I went to Atlanta on business Oct. 4-8 thinking I'd be able to work on my knitting there. Um, well, no. That didn't happen obviously or there would have been a post. Sorry. Then upon coming home, I have a wonderful distraction that I missed very much. So....
I had to kick my ass into high gear to make sure the lovely ladies at Knit Happens don't think I'm a total flake. Last Friday I did some more online research hoping to find some videos to download since I was going to be out of internet range for the weekend. I went to Amazon.com as well and found a great 3-DVD set to order for only about $15, but that wasn't going to do me much good right away, so I thought I'd check out my LYS (isn't that cool? that's what the hip knitters call Local Yarn Store! It has nothing to do with LSD!).
Ok, I'm not going to name said LYS because if you haven't noticed, I'm an impatient bitch. I research things before I buy them, I move and think very quickly and I expect everyone else to do the same. That doesn't always work out. I called the LYS before going and asked if they had instructional DVDs (I mentioned before, that for whatever reason, I need a real visual for knitting). They said yes, but not the one I wanted from Amazon.com. Ok, fine, I decided I'd swing by and check it out. Note: I have a 5 year old and a 6 year old in tow. I get to the store, get pointed in the right direction by the lackadaisical 20-something working on her knitting project only to find there is a tiny selection - mostly by the same pink-haired (guessing local) lady. Each DVD is $30. I read the back of the #1 Beginning or whatever it was called - mind you I'm looking for very basic stuff like how to cast on, knit the fucking yarn, and bind off. Right? On the back it read something like "better casting on" or "tighter" or something. I asked the store clerk if she knew if it actually showed casting on. SHE PROCEEDED TO READ THE BACK COVER TO ME. It took every fiber in my being to keep from letting her know that, yes, I can read, I just can't knit. Be nice, girl, be nice, and Hazel, put that down. I asked her if she's actually seen any of these DVDs (ok, after this display I realize that WAS a stupid question but I was still working on the nice thing, remember?), and Alex, no you can't have any of that ancient candy. Anywhoo, I left without buying anything and before the kids broke anything. I refrain from naming the store only because they have reasonably priced and recommended classes and I don't need some passive PDXer getting all pissy with me. Yet.
So, I decided to wing-it with the shitty downloads I found and my handy-dandy, trusty Reader's Digest Complete Guide to Embroidery. I've taught myself so much from this book - it's a bible for all things textile - even with the 1970s images. I don't care. I love it. I sat down and just made myself get to it. I started with 7 gauge metal needles (just wait on that one, ok?) and cotton yarn. Cotton because I didn't want to ruin my good wool yarn - it's just practice. I know it doesn't have the give I might need starting out, but I'm poor and I have something like 8 skeins of this shit. The metal needles because the skein said 7 gauge and out of the 4 sets of bamboo needles I have (my mom spoils me), none were 7. So, here's where I insert a picture of "The Set Up":
Look at me - all surrounded by quilts, warmth and love.
So, I played the cast-on video from the Hello Knitty site over and over and over because she's so damn fast and it's really grainy. I finally get it on - something like 23 and it's all shit, and I don't even get how I did it, but I wasn't about to rip it off and start over - this is just practice, remember? I'll practice that more when I get a better visual. Anywhoo, I proceed to then try some of this knitting stuff with a combination of the videos and my trusty book. I screwed up the very first row by not pulling the yarn correctly through some of the stitches/loopy thingies, but, again, fuck if I'm going to rip it out. I got about 5 rows with my crooked ass knitting and those fucking metal needles (in something like 4 hours - FML), here's a pic of that pretty detail I invented:
Soooo, at about 5 rows or 7 or whatever amount of swearing I was at, I thought fuck it. I'm going to go up a gauge to 8 and try these bamboo needles out. OH MY FUCKING GOD. That's why they cost so much! The metal needles have now been retired to my glove box for my next fit of road rage, and I swear on Buddha's belly to only use bamboo needles ever again. I went UP a gauge with cotton yarn mind you and it was still way easier. Ok, so I only got so far in 3 evenings and how the fuck I ended up somehow with a rib stitch I have NO IDEA, but I feel a little bit more at peace that I can move forward with my bamboo needles of power. This is what a few weeks of anxiety and 3 days of frustration acheived:
Half of a wash cloth. I'm damn proud of my half of a wash cloth.
Now, to put some of my frustration in perspective, this was done in a couple hours, while watching a movie and talking, by crochet:
Simple, basic - but it's like riding a bike to me. It takes no effort. I learned crochet at about 7 years old. I've taught myself needlepoint, ribbon embroidery, cross stitch, etc. Knitting has been my Moby Dick. Now, maybe with bamboo, I can finally make knitting my bitch.
Posts
0 comments:
Post a Comment