Anybody else get the Knitting Daily newsletter?

Here I was, just having admired that Hanami shawl and complimenting the
knitter, stating that I wished I could knit so well, because I can't
even knit 10 rows of plain stockinette stitch without a mistake if it
has increases and/or decreases, and then comes Sandi Wiseheart of KD
trying to make me feel it is wrong for me to be saying that I wished I
could knit that lovely shawl and to be saying that I can't even knit 10
rows of plain stockinette stitch with increases and/or decreases.

*throwing up hands in exasperation*

Maybe the expectation here is that people have all the time in the world
to knit and nothing else to distract them?

I did get one legwarmer knit -- it was a beast because I made the st&pid
mistake of using Lion "Homespun" and it was horrid to rip out when I
made mistakes and even worse to re-count stitches to make sure my counts
were correct -- and before I could even get it seamed up (I knit it flat
after blowing it twice on trying to do it in the round), my
almost-not-a-puppy-any-more had grabbed it out of my knitting bucket and
chewed a hole the size of the base of a 1-pound can in it.
$@(*$@)*($@*($&@()$*&@)*$&@)*$*@$(*@&$!#%$&*($%#_% *(& (and she undid
another hand-wound center-pull ball I had made, too, and after two hours
of working on it, I could only rescue about half the yarn and pitched
the other half in frustration. It was a mismatch ball that I was
knitting tesselated fish with, so it's not like a project is getting
ruined because I threw it out.

So much for legwarmers. Maybe I should make a pair in polarfleece
first, draping it to fit, and then just knit a shape to match what shape
the polarfleece ends up being.

And I have to find a bigger poochie-proof container for my knitting
before I can start a sweater.

--
Every job is a self-portrait of the person who does it. Autograph your
work with excellence.

On Jan 22, 11:16*am, Melinda Meahan - take out TRASH to reply
wrote:
Here I was, just having admired that Hanami shawl and complimenting the
knitter, stating that I wished I could knit so well, because I can't
even knit 10 rows of plain stockinette stitch without a mistake if it
has increases and/or decreases, and then comes Sandi Wiseheart of KD
trying to make me feel it is wrong for me to be saying that I wished I
could knit that lovely shawl and to be saying that I can't even knit 10
rows of plain stockinette stitch with increases and/or decreases.

*throwing up hands in exasperation*

Maybe the expectation here is that people have all the time in the world
to knit and nothing else to distract them?

I did get one legwarmer knit -- it was a beast because I made the st&pid
mistake of using Lion "Homespun" and it was horrid to rip out when I
made mistakes and even worse to re-count stitches to make sure my counts
were correct -- and before I could even get it seamed up (I knit it flat
after blowing it twice on trying to do it in the round), my
almost-not-a-puppy-any-more had grabbed it out of my knitting bucket and
chewed a hole the size of the base of a 1-pound can in it.
$@(*$@)*($@*($&@()$*&@)*$&@)*$*@$(*@&$!#%$&*($%#_% *(& *(and she undid
another hand-wound center-pull ball I had made, too, and after two hours
of working on it, I could only rescue about half the yarn and pitched
the other half in frustration. *It was a mismatch ball that I was
knitting tesselated fish with, so it's not like a project is getting
ruined because I threw it out.

So much for legwarmers. *Maybe I should make a pair in polarfleece
first, draping it to fit, and then just knit a shape to match what shape
the polarfleece ends up being.

And I have to find a bigger poochie-proof container for my knitting
before I can start a sweater.

--
Every job is a self-portrait of the person who does it. *Autograph your
work with excellence.

POOOOOOR Melinda ,,,,, mirjam

Melinda wrote:

Here I was, just having admired that Hanami shawl and complimenting
the knitter, stating that I wished I could knit so well, because I
can't even knit 10 rows of plain stockinette stitch without a mistake
if it has increases and/or decreases, and then comes Sandi Wiseheart
of KD trying to make me feel it is wrong for me to be saying that I
wished I could knit that lovely shawl and to be saying that I can't
even knit 10 rows of plain stockinette stitch with increases and/or
decreases.

*throwing up hands in exasperation*

No, no, don't do that. The fact is that anyone can become "fearless",
as Sandy says. The reality for most of us is that we simply don't have
the time to dedicate to our knitting to reach that ultimate fearless
level. I don't do some techniques because I simply don't like doing
them. You won't see me doing intarsia or entrelac because I find them
too "fiddly", and I've tried Fair Isle but can't get the hang of holding
yarn in both hands (and it would probably help immensely if I were able
to knit Continental style, or pick, but I just can't do that; gods know
I've tried many times).

My FIL's girlfriend once commented that she knows how to knit but could
never make the things I could 'cause she hadn' t knit in many years. I
gently reminded her that there are only 3 things you can do with an
individual stitch - knit, purl, or slip - and everything else is just
"extra credit", as it were. Amazingly, she picked up her knitting
needles and crochet hooks again, albeit briefly. You *can* do this.

Maybe the expectation here is that people have all the time in the
world to knit and nothing else to distract them?

Let's see...transcription business, 3 kids, husband, cats, house...nope,
no distractions here whatsoever g Actually, I do the bulk of my
knitting after my youngest goes to bed at night. I get a couple hours
to sit and knit while watching TV.

I did get one legwarmer knit -- it was a beast because I made the
st&pid mistake of using Lion "Homespun" and it was horrid to rip out
when I made mistakes and even worse to re-count stitches to make sure
my counts were correct -- and before I could even get it seamed up (I
knit it flat after blowing it twice on trying to do it in the round),
my almost-not-a-puppy-any-more had grabbed it out of my knitting
bucket and chewed a hole the size of the base of a 1-pound can in it.
$@(*$@)*($@*($&@()$*&@)*$&@)*$*@$(*@&$!#%$&*($%#_% *(& (and she undid
another hand-wound center-pull ball I had made, too, and after two
hours of working on it, I could only rescue about half the yarn and
pitched the other half in frustration. It was a mismatch ball that I
was knitting tesselated fish with, so it's not like a project is
getting ruined because I threw it out.

I feel your pain, hon. I've had many projects go awry, to the point
where they became eternal UFOs, and some got tossed when we cleaned out
the garage a few months ago. My cats have trashed a few things I've
made, including a nice little "more than semicircular" shawl I made
years ago. I've since taken to keeping my WIPs tucked safely inside
their respective bags, zippers closed.

So much for legwarmers. Maybe I should make a pair in polarfleece
first, draping it to fit, and then just knit a shape to match what
shape the polarfleece ends up being.

That might be a good idea. Get the size and fit you want, then knit
accordingly.

And I have to find a bigger poochie-proof container for my knitting
before I can start a sweater.

Maybe a storage container with a snap-on lid? I have a goodly part of
my stash plus a few WIPs in one of these, and the lid fits so tightly
that I have difficulty opening it sometimes.

Don't be discouraged. Keep plugging away. That sweater will emerge
before you know it :-)

The Other Kim
kimagreenfieldatyahoodotcom

"Melinda Meahan - take out TRASH to reply" wrote in
message ...
Here I was, just having admired that Hanami shawl and complimenting the
knitter, stating that I wished I could knit so well, because I can't
even knit 10 rows of plain stockinette stitch without a mistake if it
has increases and/or decreases, and then comes Sandi Wiseheart of KD
trying to make me feel it is wrong for me to be saying that I wished I
could knit that lovely shawl and to be saying that I can't even knit 10
rows of plain stockinette stitch with increases and/or decreases.

Melinda, I received KD newsletter and just went back to skim over
both articles. I didn't see anything in there putting knitters down.
If anything, it seemed to me like she was trying to encourage
knitters to try new things, and also asking what knitters wanted
from KD to help them become fearless.

*throwing up hands in exasperation*

I think you're very frustrated with this project you're
working on. Here's my gentle suggestion. When I've had a project
drive me nuts like your legwarmers are doing to you, I give it a
"time out". Put it away for a few days or a few weeks until you feel
you can tackle it again. I had a pair of socks that I had a problem
with the pattern and had to rip out the heel THREE times on the
second sock. Then I finally got them finished and realized I
hadn't changed to a smaller needle for the main part of the sock.
The pattern had called for a larger needle for the cuff. I knew I
had to rip out the second sock to the cuff and start again. But
I had Christmas projects to finish, so that pair of socks went
into the bag and sat there for a couple of months until I was
ready to tackle it again.

I agree with the other suggestion that you get a pup proof
container for your projects. I don't have any little animals
like that around, so I can safely leave my knitting out.

If the yarn is driving you crazy, how about making yourself
a nice scarf and hat out of it, or just put it back in your
storage and try another yarn for the legwarmers?

Maybe the expectation here is that people have all the time in the world
to knit and nothing else to distract them?

I don't think that's the case. As Kim says, try knitting when there are
fewer distractions for you. You have to do what's right for you.

Just to let you know, I'm a fairly "fearless" knitter, but not for all types
of knitting. I went to knitting camp last summer and the course was
on Fair Isle, which I had never done. I thought "oh, a piece of cake".
Hah! Not so for me. I had a terrible time choosing nice colours, but
was able to conquer two handed knitting, but I'm very clumsy at it.
The good thing that came out of that course is that I found out Fair
Isle is not for me and I hadn't wasted any money on a sweater kit.

I've discovered I love lace knitting, and aside from all the careful
counting one must do, it's really only knit, purl, yarn overs and
knitting stitches together. If you've seen my Peacock Feathers
shawl, please know that it took me three tries to actually finish it.
The first two times I made a mistake on the yarn I bought, and
the third try was the right one. Here's a link to the Peacock shawl:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/9741815@N03/1764041840/
Also know that this shawl and pretty much any of my knitting
is not error free. There's a pretty big mistake in this shawl,
and I wasn't about to rip it back, even though I did have
lifelines. And we won't talk about all the little errors that I
was able to fudge along the way.

I guess this is a wordy way of saying "don't get discouraged
and just do what is right for you".

RCTY is a great place to vent your frustration, and there are
always people who will try to help.

Knitting hugs
Shelagh

Shillelagh wrote:
"Melinda Meahan - take out TRASH to reply" wrote in
message ...
Here I was, just having admired that Hanami shawl and complimenting the
knitter, stating that I wished I could knit so well, because I can't
even knit 10 rows of plain stockinette stitch without a mistake if it
has increases and/or decreases, and then comes Sandi Wiseheart of KD
trying to make me feel it is wrong for me to be saying that I wished I
could knit that lovely shawl and to be saying that I can't even knit 10
rows of plain stockinette stitch with increases and/or decreases.

Melinda, I received KD newsletter and just went back to skim over
both articles. I didn't see anything in there putting knitters down.
If anything, it seemed to me like she was trying to encourage
knitters to try new things, and also asking what knitters wanted
from KD to help them become fearless.

I think you're right Shillelagh. I'm on a couple web based knitting
forums and I see sooo many posts from new knitters who are paralyzed
from going forward with a project or new technique for fear of doing it
wrong. Or they want to know if this or that will work out instead. I try
to encourage them to just DO it and if it doesn't work out, it can be
undone and tried another way. To just play with the yarn and needles and
try out different things to see what happens when they do one thing or
another. Yes, I'm speaking from a lot of years of experience, but I
taught myself long before home computers were even thought of, let alone
the internet, and had no one to ask questions of. So I did this and that
and figured out stuff on my own and learned from all of it.

sue

Maybe the expectation here is that people have all the time in the
world to knit and nothing else to distract them?

Let's see...transcription business, 3 kids, husband, cats, house...nope,
no distractions here whatsoever g *Actually, I do the bulk of my
knitting after my youngest goes to bed at night. *I get a couple hours
to sit and knit while watching TV.


The Other Kim
kimagreenfieldatyahoodotcom


"Transcription business"? Me too! That is, I'm an editor these days,
for the most part. Work for Medware. What's your company? Where are
you? And PS--- I can only knit at night after my shift, too....and my
kitties get into my yarn all the time! I also will have the longest
arms in history because I often must hold them straight out in front
of me because SOMEone is totally oblivious, snoozing away on my
chest....as usual. Of course, I wouldn't have it any other way.

And I am really enjoying KD too. I can't do lots of the fancy things
but sheer bull determination sees me through my fair isle doll
sweaters. To me, it's the "thrill of the chase" and challenging new
skills, not necessarily the actual item I am creating. At any rate, we
all have our own reasons for loving what we do and sharing that (and
our FRUSTRATIONS! LOL!) here as well.

Wendy
A Knitting Fool in CT
mysmt=at=sbcglobal.net

Melinda,
Maybe you should thank your puppy for chewing the legwarmer. If it hadn't
then you would have been working woth the Lion Brand Homespun that much
longer. I hate that yarn! I made a sweater out of it for my great nephew in
a toddler size 5. I swore I would never use it again. Anytime I see a yarn
that has a fiber that wraps around the outside of the length of the yarn I
think of the homespun and pass it by. No matter who makes it.

I am slowly but surely learning to knit patterns that uses something other
than the basic knit and purl. I usually have to frog something 3 times
before I stop making dumb mistakes or begin to really understand the
pattern.

I am lucky that my two cats leave my yarn alone. When My DD#2 is home with
her cat, that is another story!

You will get the hang of it. And like my husband tells me when I am getting
frustrated, it is supposed to be fun! It usually is.
Marilyn

"Melinda Meahan - take out TRASH to reply" wrote in
message ...
Here I was, just having admired that Hanami shawl and complimenting the
knitter, stating that I wished I could knit so well, because I can't even
knit 10 rows of plain stockinette stitch without a mistake if it has
increases and/or decreases, and then comes Sandi Wiseheart of KD trying to
make me feel it is wrong for me to be saying that I wished I could knit
that lovely shawl and to be saying that I can't even knit 10 rows of plain
stockinette stitch with increases and/or decreases.

*throwing up hands in exasperation*

Maybe the expectation here is that people have all the time in the world
to knit and nothing else to distract them?

I did get one legwarmer knit -- it was a beast because I made the st&pid
mistake of using Lion "Homespun" and it was horrid to rip out when I made
mistakes and even worse to re-count stitches to make sure my counts were
correct -- and before I could even get it seamed up (I knit it flat after
blowing it twice on trying to do it in the round), my
almost-not-a-puppy-any-more had grabbed it out of my knitting bucket and
chewed a hole the size of the base of a 1-pound can in it.
$@(*$@)*($@*($&@()$*&@)*$&@)*$*@$(*@&$!#%$&*($%#_% *(& (and she undid
another hand-wound center-pull ball I had made, too, and after two hours
of working on it, I could only rescue about half the yarn and pitched the
other half in frustration. It was a mismatch ball that I was knitting
tesselated fish with, so it's not like a project is getting ruined because
I threw it out.

So much for legwarmers. Maybe I should make a pair in polarfleece first,
draping it to fit, and then just knit a shape to match what shape the
polarfleece ends up being.

And I have to find a bigger poochie-proof container for my knitting before
I can start a sweater.

--
Every job is a self-portrait of the person who does it. Autograph your
work with excellence.

In article ,
Marilyn fcorliss at comcast dot net wrote:
Melinda,
Maybe you should thank your puppy for chewing the legwarmer. If it hadn't
then you would have been working woth the Lion Brand Homespun that much
longer. I hate that yarn! I made a sweater out of it for my great nephew in
a toddler size 5. I swore I would never use it again. Anytime I see a yarn
that has a fiber that wraps around the outside of the length of the yarn I
think of the homespun and pass it by. No matter who makes it.

I agree... some people love the stuff, but it just isn't for me.

As for puppy-proof containers, I recommend the totally clear plastic
bins like Sterilite that are sold in places like CVS and W*lm*rt. You
can see what's in it without opening it, which can be a timesaver. Some
of them have edge clips that are easy to use. Depending on the size of
the project, you might want to get one that is just big enough to hold
the entire project, yarn, needles, pattern and all. Or you might like
to try the larger size to put stash in. I'd say only get one at first,
in case the puppy learns to open it! Smaller ones can be put on a
high shelf, too.

=Tamar

myswendy wrote:

"Transcription business"? Me too! That is, I'm an editor these days,
for the most part. Work for Medware. What's your company? Where are
you?

I work as a subcontractor for a handful of sole proprietor types myself.
Too chicken to get my own accounts, not willing to work for what big
services pay. Have you met news:sci.med.transcription and
http://www.mtchat.com/ubbthreads/ubb...s.php/ubb/cfrm yet? Great
places to talk shop.

And I am really enjoying KD too. I can't do lots of the fancy things
but sheer bull determination sees me through my fair isle doll
sweaters. To me, it's the "thrill of the chase" and challenging new
skills, not necessarily the actual item I am creating. At any rate, we
all have our own reasons for loving what we do and sharing that (and
our FRUSTRATIONS! LOL!) here as well.

I enjoy reading about what other people are doing. I tend to do more
virtual sewing and knitting than actual sewing and knitting. It's a
nice change of pace to think about something else other than people's
illnesses and innards.

--
Every job is a self-portrait of the person who does it. Autograph your
work with excellence.

suzee wrote:

I think you're right Shillelagh. I'm on a couple web based knitting
forums and I see sooo many posts from new knitters who are paralyzed
from going forward with a project or new technique for fear of doing it
wrong. Or they want to know if this or that will work out instead. I try
to encourage them to just DO it and if it doesn't work out, it can be
undone and tried another way. To just play with the yarn and needles and
try out different things to see what happens when they do one thing or
another.

Well, there is also merit in picking relatively simple and/or small
projects until one's feet are totally wet in order to maximize
satisfaction and reduce frustration. My daughter made her own Christmas
dresses for 3 years, all princess-line velvet dresses, when she was 10,
11, and 12, and never would do anything else the rest of the year.
After that she was so frustrated from dealing with velvet (and
stubbornly refused to consider anything else) that she got sick of
sewing and didn't want to do it any more.

--
Every job is a self-portrait of the person who does it. Autograph your
work with excellence.