It looks like you made it through the name change just fine, @Rosie Sinclair , and again, welcome to the forum ! I am a greeter here, so if there is anything that I can help with while you are “learning the ropes”, just message me and I am glad to help out. You can also start a thread in the help requests and someone will probably know the answer for you, if either Ken or I am not online.
Has anyone tried knitting on one of those circular loom things? I bought one but it doesn't have instructions. I know it makes a tube, like French Knitting, ideal for bobble hats.
Hi Rosie - I see you're a Lancashire lass, how lovely, beautiful there from what I've seen I can't knit Rosie, always end up with more stiches than I started with, have you ever used a knitting machine ? clever device they are @Rosie Sinclair
hello Patsy. Sorry to disappoint but I'm only living in Lancashire. Fate brought me here. However, for a walker like me, it's wonderful countryside, just like the views in All Creatures Great and Small. I've never tried using a knitting machine. I think the whole point is doing it by hand. The same as sewing...sitting by the fire, sewing by hand is very pleasant. Sewing on a machine is totally different. I do both, depending on what I'm making.
(The quote is not working for me right now for some reason,but this is response to @Rosie Sinclair ’s question about the circular knitting looms.) I have done that, and it is an odd little thing, almost more like crocheting than knitting, except the end result looks like you knitted a tube of whatever size the ring is. People used to take the old wooden thread spools and put tiny nails all around them, and used that to make the little tubes with, and that is probably where the idea for having a circular loom came from. Here is a picture of one, but with something besides nails to use for the knitting.
So I have decided to learn how to knit. (We'll see how long this lasts.) I found this Youtube channel where the instructor does an excellent job of showing how it's done, step-by-step for beginners. She also has more advanced videos, but for me these are perfect. This is the playlist... https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLSZARCc5KSoRQGQY3LfbBgkxXsZEq2r2_ I ordered some wooden knitting needles and the oversized yarn she recommends for beginners from Amazon. I think they will be here tomorrow so let the frustration begin!
I really enjoy knitting and have done it for many years now. When I first was learning, I had a terrible time and didn’t think that I would ever get the hang of it, and I made a lot of mistakes. My knitting was too tight sometimes, and way too loose another time. I would not remember which way I was going after I had put the needles down, and then went backwards on the same half of the needle that I had just knitted over. Having to pull out the wrong stitches was even worse ! However, once I survived all of that, and had the basic idea, I really enjoyed knitting. When I was newly married to my first husband (and only 19 years old), he used to want to go to his parents house, and he and his father would work on one of the family vehicles, whichever one needed repairs that weekend. I would try to bring a book along with me, because there was not much else for me to do for all of those hours, and I think that his mother didn’t know what to do with me either, so she taught me how to knit and to embroider pillowcases. I was basically a captive learner, so I had to keep trying whether I wanted to do that or not, and it was actually a good thing; because left to learn on my own, I would likely never have tried either one. And if I had, I would have given up on the knitting, from sheer frustration. She taught me how to make knitted slippers, which are quick and easy, and still one of my favorite things to make. Eventually, I learned to knit with 4 needles and she taught me how to make socks and turn the heels. I have made both socks and slippers for my family ever since, and enjoy it a lot. I think that you will like it, too, @Beth Gallagher .
That reminds me of how I learned to crochet. I was also a young bride (first husband), married at 18. We used to spend some time at his unmarried best friend's house, who was still living with his parents. While the guys played pool with a bunch of buddies, I'd be in the den with his friend's mom. Her name was Madolyn, and she was a wonderful lady. She was very talented with all needlework, and spent countless hours patiently helping me get the hang of crochet.
Well, I am a master of the cast-on. Trying to get the hang of the knit stitch and finding it frustrating. I think part of the problem is the bulky yarn I chose; it tends to separate into strands that causes confusion in seeing the stitch. I dug out some crochet yarn that is a finer gauge so I'll be frustrated with that later.
I can crochet but not knit. With knitting I think you have to hold the needles rather still and use your fingers more. I could never got the hang of it. I get to flipping those long needles around like crochet needles and it's downright dangerous.
I watched about 5 different "Knitting for Morons" youtube videos; ack. I used to enjoy crochet so maybe that's a safer activity for me. (Needles not pointy.)
We called that Tom Boy stitch when I was young, no idea what it may be called now days @Yvonne Smith . I remember making miles of it then I hand stitched it onto an only gray itchy blanket