Spindlitis

I really didn’t knit for about five months. I am doing some Christmas knitting but am trying to minimize what I do. Maybe I’ll add some pictures when I finish it.

I had some thoughts about old school knitters. I have a few knitting magazines from the 1930s. Knitters of that period knit suits out of thin boucle yarn. They were dressmaker suits, copies of designer creations. It might take years to finish (which was okay because they couldn’t afford a lot of yarn anyway.) I did read of one blogger that finished her suit and it was a major accomplishment. One of my friend’s had a grandmother that did this type of knitting. She did these impeccable cardigans. Back then, cardigans would be finished with grosgrain ribbon on the button bands. If you read Gertrude Taylor’s knitting book, she can take you through this type of knitting. Women of this era were used to taking their knitting with them and working on these projects as they had time. I’m sure there were a lot of failures out there, but people seemed to really try and show good craftsmanship.

Sometimes, it seems to me that many of the new designs are just for the novelty of the look. There may not be attention paid to the details. And I realize that many knitters have a job and a family to care for and just may knit to relax. That’s okay. But if you put the time into studying knitting, like you would any other subject, you will find that your knitting improves and the garments you turn out are more polished looking. It’s worth the effort. Tackle a project that challenges you.

..I don’t care how much Churchmouse patterns cost. When you buy a pattern and it doesn’t fit, you have wasted time and maybe money. I don’t buy patterns so that I can re-write them. I buy patterns so I can start a project and just knit. This was a raglan and the top part simply did not come up far enough. I ripped it back and reworked it, but it still didn’t fit. I don’t want to rag on the designer. I still think the design elements she chose are beautiful and other folks seems to have come up with a sweater that fits. But it did not work for me and I can’t stand to see this nice yarn wasted. So I am spending more time taking this apart.

For some reason, the pattern police come out every time the Churchmice have a new pattern. Now this is a yarn shop that actually gives away a free pattern with purchase on their anniversary. I have not had any problems with their patterns and they fit. But for some reason, people feel that they should bitch about the price. Every blinking time. If you don’t like the price, don’t buy it. I find it interesting that someone would spend significant money to buy yarn yet want the cheapest pattern possible. There are lots of free patterns on Ravelry. Pick one out and knit it, be my guest. But seriously, find something else to bitch about. I will continue to vote, with my money, for the folks that turn out patterns that work and don’t have to be rewritten.

UPDATE:

I still need to skein up the yarn and wash it, but it’s done. And I have dirt and hair all over my skirt. What a mess! I think, with the exception of knitting a gansey, I am done with sweaters knit in one piece. (And I say this having just bought a cardigan pattern that is all one piece.) I don’t care for knitting with circulars. You wind up with this big, heavy, unmanageable piece that goes on and on. When you knit individual pieces, you actually finish a piece and move to the next one. The shaping tends to be better than when you knit a single piece. I’m not fond of sewing, but it’s just finish work. When I started knitting, everything was knit in pieces then sewn together. And knitting in the round was touted as this great improvement, where you’d be done with the sweater all at once. Yeah, after you’ve slogged through round after round of several hundred stitches.

I’m knitting differently these days. I buy yarn with a project in mind, mostly. I finish projects. I knit things that I really want to wear and, if I can get yarn on sale, I don’t mind if it doesn’t last forever. I need lighter weight sweaters and gave away some nice heavy ones.

(Crossposting from NotSoThoreau)

One of my favorite new blogs does her resolutions on Groundhog Day. I thought it was a great idea! So here are my fiber resolutions (which I’m going to cross post over on Spinditis.)

• Knit three cardigans. At least one will be done from handspun
• Buy yarn only for specific projects. The only exemption is sock yarn.
• Sew at least three new skirts and tops.
• Make at least three new pairs of socks.
• Sell off some knitting books/magazines
• Use or give away yarn and fiber stash
• Design one sweater and one shawl
• Make as much food as possible from scratch
• Start an herb garden.
• Do more dyeing.

I want to work in color this year. I love my natural colored fleeces, but I feel the need for more color. I also want to work more intentionally this year. I want to knit sweaters to go with clothes that I make. I don’t know how many more years I will be able to knit and spin. Best to start working with an end in mind.

I’ve been spinning so long that I sometimes have to remind myself that few people spin these days. In fact, there really aren’t even that many people that knit. If you read one of the knitting histories and think about how common it was for a woman to carry her knitting with her everywhere, it really seems like you are the only knitter/spinner in the world. At least, that’s the case until you go to a fiber festival or hang out on Ravelry.

I do tend to get pulled into more “challenges” now, so I find myself spinning shorter batches of fiber. I really want to make the Darrowby cardigan on Knitty and I think I have the Romney lamb fiber for it. It will be a pretty long project and I do need to comb the wool before I spin it. In all this time, I haven’t done a ‘sweater on a spindle” project and it’s long overdue. But first, I’ve gotta finish that Spring Fling challenge!