 years, but up until a month ago, my projects never got finished, and all I had to show for my skills were two ski hats, an unfinished sweater, and an afghan that''s halfway done.

Cute! And very impressive!

 

[Octavia]

Jenmarie, that looks awesome! Isn't it a great feeling to finish projects?

This is my latest -- it's for the same baby that the sweater I posted a photo of on the previous page is for. I made a sweater for the bunny to "match" baby's.

The pattern was originally for a bear but I changed the ears to try to make a bunny...unfortunately I'm not sure very happy with the face because it makes her look like a dog. I don't feel like doing it over, though. What do my fellow knitters think?

 

[Mrs Mitchell]

Aaaaw! Now that is cute. I must finish the teddy bear I started knitting while I was pregnant!

I have just knitted 3 sets of silk mittens and bootees for friends who are all due round about the same time. So cute and so quick to knit. If I could find my camera cable in this pit of a house, I could show you. I haven''t knitted with silk before, but it was really nice to work with and for a small project, not too expensive.

I also knitted to loveliest, snuggliest, hooded sweater for my two year old. She will not wear it.

Cries when I put it on her and takes it off immediately. It''s soft wool / cashmere blend (and I did check there weren''t any pins or anything in it from the sewing up...) so I''ve no idea why she hates it, but I could just cry. It''s the best thing I ever knitted, it even looks like the picture on the pattern (quite unusual for me - I knit with more enthusiasm than skill). Ungrateful little creature!

 

[jenmarie]

Thanks! And YES it feels awesome to actually finish stuff!

Octavia, the bunny is so cute!! I joined Ravelry after seeing recommendations for it on here, and I found some more projects on there. I just made a little lamb, pretty similar looking to your bunny. I''ve also started a fair isle baby cardigan with little sheep on it!

 

[noelwr]

jenmarie - really cute baby cardigan! fair isle seems difficult. what is your name on ravelry? I would like to "befriend" you, if that's ok.


Octavia - bunny looks like a really cute Snoopy! did your friend finally have the baby shower? what did she think of the sweater?

 

[April20]

I haven''t had time to knit in the past few weeks, but being on vacation this week, I''ve had loads more time. I did this basketweave dish cloth on Sunday. I''m still a bit obsessed with replacing my worn out old dishcloths, but am also finding it a nice way to learn new things in a small platform. I''m learning to knit via what I know about crochet and You Tube, so it''s better for me not to bite off more than I can chew right now. I''m registered with Knitting Daily and Ravelry and have about a zillion things I want to do.

 

[April20]

Here''s the ribbed one I''m working on now. I''m only about 19 rows away from completion.

 

[cellososweet]

Any room for a crocheter? I finished this bunny yesterday for my brothers baby. His Mrs. is due in September. It was my first go at working ith organic/renewable materials. I put him up on my etsy shop as well.

 

[April20]

Oh my gosh. Cello, he''s so sweet! I crochet too... how difficult is he?