the hub-bub about knitting?

[JPeriod]

So putting my DD in wool has sparked a roadside-accident-drive-by effect in me. I need to know what the hub-bub is about knitting.

I looked up a free soaker pattern on the internet (because I'm WAY too pratical to waste time/materials on something silly, like a scarf I won't use, to learn this knitting thing). Without understanding the gibberish on the pattern, I got some pretty-colored merino wool at joanns and 1 set of needles.

First off, my hands hurt. I've never been one to have my hands hurt, so this is new to me. I've tried both english and continental and I think english hurts *less*, but still. :scratch And my shoulders...I thought knitting was supposed to be relaxing?? I'm all tight and bunched up in my shoulders!

Needles keep getting stuck in the middle of a strand. Seems I need pointier ones, but that could hurt my fingertips quickly, right?

This is also painfully slow. I now realize that the thickness of yarn (and also needle guage) makes a big difference on how fast you can pop something out, but gosh. I'm supprised people have the patience for this, let alone enjoy it!!

And I *still* can't figure out what colorway means. :scratch I mean, I think it has to do with the color of the yarn, but why don't they just call it "color," like everything else?! :scratch

:shifty Help me find the love. Any tips?

[Wonder Woman]

what no one tells you about knitting is that it's a lot like when you first get married :shifty You see all these happy couples, and there's lots of winking and nudging at ladies' retreats, and you see everyone all glowy and happy.

People don't really talk about the fact that you have those first few months of fighting over which way the TP goes and who will take out the trash and what's the fairest way to fight and just why is this sex thing supposed to be something anyone enjoys and why do I have to cook dinner all the time :hissyfit :giggle

IOW, there's an adjustment period. And then you one day - pretty soon, in fact, wake up to find yourself with that same glowy bliss that happily married couples exhibit :giggle There will still be days you fight with your yarn and have to wrangle your needles, but it switches to where most of your days are happy and peaceful :heart

(and yes, sharper needles definitely help. I prefer the ones from http://knitpicks.com, the nickel plated ones. I have a knitting callous on my right index finger where I've poked myself moving stitches off the needle, but as long as I keep knitting it stays there and doesn't hurt :shifty)

[Kiara.I]

It's not called "colour" because sometimes it has 2, 3, 4, 5 or more colours all mixed together. And for that matter the same 5 colours could be on a different ball of yarn and cause a different effect because it had been dyed in a different way.

Incidentally the same colour/colourway thing applies to wrap baby carriers. ;)

Sooooooo....regarding soakers and the wool you got. Did you check if it was superwash or not?

[crunchymum]

what no one tells you about knitting is that it's a lot like when you first get married :shifty You see all these happy couples, and there's lots of winking and nudging at ladies' retreats, and you see everyone all glowy and happy.

People don't really talk about the fact that you have those first few months of fighting over which way the TP goes and who will take out the trash and what's the fairest way to fight and just why is this sex thing supposed to be something anyone enjoys and why do I have to cook dinner all the time :hissyfit :giggle

IOW, there's an adjustment period. And then you one day - pretty soon, in fact, wake up to find yourself with that same glowy bliss that happily married couples exhibit :giggle There will still be days you fight with your yarn and have to wrangle your needles, but it switches to where most of your days are happy and peaceful :heart

(and yes, sharper needles definitely help. I prefer the ones from http://knitpicks.com, the nickel plated ones. I have a knitting callous on my right index finger where I've poked myself moving stitches off the needle, but as long as I keep knitting it stays there and doesn't hurt :shifty)

:laughtears this is an EXCELLENT analogy for it! :giggle

There was lots of cursing and sore hands/fingers/neck in the beginning for me. And frustration. :yes but just like learning to ride a bike, once it "clicked" and I got better at it, I was all "ah! NOW I understand why people do this to relax!":yes it's very calming and centering for me, usually - but no way was it like that in the beginning. ;)

[Saphirah]

There definitely is a wall you just have to push through. It was very mental for me, I really had to think myself through it, instead of throwing the whole mess at the wall. I started on a soaker too, but haven't finished it, that was six years ago.

[ellies mom]

I remember when I was learning to knit, one of the guys I worked with told me, " I thought knitting was supposed to be relaxing. Those old ladies who knit look relaxed. You look very tense." That was 11 years ago. I look very relaxed now too. You will get there.

Instead of jumping right into making a soaker, since you've got wool and wool is nice to learn with, you could knit squares and then when you are finished felt them down to make pot holders or coasters. That way all your mistakes are hidden and you have something useful. Or you could pick up some cotton and knit dishtowels or face clothes. They are the perfect beginner projects because they are quick, easy and useful. And a few wonky stitches aren't going to matter when you are scrubbing dishes. I don't actually like making scarves either. It bores me to tears.

I love my Knitpick needles although I use the wooden ones instead. They are so pretty and nicely pointy.

[MarynMunchkins]

Learning any new skill is frustrating in the beginning. :hug

[Starfox]

LOVE the marriage analogy!!!:giggle:giggle:giggle (that must mean I got divorced in the first few months...;):giggle:giggle:giggle)

[ncsweetpea]

I think I cried for the first two weeks I tried knitting. Tears of sheer frustration coupled with dogged determination. And I put band-aids on my fingers--or wore thimbles. (I didn't have to do the band-aids or thimbles when I got married, thankfully! ;))

[TestifyToLove]

Four times I attempted to learn to knit and failed. Each of those times, Dh BEGGED me to stop. I was so frustrated I was literally pulling my hair out. Heaven forbid he expect me to TALK in the process of actually knitting.

This last time, it was a discussion on here that finally clicked for me. Once I could wrap my brain around the how, I just did lost of repetitive motion to create the muscle memory to make it work. That was this fall and right now I'm nearly 16" into a sweater.

If I get too stressed out, I set it aside and swap back to my crochet. I don't have to even think to crochet so it calms me back down.

[ArmsOfLove]

I had to let go of the idea that I could learn to knit on a project and just learn the basics. Lots of washcloths and then a big long washcloth otherwise known as a scarf ;)

Once I got the basics down I learned a couple of different stitches and that's when it clicked.

Mostly, though, like marriage I just went in expecting the adjustment period and decided that my goal couldn't be perfect--it had to be practice :heart

[RosalieMarie]

There's a picture of my very first dishcloth somewhere on this forum. It was a disaster. :shiver I was so proud to have learned, though. Learning to knit was the best thing I ever did for myself. :heart

Some people tell you to start out making a project that you really love, but I always recommend a dishcloth first. For me, I need to complete something quickly and see results. I decided to learn because I wanted to make longies. I made my first pair just a few months after learning the basics.

[Marielle]

I learned to knit as a little girl but my tension was horrible until a couple of years ago. I would pick it up again every couple of years and I've shared before here how I made a basket weave baby blanket that was so tight in tension you could have slapped somebody silly with it. Unfortunately I thought that's the way it was supposed to be and I actually gifted it (to my credit I was a clueless teen at the time). :lol

Last time I picked up knitting my tension didn't even begin to relax until about the 4th project. My shoulders took a bit longer to come down.

[ncsweetpea]

The knitting class I took had us buy plastic needles. I quickly learned that wa not for me. So I tried aluminum. Got better. But I didn't really enjoy my needles until I got bamboo. I have a Knitpicks set and some odd sets from Clover. It helps with my tension. It fixed my slippery problem. And I like how they feel in my hands.

[Naked Camper]

Reb that marriage analogy cracks me up :laughtears sooooo true!

[Punkie]

I made a basket weave baby blanket that was so tight in tension you could have slapped somebody silly with it.

:lol

[JPeriod]

Ack, and here I thought no one responded besides Reb because I wasn't getting notifications! :O

Reb, the analogy is HILARIOUS! :giggle You inspired me to keep going again so I went out and got a size 8 cable needle (29"), thinking knitting in the round would be faster after reading a few more things. also got some thicker wool cuz the first one I started out with seemed thin (number 4), especially when coupled with the size 2 needles I first got. :doh But then I got home and started understanding the soaker instructions better and it seems I need MULTIPLE needles, just to do one stinkin' soaker. :(

I feel like I've done enough practice rows to start a project. But I'm impatient and don't have all the time in the world to spend perfecting this knitting thing before getting to the real deal. I really don't have use for a dishcloth or what-not. :shifty And I don't care much if I have a funny looking imperfect soaker. I'm sure it'd still be useable, right? (you should see my first recycled wool soakers and wraps! :shifty Completely goofy, but they work, so it's okay with me! :shifty)

But is there a free soaker or longie pattern out there, or one I can modify, to work with what I have so I can see if this is for me before investing more money? Or do I really need to buy more needles? I don't want to draw a conclusion about knitting based on a project I don't need/want. Because if the results of the soaker are good enough, I might just be willing to keep at the knitting, even if I hate it at first. KWIM? It's like Roasalie said, I need to see results! :shifty Don't wanna make no stinkin' dishcloth I can buy for a quarter! :snooty :giggle

Okay, so details of what I have so far...sensations 100% merino feltable and stitch nation full o' sheep 100% peruvian. Both say hand wash. The needles are aluminum. Think I should get some wood instead?

[crunchymum]

I've never done a soaker, but if you have a circular needle (I'm assuming that's what you meant, a cable needle is something entirely different) you can knit in the round with one circular using the "magic loop" method. :) just type in magic loop on YouTube for how to do it. It works the same as double pointed needles. :)

[JPeriod]

I've never done a soaker, but if you have a circular needle (I'm assuming that's what you meant, a cable needle is something entirely different) you can knit in the round with one circular using the "magic loop" method. :) just type in magic loop on YouTube for how to do it. It works the same as double pointed needles. :)

Yeah, that. I learned from knittinghelp.com, and was under the impression that there were fixed circulars (which you can't sew any smaller than the diameter), and then the ones with a thin cable called majic loop. All I see at the craft stores are the thin wire ones, so I guess majic loop is all anyone does anymore? The patterns frequently have smaller size needles for trim, but do I need those? Can I just achieve the same effect with a different tension and/or stitch?

[KnittingHappy]

I didn't go through that adjustment period. I'd been wanting (almost desperately) to learn to knit for years that I jumped in with two feet and never even considered that there would be any frustration. A friend's mother showed me how to cast on and do the knit stitch and I was quite happy doing that at first. I ended up giving my first project to my niece and calling it a blanket for her Barbies. ;) Since I couldn't get back to my friend's mom to see how to bind off, I learned it online. I learned everything else online too. I guess I didn't have that frustration because I didn't have any project in mind at first. I just wanted to learn to knit and was content to make washclothes and scarves at first.

I've been knitting for 3 years and I love it. I make all kinds of things now and love the challenge of learning new things. You will get there.

The most helpful tip anyone ever gave me (I learned it from someone on here) is to sew in a life-life every once in awhile. Just use a yarn needle and some scrap yarn and follow along the needle. Then, if you mess up and need to rip out stitches, you can frog them to your life-line, reinsert your needles and try again. I am making a pair of socks right now and put a life-line in after each pattern repeat (every 14 rows). I was moving stitches around before starting a new repeat and I lost 4 stitches. I could *not* find those badboys and had to frog it back to my life-line. :phewSo very glad I had it in there!

[Wonder Woman]

you will need the smaller ones for trim as the pattern calls for it - I just did a pattern where I had to do ribbing (knit one, purl one) on the bottom, neck, and both cuffs. It called for a needle two sizes smaller in order to pull the ribbing in really tights. If I'd done it on a larger needle, the ribbing would have been really loose.

[ellies mom]

There are two types of circulars- Fixed and Interchangables. Fixed is just what you said. It is a fixed diameter. With interchangables, you can swap out different needle sizes and cable lengths. They are also handy if you want to steal a certain size needle from a project. You can just leave the original project on the cable (my interchangables have "blocks" so the stitches don't slide off).

Magic Loop is more of a trick. You can use a circular needle with a long cable in such a way that you can knit a full range of diameters. This is great for people that don't like to use double pointed needles because you can do smaller diameters than circulars normally work for. It is also good for people that can't afford or do not want a ton of the same size needle in different lengths. The length of the needles is an issue if you are knitting in the round. When you are knitting flat, you have a lot more leeway about what length you use. Me, personally, I don't do magic loop for a couple of different reasons. First, when I'm knitting flat, I don't like having all the extra cable. It drives me nuts. I like having enough cable to do the job but not a ton more. Second, I'm not afraid of double pointed needles. Third, I love my Knitpicks Harmony Interchangeables. Even though I have a ton of other circulars in a variety of lengths.Those are my go to needles. They are slick and pointy and so very pretty. I did order a longer cable that I can use for magic loop but I have never used it. I actually got it because one of these days I'm going to give the "2 socks on 1 needle" technique a try.

[Naked Camper]

for what it's worth I knit EVERYTHING on circular needles.

[ellies mom]

for what it's worth I knit EVERYTHING on circular needles.

Me too. My first pair of needles were straight. I don't even remember why I bought my first pair of circulars but after my first pair, I never looked back. OK- I do use DPNs when needed but 98% of my knitting is on circs.

[UltraMother]

Listening to your body is very important, whether you've been knitting five minutes or five years. If it hurts-STOP. When you are just starting out, you will be holding your hands awkwardly, and many short practice sessions are better than a few long ones, esp. for building muscle memory.
knitting stretches (http://www.bellaonline.com/articles/art69088.asp)

[lizzyd]

I'm working on my first soaker and this (http://community.livejournal.com/punk_knitters/110889.html)is the pattern I decided on. Only requires one set of needles. It's been a pretty simple pattern once I got used to knitting in the round.

I found this pattern on Ravelry, along with this warning: FYI: This pattern link generates a warning of adult content. The page that the “adult content warning” links to does not have any “adult” content on it, just the pattern and pictures of the soakers and children wearing the soakers. The rest of the blog may have content unsuitable for children under 14 (hence the warning), but the pattern page itself does not.

[JPeriod]

I'm working on my first soaker and this (http://community.livejournal.com/punk_knitters/110889.html)is the pattern I decided on. Only requires one set of needles. It's been a pretty simple pattern once I got used to knitting in the round.

I found this pattern on Ravelry, along with this warning: FYI: This pattern link generates a warning of adult content. The page that the “adult content warning” links to does not have any “adult” content on it, just the pattern and pictures of the soakers and children wearing the soakers. The rest of the blog may have content unsuitable for children under 14 (hence the warning), but the pattern page itself does not.
:nak2
Thanks! The other one I was looking at was freckle bottoms, but it's a paid pattern (I just like the knitting methods). I was looking at the hip measurements, do you think that;s resting? My DD has thunder thighs and 22 in hips with the flat on. :O She would need a toddler size according to the chart, but I'm sure the rise would be too long (she's 15").

[lizzyd]

The one that I'm in the process of knitting has some stretch to it. It can probably stretch several additional inches. I think that's probably what you want with a soaker to get a nice fit? I've never used a soaker so this is all new to me.