I first tried knitting when I was seven years old. It entailed my Mum casting on, me fighting with the wool, I didn't know about tension back then, my Mum fixing my mistakes, which usually came in the form of big and numerous holes, then me giving up after six rows or so. I have wanted to be a knitter ever since. Two Winters ago it was time. A new wool store had opened in town, I had a little person to knit for and I had the determination. So I popped into the store to see what they had. I didn't even know such beautiful wool existed. I was immediately taken... by the colours, the textures, the names and the endless possibilities.
Since that day I have almost always had something on needles either half finished, almost finished, one row in or coming off, ready for blocking. Before I go any further let's talk about blocking. Can I just say I thought blocking was a waste of time. Who needed to block? Certainly not me. That was until I tried it a few months back. I know all of the well experienced knitters out there are probably cringing, but I seriously didn't know what I was missing. It all just added up to time and waiting, when all I was looking for was instant knitters' gratification. I have since learnt that it's well worth the wait.
My knitting journey started with Bonnie Gosse and Jill Allerton's book A First Book of Knitting for Children. With this book I refreshed my casting on, casting off and my knit and purl skills. Then I knit a rectangle. With this I made a bag for Zahra. Then I made another rectangle which turned into a hen for the Easter table. After that I tried a simple doll. I then moved onto my first hat which involved decreases. I just made it up as I went. Then I moved onto another hat, and then another hat and then another hat and then another hat. I got stuck knitting hats for some time. But with the repetition I honed my decreasing and learnt to follow simple patterns. I fell in love with Erica Knight's book Simple Knitting, which I borrowed from our local library, and have since bought, which in turn kicked off my Book Depository obsession, but that's another story. I loved the wool she used, her style and most of all her easy patterns, simple instructions and tips. I would spend hours at the library and online looking through patterns and dreaming, but also working out what I could knit and what would challenge me. From here I moved onto Debbie Bliss, and a two needle sock pattern. This one was a challenge and I remember getting to a part of the pattern where I had no idea what I was being asked to do. Many knitters say to the unexperienced, "it's so simple, it's just two stitches", but to someone who has limited knowledge and expereince it is soooo much more than that. There's yarn weight and the trans-continental ways of naming this, there's guage and needle size, again two types, there's many ways to actually knit, hold yarn, cast on, cast off, not to mention pattern decoding and the little bits that are left out because they're assumed. Those little bits that are assumed can be the make or break to a beginner. I remember looking at this sock pattern day in and day out for a few weeks until I eventually 'got' what I was meant to do. Sometimes that's all it takes, a break for a few days, but other days it's time to head to knittinghelp.com. This website, along with the down to earth wisdom of knitting legend Elizabeth Zimmerman, completely changed my knitting experience. From the socks I went to fingerless mitts, cowls, vests for Zahra, baby blankets, bootees, more hats and cardigans for little people. I do not consider myself an experienced knitter by any means and there are always mistakes in whatever I knit. I have grown to love these little imperfections. They show that it is handknit, that Mama's hands and love are all there in every stitch. And as Elizabeth Zimmerman says "one is in this knitting pastime for pleasure, not for toil, anxiety and doubt, so don't worry".
When I started on my knitting adventure I had two goals in mind. The first was to be able to knit in the round, because let's face it, who wants to knit a row, purl a row, knit a row, purl a row, when you can just knit and get the same result. The second was to knit Amy King's oatmeal cardigan out of the 2009 Winter edition of Spin Off. Becasue by now I had learnt to spin and was quietly hunting for my very own spinning wheel, and the idea of knitting this divine, cosy looking cardigan had taken hold of me. I'm certainly not at this point yet, but I can knit a rib while talking, use circular needles, distinguish a knit stitch from a purl, confidently fix my mistakes, and after a year or two of sneaking peeks at Ravelry, I finally have an account (another amazing knitting resource). Last week I conquered the knitting frontier I had set for this Winter, and that was to knit with dpns ( that's double pointed needles for the uninitiated). I think this is partly why I've fallen in love with knitting. There is an ever changing boundary of what is possible. I am constantly challenged by new patterns and techniques and inspired by all the amazing knitters out there.
So why am I telling you all this knitting tale. Well it's in hope that maybe, just maybe I can inspire someone out there who has wanted to learn to knit or has tried and ended up with an unplanned 'lacy' scarf, that it is possible. All it takes is time, a little patience, determination and of course, some sticks and wool.
[Taproot Family Mittens]
Sometime soon I'll post a list of the simple patterns I have knit.
Happy Knitting
Cxo
