Knitting With Friends

There are many aspects of knitting that are attractive to me. I enjoy the visceral pleasure of the yarn passing around my fingers, sliding over my skin and looping around the needles at my command. I love the creativity of choosing patterns, choosing fibers, choosing colors, combining them all in unique ways to create practical and beautiful items. I love veering off the patterns to customize designs or completely create them from scratch. I love knowing that this is an ancient art, and that I share these movements with my grandmother and countless generations before her, sometimes even knitting from patterns that are older than her time. I enjoy keeping my hands busy while doing other things that might otherwise feel frivolous (watching tv), and even when I'm doing things that are important, knitting simple patterns can often help me calm my mind, concentrate on difficult problems, work things out more readily.

Along with all of these things, I love that knitting is such a social craft. You can carry it with you, you can talk with others while you're knitting, and knitting with others will often allow each of you to learn and grow your skills more quickly. Of course, it's no surprise to anyone that knows me that I would glom onto a craft that allows me to talk to people while I do it. I do love to talk!

But a knitting group often becomes more than just an outlet for knitting and chattering away. Over time you grow some great friendships, and I have been blessed to have many great friends in my knitting companions. More than the knitting itself calming me, being with my knitting cohorts will often lift my spirits and keep me pumped about my knitting, help me relax, make me happy.

If you are one of the folks I knit with - thank you. You are special to me.

If you'd like to hear more about knitting, I invite you (again) to check out the knitting vlog I've been doing with my buddy, Knittingbrow. Click here..

Wednesday Night Knitting!

This is the Ice Queen That I've started, now, twice. Obviously I need to use more stitch markers and not watch TV while knitting it. Sigh. I don't know if I'll make my Feb. 29 deadline for this gift! If I ever finish it (or even make it) I'm sure it would look wonderful.

This is Mike's sweater. If you click on the picture and look closely you can see the cable pattern up the middle. He loves it. I can see that the cables don't show as well in the camo yarn, but I like the effect, and in person you can see it better than in a picture.

I've gotten far enough that I feel confident casting on the sleeves. I'm knitting 2 at once, magic loop, and they should go quickly. Mike doesn't want cables on the sleeves, so it should be easy!

I totally ignored VT day this year, at first. Mike, though, actually got me flowers and DARK chocolates and a sweet card, so then I was feeling a little guilty. So, while he was camping with Si and the other Boy Scouts this last weekend, I knit him his very own Diabetic-Friendly cupcake. yes, that's even a heart on top. Next time I do one, I'm going to put catnip inside for my babies.


Personal Narrative:

I love my knitting buddies! We just had a loverly time at Crimson Cup tonight. I've known Yarmando for many years, and it's so comfortable to just sit near him and share our knitting. Also, he is truly a genius about knitting, and it's great to get his opinions on things and to see what he's working on. Knittingbrow and KnitsB (do you have a blog of your own?) feel like old friends, just like Yarmando. I mean, it feels like I've known them both forever, and it's a sweet and wonderful thing, I tell you! I can't even quantify it, you'll just have to trust me. It's relaxing and intellectually stimulating. Great combo, if you ask me! KB and Y are the reason I'm knitting today, as it was reading their blogs and seeing the socks they'd knit that got my fingers itching to try it. The rest is herstory.