New Year’s Knitting Resolutions

Happy 2014 everyone! The time has come to reflect on the past year and to set goals for the new. 2013 was quite a wonderful year for me, and I am moving into 2014 full of excitement, hope and ideas! I find myself creating a subset of resolutions just for my knitting life and projects. Before the list gets too long, I will stop and share what I have.

One: Practice better form and posture. I have this odd habit of raising my shoulders while knitting. I get tense and serious, and I do not even realize I’m doing it until they start to ache—or go numb! My left shoulder in particular sometimes feels as if a vampire has drained it of blood after about an hour of “tense” knitting. Even though I get excited and I want to see results, I need to slow down and realize that I’m not competing in a race…unless of course it is Christmas Eve. Then it would be a race against time! http://www.allfreeknitting.com/Tips-for-Knitting/29-tips-for-avoiding-knitting-pain

I can has shoulder?

Two: Continue to keep track of all the due dates and genders of the seemingly endless stream of babies being born around me. Bonnets, hats, booties and the occasional amigurumi toy take no more than a few evenings to whip up. Not to mention they make for warm, fuzzy happy babies!

Three: My ever supportive boyfriend is by now more than sweater worthy! If he can hold still long enough for me to take measurements, this should be my first major project of 2014. He’s down with the plan, I found a pattern that seems legit, and soon he can join me for yet another afternoon at the yarn shop while I hunt materials and plague the staff with dozens of questions. Truth be told, it will be the first time I’ve knit a garment that large. I’ve made a few halter tops and some miniature sweater ornaments, but a man’s sweater will be a new frontier for me. http://www.knitpicks.com/patterns/Tiny_Holiday_Sweater_Ornament_Pattern__D51077220.html

Behold! The largest sweater I have ever knit! 

Four: Get around to reading The Friday Night Knitting Club by Kate Jacobs. I picked it up on a whim last summer, and it’s still collecting dust on my nightstand while I make my way down my reading list. It has some mixed reviews and it seems like chick-lit at its finest, but I couldn’t resist the pull of a fantasy yarn shop right on Broadway. It may be the light hearted, palate cleanser I will need after Killing Jesus. Brutal! http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/friday-night-knitting-club-kate-jacobs/1100315491?ean=9780425265260

Time to chill out and read. 

Five: Keep blogging! It seems like a no-brainer, but the pressures of daily life can sometimes get the best of our blogging/social media intentions. As of right now I have no shortage of material, and I will be able to at least keep it fresh, if sporadic at times. 

Five things over twelve months seem quite attainable. With the support of my friends, family and faithful readers out in the blogosphere, a busy year full of growth awaits! Peace. 

Farewell Diamonds and Rust!

My favorite shop in the history of the universe is closing. As I am sure is no surprise to anyone, it is a vintage/antique/estate shop! The owners have decided to convert their space and the surrounding land into the Farm Fresh Market, set to open next year.

Whenever I needed a break from Northern Virginia, I would plan a day trip out to Diamonds and Rust in historic Aldie, Virginia. I loved the long, varied ride through congested parts of Fairfax, to eventually see Route 50 become narrower. Farm houses and long stretches of land replaced strip malls, big box stores and townhouses. After three dicey traffic circles, I would pass the Aldie Mill and turn into the gravel parking lot. The first thing I would hear upon getting out of my car was peaceful silence. I had arrived.

The large house with the blue roof was built in the late 1800s and has served many functions for the Village of Aldie during its history. Quite notably, it was a pharmacy from the 1890s until World War II. Since 2005, it has been home to Diamonds and Rust. Like many older homes and buildings, it feels very “alive,” and I could feel this energy when I stepped inside for the first time. The pink and white striped walls reverberate with the history of the town and its people.

Two very kind and knowledgeable ladies, Marcia and Amber, ran the shop. Easy conversation was a guarantee as I floated in and out of the rooms and hallways. I would stay for at least an hour each visit. I needed to explore every room, rummage every drawer, admire each display and even look out every window! Over the years I collected all sorts of vintage items for my home and more. Furniture, art and handmade crafts breathed new life into the décor of my house and my yard. I found authentic Art Deco jewelry at a trunk show during the initial Boardwalk Empire craze. But one weekend at D&R sticks out in my memory for what I found that inspired my knitter’s soul.

Across from the stairwell was a linen closet. Depending on the day, it would be stocked with curtains, tablecloths, blankets and doilies. But on one afternoon, it was stocked with vintage knitting supplies. A large vase was filled with knitting needles made from materials that haven’t been used in a long time. Most of them appeared to be early plastic. I selected for myself a pair of yellow, size 10 Boye needles with rust forming on the metal toppers. I marveled at the well-defined points. So narrow and sharp! Today’s needles are more tapered and not as pointy.

Rusty.

Pointy!

Next was an antique tape measure/pin cushion with just inches on the tape. This item came some time before the metric system! It was in the shape of a little peasant woman, and you reached the tape by pulling it humorously out of her nose. It still had tags on it, and it was in near-new condition. For whatever reason, it was never someone’s “cup of tea,” but I found it irresistible.  

Haha.

In action a few summers ago.

It was wonderful discovering these small items, but I have been saving the true pièce de résistance of the day for last. A well-used, wooden sock darning egg from a simpler time seemed to appear before my eyes on the linen shelf. Before my trip, I had the idea of finding an antique sock darning egg. Not too many of these are made anymore, and are hard to find even in specialty yarn shops. Your best bet is an online catalogue order, and it will probably be made of plastic. What I had yearned for was an authentic, used wooden egg. I turned the relic over in my hands, and I could feel pits and scratches on the surface from where the sewing needle had jabbed it. It mended countless sock heels and toes. Although I reinforce all of my socks, the inevitable day will arrive where I, too, will add my own scratches to the wood.

The real McCoy. 

Nicked and scratched.

With the way life has been going, I will not be able to make it out in time for the last day. Work obligations, holiday obligations, ice and snow and other things have kept me closer to home. Now that I think about it, I’m not as sad about the closing as I thought I would be. I will enjoy and benefit from these items for the rest of my life! The time to collect has ended, and that is ok. In time I will find a new hideaway for when things become too humdrum or hectic. Now it is time for all of us to move into the next phases of our journeys, while holding onto the memories we made. All I have to say is thank you so much for helping me along the way to finding myself, and cultivating my methods of self-expression. It’s been real!

Links:

http://shopdiamondsandrust.com/

http://www.villageofaldie.com/index.htm

http://www.villageofaldie.com/drugstore.html

  

A Fine, Wooly Muffler for Christmas

In the spirit of the holiday season, I must share one of my favorite Christmas children’s books. Naturally, this story involves knitting! One may not realize just how many children’s books about knitting are in existence… I discover new ones all the time. 

The Gift from the Lonely Doll is one of many stories from The Lonely Doll series written and photographed by Dare Wright in the late 1950s into the 1960s. They follow a doll named Edith as she navigates childhood with the help of her friends and family. These classic and gentle stories are told through simple text and captivating black and white photographs of dolls posed in such a way that they seemingly come to life!

For those of you who don’t know Edith yet, she is a little girl doll who lives in New York City with her adoptive bear family. She was The Lonely Doll until one day she wished for some friends. The next morning Mr. Bear and Little Bear appeared at her doorstep, and they all lived happily together ever since.

In The Gift from the Lonely Doll, we learn that Edith, too, is a knitter. Edith and the bears are preparing to spend Christmas in the country with more of their bear cousins. She decides to knit Mr. Bear a, “fine, wooly muffler,” for this extra special occasion. With Little Bear’s near constant teasing and occasional help, she gets to work on a very simple red and white garter stripe scarf. She knits diligently in the weeks leading up to Christmas, while keeping the gift hidden in a basket. 

The first few rows

Much progress!

Edith underestimates her own progress, and does not realize until Christmas Eve that she has created her own version of the Doctor Who scarf. It is just way too long! 

The iconic scarf worn by Tom Baker

Edith's creation!

While Mr. Bear is grateful on Christmas morning, and the other bears praise and admire the muffler, Edith knows she could have done better. She is quite upset, and she does not know what to do to fix the problem. This leads to a quite understandable holiday breakdown at the dinner table…but suddenly she has an idea!

A holiday meltdown.

Working it out.

What happens next is all spoilers, but I will tell you that everything turns out much better than Edith could have imagined. She stayed focused on what she wanted, tuned out Little Bear’s teasing and never gave up. Because of this, Edith managed to turn it all around and the Bear Family had one of their most memorable holidays ever.

Any knitter, regardless of being a beginner, intermediate or advanced, can relate to Edith’s predicament. Dropping a stitch. Frogging countless rows. Knitting in secret. Feeling pressed for time. Or having our needles stolen! We've all been there.

To learn more about Dare Wright and her books, please listen to, or read, this eye opening segment on her life: http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=4258856

Knitting In The Round

Late one summer night as I was browsing on Etsy, I became fascinated by their seemingly endless supply of vintage pattern books and magazines. As I looked at the photos of the fragile black and white pages from the 1930s, I wanted very much to hold one of these magazines in my hands. I craved a more in depth look at the differences in instruction and materials, as well as style. How much had knitting and crochet changed and evolved over the last century? Rather than order a whole bunch and wait for them to arrive, I decided to try my luck at a local thrift shop. Knowing this mission could be seriously hit or miss, I went to a shop I had never visited before because I believe in the power of beginner’s luck!

I chose to begin the hunt at Clocktower Thrift Shop in Centreville, Virginia. Although not exactly local for me, I drove out to these hinterlands of Fairfax County based on the good word of other creative and thrifty people. As I entered, I picked up good vibes because of the vinyl records, CDs and dolls all displayed together near the register. Definitely my kind of place. All the magazines were on the far back wall on the lowest shelf. I hunkered down on the dusty floor and got to work. I felt unsure of myself as I perused through hundreds of back issues of O, In Style and People, but then fate intervened. A tiny, faded magazine that I could have missed came next: A Doreen Baby Book: Easy to Make Crochet and Knitted Baby Gifts, Copyright 1945, 20 cents. 

The fateful Doreen book, and the rest of my Clocktower haul.

The feeling was magical! I had truly followed my instincts to the right place at the right time. I looked through the patterns and saw that notations had been penciled in to the margins. Someone got a lot of use from this magazine. I was thrilled, and would have been satisfied in leaving only with it. However, from the vast pile of nearly discarded reading material, I unearthed eight more knitting pattern magazines, all spanning from the 1940s to the 1970s. Vogue Knitting, Bernat Sweaters, Nomotta…all had been notated with the same handwriting. At least eight out of the ten magazines I found that day belonged to the same knitter. I saw that she was not just any knitter, but a master. Only the most elegant and intricate patterns were annotated. These patterns did not tell her what to do—she told them what they were going to do for her! She resized and altered the instructions with ease—which any knitter knows is no small feat. I realized that these patterns served as suggestions to guide her along with what she really wanted to do and create. I believe with all certainty that she loved the craft. I felt so inferior to her, yet so motivated to begin my climb to her level, no matter how many years it would take me. I would bring these magazines home, keep them forever and practice them one gauge swatch at a time. I paid all of $2.10 for this treasure trove, and went home feeling honored that whatever force at work in the universe chose me as their new owner. 

Once upon a time, there was a very lucky (and warm) baby!

Annotations, tweaks and adjustments.

Elegant and challenging gloves/mittens

I think this sweater could pass for today with a different collar. Pattern is annotated, of course!

When I got home and settled down with my new/old magazines, I saw that very little has changed about knitting through time. 1,000 years can go by and people will still be making many garments and accessories the same way as they always did. So much of knitting is classic and timeless, no matter what is on the racks at Macy’s. 

A vintage bed jacket. All the rage in its time!

Ok, maybe not too many people are knitting bed jackets anymore. But I can take any sweater, mitten or sock pattern from my 1940s pattern collection, put a modern twist upon it, and look fabulous.

I began to realize that we are all “knitting in the round.” Knitting is a humble life skill that links past generations to the present and eventually the present will link to the future through the same set of practices. It is time and technology proof. I imagine that I could sit down with my Polish aunts who lived 100 years ago, and we could all chatter on about yarn, needles and stitches as if no time or space ever separated us. 

Now back to the present. The time has come to stop browsing these magazines and choose which classic pattern to recreate first. Another pair of socks? A classic and timeless sweater? Or maybe those sweet baby mitts? The choices are seemingly endless, and they could all be the right one. 

To be continued! 

A Twisted Little Secret

After much debate about whether or not to share this story, I decided that of course I should. Even the best knitter has made mistakes or developed idiosyncrasies along the way that has affected the quality of their work. Part of being a knitter is learning to better accept mistakes, even failures. After acceptance comes learning not to take these things so hard, quickly starting over again and perhaps learning to laugh about it a little along the way. In my case, I was screwing up so badly that I didn't even know I was screwing up!

So here it is: For the first eight years of my knitting life, I purled incorrectly. I went along for quite a bit of time blissfully unaware of what I was doing until the time came to learn Kitchener Stitch, so I could graft shut the toes of my socks. When I looked down at my sock toes and then back up at the example on my computer screen, I knew something was up. I followed all the directions meticulously, except my row of toe stitches looked twisted, rather than a neat, uniform row like all the others that came before it.  Mystified, I became determined to get to the bottom of this issue. Upon closer inspection of the purl stitch diagrams, I noticed the needle was oriented a little differently than mine…

When I first learned the knit and purl stitches, I took the definition of purl a little too seriously. I read, “A purl stitch is just a knit stitch, backwards.” While my technique was right, and my stitches appeared purl-like, I was actually purling through the back loop! Purling through the back loop is a real, albeit rare stitch used to create little twists in fabric or cables. The realization of what I had been doing for all of this time came over me like a tidal wave. The stitches in my flat, Stockinette pieces always had a little bit of a slant that could never be corrected no matter how many tension/gauge tricks I employed. Even the experts at the yarn shop could never figure out what my deal was! I blamed it on my left handedness, on being too high strung, even on the quality of my needles… In the end it turned out to only be a hazard that comes from being self-taught, (and maybe a little overconfident.) I never had a grandmother or an aunt over my shoulder to say, “Wait, stop,” and re-position the needles in my hands before I moved on. 

Purling through the back loop.

With my head swimming from this realization, I quickly picked up my needles and churned out a gauge swatch with my purl stitches done the “right way,” and at last saw the perfect, uniform rows that I had always longed for. It felt like the sun was rising over my soul! The last road block that had been preventing me from tackling more serious flat-knit/sweater projects had been lifted.

Nice, uniform Stockinette rows.

While my cheeks still feel warm when I talk about it, it’s not something that I should dwell over too much. In the end, it didn't severely hinder my progress. It didn't affect any of my circular or cable projects. When it was time to become a more serious knitter, I noticed something was up, and pushed forward. In fact, I am positive that there are countless beginning/intermediate knitters out there doing the exact same thing right now!

True advancement comes after facing confusion, challenges and mistakes head on. It is also where true learning takes place. Just when we feel the most stuck and confused, we come out stronger on the other side.

And that is the story of my biggest knitting LoL moment…so far! 

Casting On

After some time of going back and forth with the same old, “Should I or shouldn’t I?” I have decided that the time has come to embark on this new blog. What better way to share what I have learned so far with others, and to continue along with my own growth? Here we go!

I simply love knitting. I also love talking about knitting with others… and reading about it…and now blogging about it! I am by no means an expert, and I still have more questions than answers. I believe that I am still in the early days (10 years) of my lifelong journey into the world of knitting, but I hope that by the time I reach 90 years old I will have made it to the level of expertise and knowledge to which I aspire.

Knitting is an endless learning process. Even when I feel comfortable with the skill level of a particular project, I still make a discovery. It may be about the yarn and materials, gauge, blocking or finishing, but I will come away having accumulated a new tidbit, or a huge chunk, of information to carry over into next time. Every project is a fresh start and a new opportunity.

I will close my first post with a picture of my favorite hat: an emerald green Tam O’Shanter with many cables and twists that provided me with several days’ worth of challenges and amusement. It has been a great source of pride for me ever since I completed it last winter. The pattern is courtesy of Debbie Stoller, and appears in her book, Superstar Knitting. The yarn is tried and true Cascade Yarn. This hat deserves its very own blog post in the near future. Stay tuned! 

My lovely green hat!

From the front