From my many knitting years as well as teaching crafts i can tell you
for sure that That there are variations in tension , that happen to
the BEST knitter. it has to do with many factors ,,, from moods to
health problems or just tiredeness,,,,, as to mistakes , thisis a
matter of culture ,, in my Knitted shirt During the last weeks i found
a mistake in the pattern ,,,and i left it there , for knowing that
being human i am not perfect , and in bad times maybe it is beter to
have a flaw in a shirt , than a wounded person .I leave it as sign of
having made it Healthy and whole through this war.
As to Beautiful , this is also a matter of culture or in the eye of
the beholder. Warm enough or not warm enough ? what are you talking
about I haven`t seen any pattern coming with the instructions saying
that this would make you feel warm in X centigrades,,,, Feeling warm
is a very personal thing , i have friends who wear a cotton shawl and
sweat , while i freeze with 2 sweaters and a coat over them .
Even Durability is a matter of culture, some people like to wear the
same clothes for years some like to have new ones , Some people are
accident prone where ever they walk they or their clothes might catch
a nail or something ,,,, some can walk through a fire and look groomed
..
Some things aren`t finnished on time for the many things Life can do
to you , THIS HAS NOTHING To do with the Quality of the garment once
it is finnished.

There is an old Jewish folkstory ,, Where a tailor debates with a
custumer about the quality of his suit making . The tailor says he
needs a month ,, the custumer wants it in a week , and points out to
the Tailor that God Created the world in 6 days... "Well , " says the
tailor , Look at the world`s imperfections and Look at my perfect
suits."
mirjam

From my view:
If there are errors - it is not better knitting. If there are variations in
tension, then it is not "better knitting." If the resulting product is not
"beautiful" then it is not "better knitting." If the garment is too warm or
not warm enough, then it is not "better knitting." If the garment is not
durable enough for its intended use, then it is not "better knitting."

If the garment is not finished on time, then it is not better knitting. If
no garment is attempted because it would take too long to knit, then it is
not 'better knitting."

If your wrists hurt, (because of your knitting) then it is not "better
knitting."

That is what better knitting is not!

Most of the stuff I do (when I am not just testing to find a better way) is
from Gladys Thompson - mostly knit at 7 to 9 spi with worsted weight yarn to
produce a firm fabric. The gansey that I am working on right now has only 12
cables bordering 6 panels of moss diamonds up the body, and it is real easy
because I can always see the pattern.

However, I think you will find Gladys Thompson's Aran patterns to be as
challenging as any knitting patterns, any where. (Chart them first, some
patterns have errors in them and some are just confusing.) The GT patterns
have more twisted stitches in them that keeps everything tight and gives it
a lovely fine texture. However, they also make you pay attention. Those
ladies really understood beautiful fabric.

If I am going to knit that stuff, I gotta be able to knit without messing up
my wrists. I gotta be a "better knitter."

And, I am thinking about a Sheringham jersey in the classic "rig and fur"
pattern (more moss diamonds) which looks good when knit up at about 12
spi/20 rpi, but maybe the yarn that I had thought to use is not "fast
enough" It looks and feels real nice knit at that gauge, but it does not
really facilitate knitting at a pace that would let me finish in a
reasonable time. And of course, in the best knitting tradition, note the
typo in the chart.

Sometimes better knitting is knitting that just gets a whole lot of little
moss diamonds knit.

Aaron


"YarnWright" wrote in message
...
On Sat, 19 Aug 2006 14:52:51 -0700, The Other Kim spun a fine yarn

Aaron wrote:

I have no problems with anyone knitting as slowly as they want to.

But, I want to be a better knitter. I want to knit with less effort.

A by-product of knitting with less effort is knitting faster.

Speed is not the goal. Knitting with less effort is the goal.

That's the goal for you. You apparently equate "better" with increased
speed. I don't. I, too, want to be a "better" knitter, but with the
types of patterns I like to do faster would lead to worse results. I
prefer to challenge myself with complicated textures and lace patterns,
and in these cases increased speed would not be a good thing. My goal
is to produce the best results I can.

It really doesn't matter to me if someone can knock out 10 rows to my 1;
more power to them. My results are good, and that's what matters to me.

The Other Kim
kimagreenfieldatyahoodotcom


Kim, I say BRAVO, perfect response!
Noreen
who... while I tend to sorta *be* 'fast'... would rather do GOOD work
than FAST, with errors!


--
I am not young enough to know everything.
http://www.lulu.com/content/292418
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