Knitting: It's all about the technique

So, I don't know if this was really a resolution of mine for 2009 (rhymer!), but I wanted to make some headway with techniques... and I do vaguely recall a post mentioning learning cast ons or something or other. Anyway... long story short (too late!), I did learn a new cast on the other day.

I meant to write about it then but was just too busy (i.e. shoveling the damn drive 4700 times cause it keeps snowing). So I want to make these socks


They are by the fabulous Eunny Jang and were also featured in Interweave, that photo is a copyright by them and the link goes to the page where you can purchase the PDF if you want it. Anyway, I happen to have that issue of IK, Spring 2007 and in it there is a little HOW TO on Entrelac (which I've already done), but it was an informative read, none the less.

So back to the cast on info... Eunny used what she called the Middle East Wrap Cast On. And when I decided to play, I only had the iphone on me, so YOUTUBE was easily accessed and the only video I could find that looked LIKE the pictures was called the Eastern Cast On. In it, the gal was using 2 yarns to cast on because she was using it for double knitting. Well I only needed one strand obviously, but at least watching her, I understood what needed to be done. I tried and tried going from the written direction, but it wasn't working for me. Anyway, after the video, it still took me about 4 times to GET IT RIGHT. The yarn ends kept slipping off. Anyway, it's a little awkward to hold, but once you GET IT, it's definitely an effective cast on. It is similar to the magic loop toe up type cast ons, but I have to say, having done those and this one, I think I'm liking this one more. I really like the look of the finished toe. It's seamless and "cute."

After finishing this new toe... I decided to play with the entrelac pattern a little, too... and wholly crap (yes that spelling was intentional), I LOVE it even more now that I can knit backwards... can I get an amen! It's sooo awesome and fun and you don't have to TURN, not that turning is bad, but it's just so cool that you don't have to. So yes, my knit geek came full out and I've been excited ever since. I can't wait to make these socks!

Must finish Schooner Sock #2 FAST!!! Of course, now it's total drudgery since it's just stockinette and the Entrelac bug is calling out to me very loudly! But I do want A finished pair of socks and that will be my quickest to get done. Oh and as an aside for the Entrelac socks... I do not now, nor have I ever worn knee socks (ok, maybe once in kindergarten), so mine will be normal sock size, not knee socks. Don't get me wrong knee socks are cute on some and work with other peoples legs, but not mine. I don't like the bindedness feel on my leg... drives me bananas... and the rubbing behind the knew... forget it. But in any case, I'm really looking forward to these socks.

Below is the yarn I'm using for the socks. I love the 2 together and have been wanting them for a 2 color project, but didn't know what... now I have the perfect one. The blue is called Caribean Blue and the other is called Terra Cotta. Oh and I got it at Temptations and it was 40% off... SCORE!

Knitting: the learning curve

So, last night a few from the Thursday clan met up because this Thursday we'll miss our night together due to the holiday. We had a new person/guest. A brand new knitter, like she knit her first stitch last night--brand new! I find it amusing and awesome the reaction from people as they first learn and I remember back to those days of being a new knitter myself. And what is kind of funny is most people have the same reaction. Either uber excitement or horror. Our gal was of the excited variety.

Starting a new adventure can be fun and exciting and maybe scary. And with knitting, I learned something I thought would be very difficult (it wasn't, I tricked myself for years). So when I completed my first finished object, a HAT. I couldn't believe it. I was elated! I made a piece of CLOTHING! And though I made outfits before for myself, via regular material and sewing, it wasn't the same excitement. I couldn't believe how easy it really was and how for so long I tricked myself out of knitting. From that first hat I made another and another and another. With each one, I slightly modified the design. From there I moved on to some fluffy scarfs (maybe). I don't even remember and back then, Ravelry wasn't born yet.

I am still a learning knitter. I think we all are. We tackle new projects and techniques as we go along. My latest feat has been fair isle. It scares some people, different yarns and starnds everywhere... and long ago, I think it probably scared me a little too, but I must say, having done it, I fell in love. It took me years to feel comfortable with my knitting (from where I started) and being confident to deal with stranded knitting. But now I feel accomplished and I love color and the relationship and the patterns and variance keep me "entertained" while I knit. So, stranded colorwork is good for me. And small segway into growing as a knitter, in my opinion, this is the great thing about knitting groups, we all get to see and feel each other's projects and I think those relationships feed our confidence in ourselves and allow us to step outside the boundaries of where our knitting feels safe. These relationships challenge us to take our knitting to another level. Now in some cases, we may say... WOW that is good for you... but I'm not there yet, or good grief, I don't think I'll ever do that!


Which leads me to my next topic.... the dreaded lace! I have some friends that have made beautiful amazing pieces. See here and here and here. But I have attempted to make some lacey type things with little success. It is definitely something that takes more patience than I am willing to give it. Don't get me wrong, I can MAKE lace, but it wears on me and it becomes unfun and I get frustrated, so for now, lace is on my backburner. I would rather keep the fun in knitting and knit what makes me happy... so fair isle it is! HA!

But back to the learning curve... as I was saying, I still learn almost daily something about knitting. Take for instance reading about cast on's a few weeks ago, I had this epiphany that I had been doing the knitted cast on WRONG for umm... yeah, years. When I brought this up last night, Julane did mention something about, yeah that sounds ok and then she said she thought one was the cable cast on and one was knitted, etc....

So of course I looked it up and low and behold, I was in fact doing the KNITTED cast on, correctly and what I recently read the author confused it with the CABLE cast on, which in turn made me feel like I had been doing it WRONG for years, when in fact, I had not. But again, it taught me a new technique. Cable cast on! And to take things a step further, this is where I get a little annoyed with pattern writers or magazines and other sources. I wish they would tell you the cast on of choice for the pattern and WHY you should use this cast on.

Now... some projects, the cast on is irrelevant... but others it is very relevant, say for instance if you want to pick up stitches later... then you need the provisonal cast on, sometimes called a crochet cast on. And here is another non-standarized thing, I consider the crochet cast on, where you actually use a crochet needle to cast RIGHT onto the knitting needle. I'll have to make a video to show the technique, but to me that is a crochet cast on. Others say crochet is what I consider provisional, which is where you make a crochet chain and pickup the back loop stitches of the chain on your knitting needle and knit away. Later, you pull the crocheted chain out and pick up the live stitches and knit on from there.

The point is this, knitting is old, old, old... and people the world over have been knitting for centuries and with all this handed down knowledge, terms and changes are bound to occur. Couple that with the fact that we all hold yarn a different way, some of us knit continental, others knit english and as long as the end result is what we want, we are successful, and that is just the way it should be.

Of course if it isn't, we tink it, rip it, frog it... see, different words mean the same.

But ahhh... the newness of knitting. It's fun all over again.