The Sweater Dilemma

At some point in our knitting lives we have all either heard of or experienced first hand the knitting urban legend about the dreaded "Boyfriend Sweater" curse. If you knit a sweater for a guy that you're not married to, he leaves you soon after you gift him the sweater.

My question is- if you unravel the sweater to reuse the yarn for another project, does that reverse the curse? A few of my friends and I were discussing the thought that if we wanted to unravel and reuse yarn from a sweater of a man who is now an ex, would unraveling the sweater bring that jerk  back into our life?

We each had our suggestions on what to do to avoid the possible return of M. Ex. Those ideas ranged from  making sure you or the ex is out of the state at the time of the unraveling to rinsing the sweater in holy water before unraveling. So, knitters, what's your take on the curse and how should a knitter handle the unraveling of a cursed sweater?

Knitter's Proverbs and Sayings

We've all heard them. Those classic proverbs and sayings like, 'a penny saved is a penny earned'. Well, I wondered how some of these saying would go if it was a knitter who first spoke them. Below are some classic sayings reworked in a way I'm sure all knitters will understand.

If at first you don't succeed. . . hide the evidence in the back of the closet and pretend like you never knitted it.

The early bird. . . gets the last 3 skeins of discontinued yarn on Jimmybeanswool.com

Early to bed. . . early to VooDoo Donuts before Sock Summit.

A penny saved. . .means you're one cent closer to getting that Cashmere/Mink blend you've been drooling over.

You can't party with the sinners and . . . not learn the effects of drunk knitting the next day.

If the shoe fits. . . buy it and knit a pair of socks to go with it.

You only live once. . . so buy the yarn now. You may not be around for the sale.

Beauty is in the eye. . . of the knitter who just spent a month knitting that sweater for you. So put it on and say thank you or you'll never get another birthday gift from them- EVER!

A fool and his money. . . will soon find his house taken over by his wife's ever growing yarn stash.

Better to have loved and lost. . . then to have wasted good yarn knitting him a sweater.

All roads lead. . . to a great little yarn shop.

Curiosity killed the cat. . . and yarn was spun with the fur off his back!

What does not kill you. . .only makes your kitchener stitch even stronger.

Time heals all. . . remaining guilt from your last yarn shopping spree.

Nothing last forever. . . except Red Heart Super Saver Yarn.

A wise man knows. . . to give his wife the credit card and don't ask questions.

If you can't say something nice. . . stitch it in duplicate stitch.

You're nobody. . . 'till you've got a fan group on Ravelry.

Behind every great man. . . is a happy knitter.

Money can't buy you love . . . but it can buy a Starbucks frappuccino and several skeins of alpaca yarn.

What goes up. . . can usually be fixed by adding a three-inch knitted border to the hem. 

If  life is a highway. . . make sure to pack plenty of yarn for the journey.

When life bring you lemons. . . add vodka and sip while knitting.

Don't sweat the small stuff. . . just use bigger needles next time.

Lovers come and go. . . but good knitting needles last forever.

When faced with a fork in the road, I take the road. . . that has the most yarn shops.

To thine own self be true. . . and let your knitting tell little white lies!

Interweave Knitting Lab

[caption id="attachment_961" align="aligncenter" width="490" caption="Interweave Knitting Lab"][/caption]

Have you heard the good news? Interweave Press, the company that produces two of my favorite magazines- Piecework and Interweave Knits, is hosting its own knitting conference!

Interweave Knitting Lab is the title of the event being held in San Mateo, California, November 3-6, 2011. Yes, there will be the usual market to do some wonderful shopping as well as how-to classes. But that's where the Interweave Knitting Lab similarities to other knitting events ends. What this event will bring is a level of talent with the kind of in dept knitting knowledge that only Interweave could provide.

Don't believe me? How about learning Bohas knitting and its history from Anne Berk. Design skirts and dresses with Shirley Paden. Recreate traditional folk mittens with Donna Druchunas or try your hand at Andean hat scallop knitting to the Chinchero style with Nilda Callañaupa Alvarez. This is just a tiny sampling of classes designed to immerse you with the knowledge and technical skills for continued learning and success long after the conference is over.

If you happen to be in the area, I urge you to attend. Classes are filling up quickly so do not hesitate. Seeing the history of Interweave's other well-known event, SOAR, I'm sure Interweave Knitting Lab is destined to become a 'must' for knitters serious about cultural history and techniques in knitting.

Banned From Knitting

I often go to visit my Boy Toy's fraternal grandparents. Two very nice old people who don't smell like month balls, always has their candy dish filled with yummy goodies and puts a tablespoon full of opium in their ice tea. (Okay, maybe its more like a teaspoon of opium, but I swear their ice tea is dangerously addictive). Needless to say, I like spending time with them.

During visits, I often bring my knitting with me. After dinner is done and the plates are cleared we usually sit around the table listening to great stories about growing up in the South and the family and friends that have long passed away. It's at this time that I would pull out my knitting and immerse myself in the history, stories and culture of a way of life that most people of my generation don't have a clue about.

On a recent visit, after a lip smacking meal of grilled steaks, corn on the cob and buttermilk biscuits, we were once again sitting around the table listening to stories of the 'good old days'. I pulled out my knitting and looked down to check where I was at in my work. My hands jerked in fear when dear grandma V called my name in that stern southern voice.

"Child, you are so rude. Every time you come here, you just sit and knit and don't want to listen in. I told grandpa B that the next time you come here and pull out your knitting that I was going to take it away from you. If you don't want to be here, then just don't come."

It took a moment to gather my words as my mind was still in shock over what was just said. Thankfully, my Boy Toy stepped in on my behalf.

"Grandma, she's not trying to be rude. You know how crafty she is and it's hard for her to be without something in her hands. She is always doing something."

"Well, she can go without knitting for the time that she's her. I just think its rude. You can't be paying attention to what people are saying if you're too busy counting stitches."

"Grandma V, I don't count stitches", I said. "When I'm knitting I can hear everything that you say. I don't even look down when I'm knitting. I keep my head up looking at whomever is talking. When I knit, it makes me focus more on the conversation."

"I don't believe that. You can't tell me that you can sit here doing stitches and know everything we talking about."

"But I do. I always know what you're saying because I respond to questions and I laugh at the jokes. I'm listening to everything that's going on."

"It's true grandma", my Boy Toy admitted. "I can have full detailed conversations with her where we are both going back and forth with our ideas and she can still knit without missing a beat. Besides, didn't you always tell me that idle hands are the devil's work?'

" Well, I'd just like to see her stop knitting and just sit and talk like everyone else. No one can possibly have something to knit all the time."

Grandpa B stepped in and changed the conversation. I tucked my knitting back into my purse, spending a little too much time trying to move things around in my purse while I tried to keep my tears at bay.

I spent the rest of the evening with my hands in my lap, listening to the conversations, but not really  'being there' mentally.

When it was time to go home I got in the car with my Boy Toy and sulked in my seat. He placed his hand on my lap.

"So, I guess I'm banned from knitting at their house anymore."

"No. You keep knitting. I know how you were before you started knitting and I understand how much knitting has helped you. I'd rather have you knitting and happy then to see you like this. Don't worry about grandma. She's just jealous because she could never knit as good as you."

Did I mention to you how much I love my Boy Toy?

Thank You Mason-Dixion Knitting

WordPress has many features for those of us who like to blog and improve our blog following. One such feature allows users to track how people find their blogs. There is a section under my site management called Referrers that I can click to see what link users clicked on to get to my blog postings.

For a couple of days now, that section has been showing that people clicked on a link from http://www.masondixonknitting.com/ to get to my site. I absolutely adore the ladies of Mason-Dixion Knitting, but for the life of me I couldn't find out how people were getting from their blog to mine. When I would click on the link I would just get taken to their homepage where I was naturally sucked in and two hours later I would realize I'm reading their July 2009 entries.

Today as I was viewing my referrers, I saw their link again. So this time I stayed focused and scanned the entire home page of their blog. Well, come to find out, on the right-hand column, under the title SNIPPETS, Kay posted this lovely note:

Damn U, Sweet Malabrigo: A handy playlist for common knitting situations. Thank you, Liver Chick Knits.

- posted by Kay

I was oh-my-God-I-just-saw-Robert-Pattinson-and-he-smiled-at-me giddy when I read this. I am so honored that they  liked my blog post.  I'll never wash that blog post as long as I live.

Thank you Mason-Dixion. You ladies rock!

Brave New Knits Rocks!

I picked up another gem from the library this week. Brave New Knits by Julie Turjoman. The patterns in this book make you want to go out and buy more yarn, but that is not why i love this book. I love it because of its interviews with many of the  knitwear designers/bloggers that we all know and love.

Interview after interview, I am amazed and inspired by the diverse and often times contradictory backgrounds of each designer that somehow knitting has worked its way into.

Each designer interview includes a pattern from the designer. This gives more depth and meaning to each pattern because after you finish reading about a designer's approach to knitwear and their design philosophy, then you turn the page and see their ideas and concepts in full physical form waiting for you to make.

The overall message in this book is how the internet- and especially Ravelry- has help to make are knitting community a little more 'close-knit' and has been a great platform for new designers and their work.

A great book to read for anyone thinking about becoming a knitwear designer or if you just want to know how a person makes the leap from biochemisrty to sweater designer.

Liver Chick Knits Is Open For Business

Finally, after months of talking myself in and out of it, I got my store up and running on Etsy.

It is a place for me to sell my every growing collection of stitch markers that I keep making. (Well, it was either this or tell everyone they would be getting a set of stitch markers for Christmas.)

If the mood hits me, I may also add a few knitted items to the store around the winter holidays.

The store is still a work in progress and I will continue to add more of my stitch markers each week.

When you get a moment, head on over and take a lot. I hope you enjoy it: http://www.liverchick.etsy.com

Lace For One And All

I've been knitting for over 10 years now, yet the above piece is only my second attempt at knitting lace. It's not that I don't like lace- I actually LOVE it. However, the knitting community can be its own worse enemy when it comes to promoting lace knitting.

The message I received as a beginning knitter was that new knitters were fools if they tried to tackle lace without years of experience. I was told that lace knitting could only be done properly by more mature ladies from the 'old country'. I even read somewhere that if you did not have the proper respect or historical understanding of where a lace shawl came from and didn't knit it in traditional white wool then you are being disrespectful to the lace and are better off knitting a scarf in fun fur.

So, I figured that lace knitting was something you just looked at, but you didn't actually dare do yourself. Instead, I just did crochet lace which was apparently the only form of lace allowed to be made by the 'common' person. Yet, I still wanted to make knitted lace.

When the opportunity came to make a head covering for a swap on Ravelry, I looked for a crochet version but couldn't find one that moved me. Then I stumbled upon the lace veil that I posted about before. It was beautiful and reminded me of the lace coverings I would see women wear in Catholic church. But it was knitted. And I wasn't allowed to knit lace. "What's going to happen? Is the lace knitting mafia is going to bust down our door and kick your ass?", my hubby asked. No. But like telling a child they are dumb, it was hard to break through those negative thoughts that were placed in my head as a young knitter. I decided that I would use the head covering as my way to break through everything negative I ever heard or felt about knitting lace.

I cast on and knitted away. I made mistakes, but didn't rip my work out. I knew that if I ripped out my work, then I would use it as an excuse to not restart. So, I knitted on. And before I knew it, a pattern was taking shape through my fingers. It was lumpy and messy and looked nothing like the picture, but I pressed on. When I finally did my bind off, I damped the lace with some cool water and then laid it out on a piece of felt. Gently, I pulled and pinned down the lace. It was like watching magic in slow motion but still not being able to see how the magician pulled the rabbit out of the hat. I stepped back and saw the most beautiful piece of knitting ever and then I looked down at my hands, not sure how I could have made it.

That is what they mean when they say, 'the magic of lace'. It is that moment of awe over yarn over's and ssk's that some how, without you knowing it, transformed into a work of art. I realized at that moment that I would never discourage anyone, no matter what their skill level, from trying to knit lace.

Lace knitting is not as hard as it seems. Sure, there are those wedding ring lace pieces that look as if they were knitted using yarn made from spider webs. And there are those patterns that knitters brag about that took them 12 hours and day for six months to complete. (You can file that one with the same people who talk about walking to school in eight feet of snow, uphill, both ways).

Lace knitting is not for some elite group of knitters who spend their summers in Ireland and their winters studying Scandinavian art. Lace knitting is for everyone! If you can read a chart and got your handy list of knitting abbreviations nearby, then with a little time and patience, you can knit lace. Never let anyone, knitter or otherwise, discourage you from enjoying the wonderful world of lace knitting!

A Sock Poem

ODE TO MY SOCKS

 

by Pablo Neruda

(Translated by Robert Bly)

Mara Mori brought me

a pair of socks

which she knitted herself

with her sheepherder's hands,

two socks as soft as rabbits.

I slipped my feet into them

as though into two cases

knitted with threads of twilight and goatskin.

Violent socks,

my feet were two fish made of wool,

two long sharks

sea blue, shot through

by one golden thread,

two immense blackbirds,

two cannons,

my feet were honored in this way

by these heavenly socks.

They were so handsome for the first time

my feet seemed to me unacceptable

like two decrepit firemen,

firemen unworthy of that woven fire,

of those glowing socks.

 

Nevertheless, I resisted the sharp tempation

to save them somewhere as schoolboys

keep fireflies,

as learned men collect

sacred texts,

I resisted the mad impulse to put them

in a golden cage and each day give them

birdseed and pieces of pink melon.

Like explorers in the jungle

who hand over the very rare green deer

to the spit and eat it with remorse,

I stretched out my feet and pulled on

the magnificent socks and then my shoes.

 

The moral of my ode is this:

beauty is twice beauty,

and what is good is doubly good

when it is a matter of two socks

made of wool in winter.

My (Shameless) Teaching Proposal

I figured that since I am not going to be teaching at this year's Sock Summit, that it would be safe to share with you some parts of the  actually teaching proposal that I had submitted. Please let me know what you think:

Teaching Proposal for Sock Summit 2011

　

Who are you? Do you have formal teaching experience? We'd love to know if you do.

 

 



But whooo-R-yooooouuuu? Sorry, Alice In Wonderland flashbacks. Hi, my name is Michelle. Online I am best known as Liver Chick. You can find me on Ravelry and chatting away on my blog http://liverchickknits.wordpress.com.

The following is my shameless proposal to teach at Sock Summit 2011.

College graduate with an Associates of Arts degree from Phoenix, Arizona, where I studied costume and makeup design for the Theatre. I worked for nine years as a professional makeup artist and taught Makeup and Costume Design on the college level.

I had a quick stint at California Institute for the Arts majoring in Costume Design. My claim to fame there was hand knitting fifteen openwork tribal inspired headdresses for the department’s 2001 production of Trojan Women.

A former craft teacher at Michael’s Craft store where I taught beginner knitting classes as well as loom knitting, among other things.

Here is where I stop sounding like a resume and share with you my journey into sock knitting that has evolved into this proposal that you are now reading. (You may want to refill that cup of coffee before you start.)

I was always reluctant to learn to knit a pair of socks. I had knitted enough scarves and hats to open my own store. I even knitted a sweater for my boyfriend. (Which obviously was a damn good sweater because a year later he became my husband. Or maybe the sweater was so bad that he was afraid that if he remained my boyfriend he would have to endure even more ghastly sweaters and knew that the only way to stop the madness was to marry me, thus ending the ‘boyfriend’ sweaters.) Either way, I had some pretty good knitting under my belt. Sock knitting just always seemed other-worldly to me.

In 2008, at the age of 30, my liver stopped working. (Doesn’t that always happen? The moment the warranty is up on something it freaking decides to die on you!) Well, there’s nothing like a coma and a liver transplant to boost your ego and make you say, “What the hell! If I could survive that, knitting a sock should be a piece of cake”. Of course it didn’t hurt that as part of my recovery I had joined Boba Knits and spent each week watching Cookie A. knitting away at her kick-ass socks.

So, with the new boost of confidence- and a new liver- I set out to knit me some socks. Well, trying to knit with double pointed needles scared the hell out of my cats and soon after I had to start asking people to sign waivers before entering my house so I wouldn’t be held liable for bodies being impaled by my needles every time I tried to knit a sock. Then, much to my family’s relief, I decided that maybe circular needles were more my style. I can tell you from personal experience that the magic loop and Long Island ice teas do not mix. And when the toe-up method had me reaching for the Johnny Walker, I knew it was time to stop.

“But there just had to be a way for me to knit socks that wouldn’t reduce me to drinking”, I thought. I wanted to find a way to knit socks the same way I like to knit most other things- with two straight needles. So I set out to find if such a thing was possible. Not only was two needle socks possible, it was also popular, for a short time. I ordered old knitting pamphlets on the subject and read any information I could find. The use of the two needle method had opened the doors to sock knitting for many frustrated knitters during its heyday. But that nasty uncomfortable seam down the center bottom of the foot seems to have been its downfall. “Hey, why does the seam have to be down the middle? Why can’t it be on the sides instead?” Even fewer patterns existed for socks with seams on the side and the few patterns that did, usually over complicated the process with wonky heels and odd configurations. After much trial and error, I figured out how to make socks on two needles that looked and felt just as nice as socks made in the more traditional methods. I know that I’m not the only one who ever became frustrated with learning to knit socks. And just like me, there has to be many other knitters out there who would love to learn a new way of knitting socks.

I remember those dark days of long ago. Those days before I became a sock knitter. I felt like an outcast, an incomplete knitter. The other knitters would talk about me behind my back. I was left out of parties because sock knitters feared being associated with a non-sock knitter like me. I don’t want another knitter to suffer what I’ve gone through. So I have made it my mission to help my sisters and brothers and free them from the chains that keep them from enjoying the world of sock knitting. And if we sock knitters are to be a great nation of knitters then this skill must be taught . So I will teach two needle sock knitting to knitters from the prodigious hilltops of New Hampshire. Knitters will knit two needle sock from the mighty mountains of New York. They will knit socks from the heightening Alleghenies of Pennsylvania!

They will knit socks from the snowcapped Rockies of Colorado!

They will knit socks from the curvaceous peaks of California!

But not only that; they will knit their socks on two needles from Stone Mountain of Georgia!

Socks will be knit from Lookout Mountain of Tennessee!

Socks will be knit from every hill and every molehill of Mississippi. From every mountainside, let sock knitters knit! .

When we let two needle sock knitters knit , when we spread the news of this alternative way of sock knitting from every village and every hamlet, from every state and every city, we will be able to speed up that day when all of God's sock knitters, old sock knitters and young sock knitters, toe up and cuff down, two at a time and single sock syndrome, will be able to join needles and sing in the words of the old knitter’s spiritual, "Turn the heel! Turn the heel! Does anyone remember how to turn the heel?!"　

 

Anything else you think we need to know about working with you. Like that you charge $33,000 a day and need to be paid in gold, or that you can't teach unless your cat can come, or (more seriously) do you need an accessible classroom? Special teaching aids? Help?

 

 



Since you asked, yes, I would like to be paid $33,000 a day for my time and I would like payment in one dollar bills only. No, seriously, I like money, so getting paid would be great. But I also realize that you like money too, so I’m sure we can work out a way for us to both have money. Whatever ended up being the average payment for most instructors during the last Summit is fine with me. (It may sound like I’m being too easy, but really my nose is short, so its hard for me to look down it and scoff at some imaginary price that’s not worth my time and talent. Heck, I’m even willing to barter with you. Four days of room and food for four days of my enslavement to the Sock Summit- sounds like a deal to me!)

As far as my class needs, I think I’ll be able to handle the class without too many extras. A long table for me to display different stages of the sock knitting process would be nice. The students will mainly be following their handouts.

As for what you need to know about working with me, I will let you know that I am shy when I first meet people, but warm up rather quickly. I’m always willing to help, (that’s the girl scout in me), and have a tendency to show up when an extra body is needed for something. Remember back in the day with those college parties where everyone got wasted, but when you woke up the next morning everything was clean and breakfast was made? Yup, I’m that girl that stayed up all night picking up all those empty bottles, cleaning the vomit out the carpet and unclogging the toilet. And because I knew you would all have the munchies when you sobered up, I baked a quiche and put out bottles of water along with a bottle of aspirin on the kitchen table before I left. Why would I do all this? Well, because I do enjoying helping people and also because the guilt is going to eat away at you until you do something nice for me in return. Can we say, new yarn?  

We'd also like to know where you live, how you would get to Oregon (we cover reasonable transportation) and if you're free all four days of the Summit—Thursday, July 28th - Sunday, July 31st, 2011.

 

 



Okay, now you’re getting personal. Ask me anything more and I’ll make you take me out to dinner first!

Well, I live in XXXX, Arizona, which is a small town that is like a pigeon dropping away from Phoenix.

I would really like to fly to Oregon. I don’t need to fly first class or have any special seating. You can fly me on the cheapest flight available. Seriously, I’ll take the one that leaves Phoenix at 3 o’clock in the morning with five connections and the only available seats being the ones right next to the toilet.

Now, where am I going to stay is a different issue, but I’ll be able to figure that one out. Hopefully, hotel rooms are still available. Based on the forums on Ravelry it seems some of the hotels were completely booked a week after you announced the dates. If nothing is available, I’m more then happy sleeping on the floor in someone’s hotel room if that option is open. In worst case, I’ll be claiming stall number five in the ladies restroom at the convention center as my room for the duration of the Summit. (Remember, girl scout here. I know how to ‘rough it’.)

To answer the other part of your question, yes, I am available for all four days of the Summit. Feel free to use me in whichever way turns you on, I’m all yours.

So, you’ve come to the end of my proposal. Did I sound crazy and desperate? If so, then I have achieved what I set out to do. Really, I’m not this way in person. At least not all the time. Well, even if you don’t select me to teach at the Summit, I do hope you got a few good laughs from reading this. Feel free to save this and read anytime you need a little laughter.

Wishing you well,

Liver Chick 

　

 

 

My Only Ravelry Picture

This is the only picture I got from the Ravelry Happy Hour at Stitches West.

In the picture we are listening to Jessica welcome us to the party.

Period Knitting

I love watching women in period costumes knit. I would love the chance to do some historical reenactment. However, there doesn't seem to be any big demand for black period actors living in the southwest. I don't know why. *sigh*

Well, at least I can still admire and dream.

Happy Valentine's Day

[caption id="attachment_344" align="aligncenter" width="375" caption="Free pattern from juju & lolo"][/caption]

HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY EVERYONE!!!!

Now go out and knit something for the one you love!

Chocolate!!!

Working for several years in theatre I picked out a few tips and tricks that helped me in my career. Always show up early for any call. Remember the director's favorite coffee and pet peeves. Always carry a wrench. And even the most big-headed demanding diva actor can be tamed with chocolate!

Seeing chocolate bars being used as medication in the Harry Potter books didn't surprise me. I have seen first hand the magical powers chocolate can have over someone. People seem nicer, talk softer and smile more when chocolate is in their system.

To me, chocolate is an essential tool for any knitter to have in their bag. Got a sweater that's driving you crazy? A sock you're ready to set on fire? How about a pattern written so badly that you are seriously considering sending a letter bomb to the designer? Instead of resorting to something that might get you jail time, just reach for a piece of chocolate. Trust me, after a couple of bite, all the world will be made right again. (But you still have every right to write a nasty letter to that designer whose pattern is on crack.)

Knitting Is My Bag!

You can tell a lot about a knitter by what she/he carries in their knitting bag.  Knitting memorabilia says what type of knitting events you've been to. The current projects in the bag can show where you shop for your yarn and patterns.

Do you like the 'old school' metal gauge rulers or are you into the hand cut wood ones? Is your stitch counter a manual clicker or do you have a stitch counting app downloaded on your iPhone? Leather bound book for jotting down notes or recycled scraps of paper stapled together? The newest of everything or secondhand finds? Were your stitch markers hand-made in London or are they the tabs you've been collecting from store bought loaves of bread?  

So, what would your bag say about you?

(PS- I believe the contents of the last bag is that of a serious and well experienced knitter.)

Blogs I Like: Knitspot Blog

I  love reading the blogs of other knitters. The current one I'm addicted to is the blog of designer Anne Hanson. She is the woman behind Knitspot. Here blog is the one I turn to when I want to indulge in beautiful pictures of awesome knitwear and great food. She is that woman you wish you lived next door to so you could stop by for tea and knit the afternoon away. When you get a chance, please check out her blog and her store: http://knitspot.com/

My Advice to New Knitters

"You only get better at something by doing it more often."

This statement is true for just about everything in life- cooking, paying bills on time, writing, golf, stalking your ex-boyfriend, sex (with the same person), and even knitting.

So, if you are just starting out as a knitter and your first attempts look like something the cat hacked up, my advice to you is to keep knitting. Trust me, your knitting will improve.

As for that hair ball you just cast off your needles, save it. (Yes, I'm being serious here.) Put it in a ziploc bag and label it with the project name and date that it was created. Enclose a note to yourself that decribes how you feel about the project and knitting as a whole. Then hide it somewhere. Continue knitting and in a year from now, pull out that bag and have a good laugh at yourself in seeing the mess you were in the beginning compared to the pro you are now.

How Knitters Commit Adultry

We shop for yarn because it turns us on!

 

War's Gift To Knitting

The more I learn about the history of knitting the more I realize how much the survival and continuous interest in knitting is due largely to our military.

During every war we have fought in, from our war for independence to the current war on terrorism, it has been the single plea from our soldiers on the battlefield that time after time moved women of all ages, races and economic backgrounds to pick up their needles and learn to knit.

Throughout history, knitting has experienced peaks in interest. Less than ten years ago, knitting once again became all the rage. It became the 'It' thing to do. But just like every fashion fad in craze, knitting is now seeing many of those hipsters put away their needles and unfinished fun fur scarves in search of the next new thing.

These ups and downs in popularity has never been and will never be what keeps knitting going. As long as there is a soldier in need of socks or a warm hat then knitting will continue. For it is the every present need to help those who protect and defend of freedom  that will continue to keep needles clicking and the art of knitting alive.