KnitWit - the ultimate knitting thread

Message Bookmarked
Bookmark Removed
Not all messages are displayed: show all messages (223 of them)
I bought two books online yesterday in a rush of compulsiveness: Knitting with Balls (could I get boy to knit? prolly not but maybe he can pick out something nice) and Naughty Needles.

the latter was written by a girl whom I replaced at a previous job. Had no idea she knitted. am envious. I want to write a book. :(

Ms Misery (MsMisery), Wednesday, 3 January 2007 18:06 (seventeen years ago) link

I want to check out Naughty Needles. I think it looks funny, but apparently there are knitting people out there who hate fun.

tokyo rosemary (rosemary), Wednesday, 3 January 2007 18:32 (seventeen years ago) link

I bouight some Lana Grossa yarn. I wanna knit that sweatah BADLY. But started - last night after going out with my cousin - on that charm bag which is featured in that Stitch'n'Bitch book. It's a completely different (sort of yucky looking) yarn. But hey I bght in a sale and figured I might as well use it. :-D

xpost: I'll send you that yarn THIS WEEK. Promise! :-)

nathalie (stevienixed), Wednesday, 3 January 2007 18:35 (seventeen years ago) link

:)

what sweater are you working on?

Ms Misery (MsMisery), Wednesday, 3 January 2007 18:46 (seventeen years ago) link

Just one hat left for the massive xmas knitfest! I've got a bunch of sock yarn on its way to me, plus enough for two sweaters. With any luck I can finish the hat tonight.

patita (patita), Wednesday, 3 January 2007 20:13 (seventeen years ago) link

Finishing that cardigan up above, I needed to buy some more yarn for the borders. And will start that Lana Grossa sweater next week.

http://www.lanagrossa.com/journale/filati_32/15.jpg

In charcoal grey colour. HURRAH!

Still need to finish hubby's shawl though. :-D Will do once I quit having migraines. Gawd headaches are a f*cking b*tch. :-(

nathalie (stevienixed), Wednesday, 3 January 2007 21:27 (seventeen years ago) link

one month passes...
I want to do this:
http://www.needleartsmentoring.org/guide/start.html

Ms Misery (MsMisery), Tuesday, 13 February 2007 16:38 (seventeen years ago) link

Has anyone set up and Etsy account? All of the sudden (like, within the past 3 minutes) I've entertained the idea of selling stuff, i.e. dishcloths, mittens, etc. Would anyone buy my stuff? Or is the internet crafty market saturated with People Just Like Me?

molly mummenschanz (molly d), Friday, 16 February 2007 05:16 (seventeen years ago) link

I'm still obsessed with knitting but I haven't done so much. Maybe because of my holiday, during which I only knitted a few rows? Yesterday I did manage to do some work on my lacy shawl.

I also bought a ton of pattern magazines (Lana Grossa) and fell in love with a gazillion things I want to knit. And I also bought that pattern book which seemed too difficult for me at first, but now I understand it and I think it'll be GREBT when I want to knit something simple (and maybe, in the future, sth with a fancy stitch).

I also cleared some records in a cupboard so I can have my collection of books and mags in one place. HURRAH.

Bought some jumbo sized crochet hook (?) and want to crochet a blanket. But I don't know how to *turn* in crochet. Bummer.

The lesson was EXTREMELY hard this week. We have to do a V-collar with dpns. Urgh! I think I messed it up. :-) I found out that the one who's most crap at knitting is a bit... I don't know how to say this... I think I overheard saying she lives in a community (for people with slight mental disabilities). :-( She doesn't really follow the difficult parts anymore, the teacher just guides her a bit doing her sweater.

nathalie (stevienixed), Friday, 16 February 2007 09:38 (seventeen years ago) link

My husband bought me this book for v-day
http://ec2.images-amazon.com/images/P/0600609243.02._AA240_SCLZZZZZZZ_.jpg
so now I need to learn to knit! I have a book from the library, and that knittinghelp site looks useful but what equipment do I need? What are the best needles to start with? Maybe I should start with a scarf rather than an elaborate child's jumper?

Liz (liz), Friday, 16 February 2007 12:26 (seventeen years ago) link

I think a scarf is the easiest project you can begin with, but I quickly got bored with it and I had also enrolled in a rather demanding course which demanded I knit a sweater! (If I had known, I would have thought twice about enrolling.) I think what helped me was doing *small* projects, like doing a combination of knit'n'purl to learn following a pattern (and create a heart) and doing a mini-sized triangle shaped shawl so that I learned how to knit together...

What equipment? Hmm, yarn, needles (I prefer bamboo or plastic), a sewing needle (if you cant to do a sweater), scissors, something to measure,... I would also suggest some notebook so you can write down your progress. I should follow my own advice, cause I'm quite lax when it comes to writing everything down. :-(

Do they have the Stitch'n'Bitch book from Debbie Stoller in yr library? If so GET THAT ONE PRONTO! It's ACE! Debbie Bliss also does good (beginner) books for baby garments. There's also the Vogue KNitting book which is great but will come more in handy as reference (once you're a bit more experienced IMO!).

YAY, a new knitter! :-)

nathalie (stevienixed), Friday, 16 February 2007 12:42 (seventeen years ago) link

DEF do a scarf first. I would recommend getting some thick, bulky yarn and starting with needles 8.0mm or higher (when you buy the yarn the label should suggest a good needle size. For beginning projects, bigger is better.)

yay knitting talk!

Let me know what you decide about Etsy Molly. I'm curious too. I like looking but have never bought anything, more inspiration really. Does anyone besides other crafters know about it?

Here's my latest knitting (and crocheting and sewing) pic posts. Finishing a second pair of mittens before I post them: http://www.flickr.com/photos/misery/

Ms Misery (MsMisery), Friday, 16 February 2007 13:53 (seventeen years ago) link

I went to the charity shop at lunch and got three pairs of needles (only slightly bent...) and a ball of wool for £4 so I am on my way! A notebook is a good idea too, thanks.

I don't think my yarn is very bulky so maybe I had better just do a small scarf - or a belt!

Liz (liz), Friday, 16 February 2007 13:56 (seventeen years ago) link

you can double the yarn to make it bulkier (use two strands at once.) The only reason I suggested bulky is b/c A. it knits quicker B. it's easier to see your stitches c. using big needles when you start is kind of like using big pencils in kindergarten - it's just easier for your muscles to learn. what type (material) of needles?

Ms Misery (MsMisery), Friday, 16 February 2007 14:01 (seventeen years ago) link

Four quid? Wow! I should have mentioned: buy acrylic, cheap and easy to knit. They cost about 1 euro (so about 70 p?) for a ball? Oh shit, you mean needles AND yarn? Good deal, I think. :-) Never mind if's slightly bent. I suppose they are metal, or am I wrong?

If you're keen to do more difficult things, I would suggest doing swatches first. THat's what I did. I wanted to try cable, so I only did a swatch and started something else after that.

If you REALLY are serious or want to progress quicker, look out in yarn shops for one day courses.

nathalie (stevienixed), Friday, 16 February 2007 14:10 (seventeen years ago) link

Oh good, my wool is acrylic. I don't much like the feel of it but that's OK if it's easier to knit. My needles are metal, v old-fashioned ones, but I think maybe I should have got a thicker pair to start me off. I need to find a better knitting shop - this one just had a vase of old needles in random sizes so I don't think they'll offer courses. I'll see how I get on this weekend.

(Oh dear, I think I must be old; I am excited about going home on a Friday night to knit!)

Liz (liz), Friday, 16 February 2007 16:14 (seventeen years ago) link

are you kidding that's my every night!

In my experience metal needles have been very hard to knit with. they're inflexible and hurt your hands and the stitches slide off easier. The first pair I ever tried to knit with were metal size 8s and it was a disaster. I am not saying this to discourage you as you may not find getting started hard at all (I fully accept that I may be "special"). But I just want to encourage you that if you find it hard going at first, it could get easier with different needles. (and practice)

have fun!

Ms Misery (MsMisery), Friday, 16 February 2007 16:37 (seventeen years ago) link

That's my Friday night too!

Liz, I second Sam and Nath with getting big yarn. I've taught people in the past who've started off with 2 strands together, and they got confused really quickly. If you can find a big fat yarn, that takes 10 1/2 (US), for example that might be easy.

And Stitch'n'Bitch is a SUPER book to have if you're learning. It explains things so clearly. I've been knitting for about 4 years, and I still reference it all the time. It's a good purchase.

Don't get discourage if your first scarf comes out terribly! It's a learning experience. I still have the first thing I knit and I used it as a potholder. It was supposed to be a scarf.

molly mummenschanz (molly d), Friday, 16 February 2007 16:51 (seventeen years ago) link

re: Etsy -- I don't know what I was thinking. My friend (whom I've known since I was 4) is having a baby girl, so I need to get knitting things for her ASAP. I've been pokey. And that's a good point, Sam: does anyone who's not crafty know about it? I kinda doubt it.

I'm knitting a bib from the Mason Dixon book for someone in Mr. Pike's office who recently had a baby. It's turning out really well!

molly mummenschanz (molly d), Friday, 16 February 2007 16:53 (seventeen years ago) link

I'd recommend doing lots of practice swatches, unravelling them and starting again while you learn stitches, increases, decreases etc. Don't start on an actual garment you want to wear until you're happy you're not going to cock up. The good thing about practice swatches is it doesn't really matter about the needle size or yarn weight.

Madchen (Madchen), Friday, 16 February 2007 17:28 (seventeen years ago) link

Oh good, my wool is acrylic. I don't much like the feel of it but that's OK if it's easier to knit.

I wanted to mention not doing the two threads simultaneously, it can be somewhat hard in the beginning to do this. I'm actually doing this for a cardigan I'm making and it's going pretty well, but I doubt I could have done this way back in July when I started knitting again. :-)

In regard to the acrylic, there's different types. I bought some at Wibra (cheapass store) and I could heard the yarn crackle'n'pop when I knitted. Awful! But I bought some other acrylic in Veritas that was slightly more expensive but still dirt cheap and it was AWESOME. You can tell after a while which yarn will work and which won't. (Well, for me that only works when it's acrylic, other types I'm not used to YET).

I can more or less knit while watching telly now! ONly for stockinette (?), no fancy stitches (yet). HURRAH!

OTN: cardigan for Ophelia
cardigan pour moi
sweater pour moi
bag pour moi (i'm so selfish)
lacy shawl for mummy (if she wants it)

I bought some pattern books and fell in love with a gazillion items.

I want to knit better. harumph!

nathalie (stevienixed), Saturday, 17 February 2007 11:07 (seventeen years ago) link

Hey Lucy, I finished that scarf - have you finished yours? I blocked it out the other day but it didn't go very well as I could only find a couple of pins. Also - so much colour came out whilst it was soaking! I was really q. shocked! I am going to get more pins and try and block it out PROPERLY again today. By which time it will probably turn back to white!

Sarah (Science of Unforunate Events), Saturday, 17 February 2007 11:28 (seventeen years ago) link

Oh crap, just checked and that pattern book I bought will be hellahard: In Japanese the graphical charts are different. They are read left to right and also they start with a cast on row. ARGH! I'll probably swatch to check if I can read'em correctly and/or ask my Japanese friend (who loves to knit as well).

nathalie (stevienixed), Saturday, 17 February 2007 13:43 (seventeen years ago) link

I hadn't touched it for about a fortnight, S, but did another 10 rows this morning. I have half a ball of wool left, so the end is in sight. Won't be long now...

stet (stet), Saturday, 17 February 2007 14:19 (seventeen years ago) link

Why Stet I did not know you were one of us :)

I was going to go and get more blocking pins today but I appear to have stayed in watching season 2 of Popular instead...


Sarah (Science of Unforunate Events), Saturday, 17 February 2007 15:12 (seventeen years ago) link

I am happy to report the scarf for my mother is almost done. Her birthday was in November. Also, my first bib is almost done, so I'll have pictures of that soon, if I can locate my digital camera.

molly mummenschanz (molly d), Saturday, 17 February 2007 20:13 (seventeen years ago) link

I love the Lion Brand newsletter. New stitches every week!

http://cache.lionbrand.com/cgi-bin/faq-search.cgi?store=/stores/eyarn&faqKey=278

molly mummenschanz (molly d), Saturday, 17 February 2007 20:30 (seventeen years ago) link

After making a few scarves, a hat, and a baby blanket for other people, I'm finally ready to make something for myself. I've been looking for a shrug pattern that's simple and fitted, not flowy or ruffly or flared or otherwise overly girly. Here's one I haven't ruled out yet.

http://www.knitnet.com/sampler/current/page5.htm

I like the way this sweater looks from the front, but it really bugs me that they don't show the back. Since it's tied around the waist, it could look like a lumpy mess. Thoughts?

lindseykai (lindseykai), Saturday, 17 February 2007 21:03 (seventeen years ago) link

there's a gorgeous shrug pattern for silk yarn in the erika knight 'classic' book

Gem (gem ), Sunday, 18 February 2007 00:52 (seventeen years ago) link

I love all the new knitters dropping in on the thread. (unless you just have different log-ins)

Ms Misery (MsMisery), Sunday, 18 February 2007 00:57 (seventeen years ago) link

i have occasionally dropped in on your thread on normal ilx too. i always read it, just don't post that much.

Gem (gem ), Sunday, 18 February 2007 01:17 (seventeen years ago) link

Buttonholes! Anyone have any tips? Mine turned out miserably at first, but I managed to salvage it with a crochet hook while I was tying in ends.

molly mummenschanz (molly d), Sunday, 18 February 2007 03:11 (seventeen years ago) link

I think it helps if you sew (?) around'em.

I'm knitting *blind*. I did frog it as the stockinette didn't work on the scarf: it curled up! So I'm knitting to and fro BLIND! I watched six episodes of 24 this way (on DVD). HURRAH!

nathalie (stevienixed), Monday, 19 February 2007 08:59 (seventeen years ago) link

I found some wool on sale in a shop which was closing down over the weekend, and bought half a dozen balls of big chunky yarn (with the same shade code on it, too!) in a lovely burnt orange colour for just £1 the lot! I used some big needles, and knitted up a scarf for myself while watching Lewis on tv last night.

I'm getting really hooked on knitting now. My daughters have asked me to knit some clothes for their Barbie dolls, and I've found some free doll's clothes knitting patterns online which I might have a bash at next week :)

C J (C J), Monday, 19 February 2007 09:39 (seventeen years ago) link

Why Stet I did not know you were one of us :)

Haha, whoops. WHY O WHY did I not use his supermodpowers for eevil deeds when I had the chance?

Madchen (Madchen), Monday, 19 February 2007 12:56 (seventeen years ago) link

xpost I love to knit *blind*. THis way I can cut down on my yarn - I have too many 4 skeins of the same yarn - and practice AND watch 24.

I'm fascinated by lace knitting!

nathalie (stevienixed), Monday, 19 February 2007 12:59 (seventeen years ago) link

I finished my second pair of mittens this weekend (looks much better than the first as usual) pictures tonight. Alas spring looks like it might be here to stay though. I'm gifting them to my therapist and she might just have to put them away for next year.

I also sewed a teddybear for my aunt which was awesome fun. I think, much like knitting, I prefer sewing things rather than garments. Perhaps this is because I'm not really into clothes. I should try to sew myself a hoodie and see how that goes.

I loathe knitting buttonholes and therefore suck at it.

Ms Misery (MsMisery), Monday, 19 February 2007 13:59 (seventeen years ago) link

I finished my second pair of mittens this weekend (looks much better than the first as usual) pictures tonight. Alas spring looks like it might be here to stay though. I'm gifting them to my therapist and she might just have to put them away for next year.

I also sewed a teddybear for my aunt which was awesome fun. I think, much like knitting, I prefer sewing "things" rather than garments. Perhaps this is because I'm not really into clothes. I should try to sew myself a hoodie and see how that goes.

I loathe knitting buttonholes and therefore suck at it.

Ms Misery (MsMisery), Monday, 19 February 2007 14:00 (seventeen years ago) link

i sent yr package!

nathalie (stevienixed), Monday, 19 February 2007 14:18 (seventeen years ago) link

hooray! I look forward to getting knitting supplies from across the seas.

Ms Misery (MsMisery), Monday, 19 February 2007 14:19 (seventeen years ago) link

i had to put a value on it. hopefully they won't tax you for it. i only put 10 euros on it. :-)

nathalie (stevienixed), Monday, 19 February 2007 14:20 (seventeen years ago) link

ooh, help help help!

I do quite a bit of card-making (I've got one of those sizzix die-cutting machines and everything!) and I've just bought these from ebay :

http://i14.ebayimg.com/07/i/000/83/28/4829_2.JPG

They were really inexpensive - but I'd like to be able to knit card embellishments for baby cards like this myself. Being a total newbie to the knitting world, I'd need a pattern ...... i've tried searching on google to find something, but have failed. Does anyone know where I might find free patterns for knitting tiddly little things like this, to go on greetings cards??

Help/advice appreciated! Thanks :)

C J (C J), Monday, 19 February 2007 14:31 (seventeen years ago) link

have you looked at this site:

http://www.knittingpatterncentral.com/directory.php

Ms Misery (MsMisery), Monday, 19 February 2007 14:32 (seventeen years ago) link

Wow, there are some great things on that site!

I need something tiny though, which is knitted on cocktail sticks. I can't find anything on that site, but thanks for the link! I've seen several things there I'd like to try.

C J (C J), Monday, 19 February 2007 14:42 (seventeen years ago) link

yeah it's a good first start. I know I've stuff like you describe (gift embellishments) but can't remember where?

Ms Misery (MsMisery), Monday, 19 February 2007 14:46 (seventeen years ago) link

some (now useless) mitt-ens!

Ms Misery (MsMisery), Wednesday, 21 February 2007 01:35 (seventeen years ago) link

Starry, I was just looking around your flickr at your knitting. . .do you still want squares for your blanket?

Ms Misery (MsMisery), Wednesday, 21 February 2007 18:42 (seventeen years ago) link

Cute mittens! I was going to knit Ben a scarf, but we both realized that's it's too late in the season. 60 degree weather is not conducive to scarves.

molly mummenschanz (molly d), Wednesday, 21 February 2007 18:45 (seventeen years ago) link

high today in austin, 81. :( This is all that kept me from wringing the dog's neck for destroying one of my mittens.

Ms Misery (MsMisery), Wednesday, 21 February 2007 18:49 (seventeen years ago) link

Well, you can always knit lightweight lacey scarves with various novelty yarns, but I don't know how well they'd work on boys.

tokyo rosemary (rosemary), Wednesday, 21 February 2007 19:32 (seventeen years ago) link


You must be logged in to post. Please either login here, or if you are not registered, you may register here.