Life on a thread on a roll on a pin on a piece of wood

Sometimes I believe in the interhuman force (more than otherwise that is). Like two days ago, when a friend of mine gave me this lovely “wood with pins to store rolls of thread on” while saying “I don’t know what to do with it, and I thought, maybe you do”. Yes, I do. A box with thread rolls is a bad idea, and I’ve been thinking about making just a piece of wood with pins on to solve my little messy thread problem… Thank you P, let’s continue with telepathy, knitting and drinking strange teas. ;)

Pretty packages (Or What to do with yarn leftovers)

When I make scarves it is quite common that I get smaller pieces of rather pretty yarn that is neither knittable nor crochetable. They increases the fun with wrapping gifts (seems that I've found an additional occation to pet yarns... :) I began with the metallic yarns, but realized that colourful mohair works as well. To get a band, make a crochet chain. If you have longer “to short pieces”; cast on a large number of stitches (knit one row) and bind of. And felt it in the washing machine if you are in the mood for experiments (haven’t tried that myself yet, but it sounds like an idea to test ;)

Make a seat!

I found this lovely chair, one of a pair, at an antique store. The fabric is original from the 19^th century, and I have been trying to figure out how to cover the seat that goes with the style and is both pretty and comfortable. I planned on sewing a cover in linen but that didn’t really appeal. It was first when I saw Erika Knight’s knitted armchair cover in her book “Simple Knits with a Twist: Unique Projects for Creative Knitters” that I found the solution – a knitted blanket that was shaped after the seat. I simply measured the chair and the gauge for my selected yarn and stitch size with my chosen pattern, and calculated the number of stitches needed to fit the seat.

The pattern I used is very simple using only knit and purl:

Row 1: *k1 p1, repeat to end of row
Row 2: knit
Row 3: *p1 k1, repeat to end of row
Row 4: knit

Repeat row 1-4. I choose to give the blanket an edge using k3 in the beginning and end of each row, and starting and finishing the work with 3 rows knit. I also used rather thin stitches for the yarn to make the blanket stiff. After the knitting is done, damp the blanket and stretch it to the measured size of the seat, and let it dry (I haven't done that part just yet...). Another good idea I think would be to knit a larger piece that is felted in the washing machine. It can then be cut in the right size. Then you don’t have to think about the gauge… :)

Grandmothers and Barbies

One nice thing about crafting is that it makes it easy to give personal gifts. One gift that I will always treasure is this little outfit my grandmother made for my Barbie doll when I was a child. The material was fabric leftovers, a short zipper and a button and didn’t cost her many pennies. But the value for me is still a fortune.

My other grandmother (I am truly lucky to have two of them!) taught me how to knit when I was a kid. The result was an endless wardrobe for my Barbie doll of leftover yarn… :) I will get back to you with the patterns for my quickly made Barbie doll dresses when I find them. They definitely beat baby clothes when it comes to instant reward! :)

Knit together! (or Knitting time and excuses)

Something I hear rather often is “I would knit if I only had time”. Honestly, time is the only thing we have got. Sometimes I knit when doing nothing else, as a way to relax. More often, I knit at workshops (first at the University, now at work), while watching TV, sunbathing, talking in the phone… anything that doesn’t require the attention of my hands. One perfect time to knit is when seeing friends. If meeting friends is a good excuse to get to knit, knitting (or crochet or …, of course) is a good way of keeping in touch with your friends when other things fill your time, like work or children. I believe that finding time to keep up a favourite creative hobby and thereby taking care of yourself will make you more resistant to any kind of pressure from your surroundings. I hope that someday in the future I will make that statement evidence based. :) Until then, remember that knitting is without side effects as long as you keep the needles out of the sofa and use machine washable yarns (see below for references ;)

An extremely difficult time to knit is while petting the cat.
Knit together refers mainly to human friends... :)

Make it in a day – make it baby size (or instant reward for the impatient)

Want to make something really quick? Then I can truly recommend knitting baby stuff – it gives almost instant reward. Don’t be afraid to change the yarn if you cannot find the recommended yarn or want to use something else. As long as you check the gauge… (Been there, done that. You know… :)

For free baby patterns check the links to your right. All three yarn companies have a diversity of baby and children clothing. There are as well some really nice books to buy.

In my bookshelf I have five books for baby or children clothes. 3 of them are written by Erika Knight. The Swedish translation of “Baby bloom” is where it all started. I found it on sale and then I was stuck in the world of baby clothes… It actually contains patterns for both maternity and baby, and I think everybody could find something they like. “Simple knits for little cherubs” is for children 2 to 5 years and I haven’t tried it out yet. On the front page there is a little cherub, but otherwise the book contains more of basic classy children clothes. “Simple knits for cherished babies” contains many patterns of romantic stuff for babies 0-9 months. With thin yarn, they may not give as instant reward. :) But if you want to make pretty stuff for a little baby, this might be something for you. It is a romantic and dreamy book with a lot of inspiration.

“Special knits - 22 gorgeous handknits for babies” by Debbie Bliss contains patterns for babies 0-24 months. I like this book, but I don’t really know how to describe it. Pretty in a cool way and politically correct maybe. I find it very useful: it is a do-er book for clothes to wear and tear.

“Adorable crochet for babies and toddlers” by Lesley Stanfield. The patterns are divided into 4 sections of different styles and are from 0 to 24 months. If you like to crochet this could be something for you. I am not jumping out of my chair, but will make at least the pompon hat!

A little warning – I know there are some complaints on knitting books for being full of errors, but I haven’t noticed. I tend to see the whole picture, and not the details, which sometimes can get really bad…:)

If you live in Sweden I really recommend www.bokfynd.nu to compare prices between bookstores. To my big surprise it is actually cheaper to buy books including postage from the US than from the UK to Sweden… (I envy all of you that live in US or UK that can get free delivery from Amazon. :)

More knitting science – back to the carpal tunnel syndrome (knit, but don't wash! :)

In one Chinese study, knitting was not associated with the onset of carpal tunnel syndrome (se below), while manual washing and rolling or kneading dough were. I guess that means that knitting is safe, but that we should knit with machine washable yarns, so that we don’t get carpal tunnel syndrome by the following hand washing… ;)

Chin Med J (Engl). Volume 112(1), Jan 1999, pp 44-8. PMID: 11593640

Good and free in Swedish (Sorry all international friends!!)

If you are Swedish speaking I recommend you to subscribe to the private newsletter “billigt garn”. It has been rather infrequent lately, but it's worth waiting for with good reading and great tips! (note that the author is another Anna... :) Here’s the link: http://www.billigt-garn.net/prenumerera.html Enjoy!! :)

The SCIENCE of knitting (or keep the needles out of the sofa)

Searching the medical databases Medline/PubMed for research done of beneficial effects of knitting gave me tons of hits on neural knits, a branch of neuroscience which has little to do with knitting with yarn… However, I found a very nice text in Academic Science about knitting. Potential benefits of knitting discussed were protection against heart disease and dementia. Not bad! However, the author also wrote about potential risk factors – such as injuries after sitting on needles left on the sofa and carpal tunnel syndrome (“squeezed nerves with subsequent pain somewhere in the lower arm”). To keep the carpal tunnel syndrome away I work on several projects in parallel, so that I change between different needle sizes, crochet hooks and the sewing machine not to wear out. Yes, sometimes it gets really messy at home. :) If the pain comes anyway, my advice would be to meet Dr Chiropractic and/or a physiotherapist. If you also keep the needles out of sitting areas, knitting will reduce your stress without side effects! ;)

And a little quotation from the article:

In a world whose technological advances—food processors, bread machines, online books—have deprived us of many of life's tactile pleasures, the feeling of wool or cotton yarn and the steady repetition of stitch after stitch is a restorative tonic, producing “not a virtual something that can be altered with a single click, but a real and tangible something….”

Academic Medicine. Volume 76(7), July 2001, p 671

Summertime, summerknits (or take time to check gauge!)

One of the nicest views for knitting is definitely found at the Swedish west coast! I’m working on the bolero on the cover of Vogue Knitting Magazine Winter 2006/2007 (see previous post for picture). It is actually the second one for me. In spite the fact that I had replaced the yarn for my first bolero, I ignored checking the gauge. I turned out pretty well anyway, BUT, it just wasn’t my size. So, my first bolero moved to a friend of mine in London, where it seems to have settled pretty well. For this second one I did check the gauge and changed the needles so it can stay in MY wardrobe. I don't have patients enough to knit a 3rd one. :) Anyway, I have learnt my lesson well – to take time to check the gauge! :)