Tuesday, 29 March 2011

Day Two: What a difference a year makes

Good morning! It's day two of Knitting and Crochet Blog Week! I had a lovely day discovering other blogs yesterday - my iPad Flipboard App is now full of different feeds to read and re-read at leisure, it's like my own bespoke crafting magazine. The pictures are amazing and reading about all those different yarns has given me a shortlist (maybe a long list) of things to seek out and try. I am really looking forward to sitting with a cuppa for an hour later to read the day two offerings.
So onto today's topic: "Look back over your last year of projects and compare where you are in terms of skill and knowledge of your craft to this time last year."

This is very easy for me as a year ago knitting was a distant memory - something I hadn't done for many years as a child (and that does feel like MANY years ago now). So what changed things? A natural parenting forum I belong to has a Craft board with lots of pictures from crafty mamas who make wonderful things - there are knitters, crocheters, spinners, quilters, doll-makers you name it....  I found LOTS of inspiration on this board and as a bit of a frustrated artist I wanted to do something creative that would also have a practical application. So for Christmas 2010 I asked for a basic sewing machine to make some doll clothes for the presents I'd bought the children - I had a huge pile of their old clothes I wanted to reuse and this seemed like a nice thing to go with them ...
....and of course, once I started sewing they also needed knitwear so I got a set of knitting needles as the requests started coming in. The first thing I made was a pair of leggings...
Would have been better on smaller needles and in the round!
...and then "Sammy" wanted a hat and socks!


The socks are just tubes (in the round!) with decreases at the end
And then I just carried on knitting! After the doll things, my next project - my first 'real' project - was the Noro cowl I mentioned yesterday...

Before I finished the cowl my obsessive Ravelry-browsing began and I suddenly had a long list of "favourites" and a queue of things waiting to be made. I love knitting! I am still slightly fascinated that I can turn one long piece of yarn into a garment. I like watching the stitches and patterns develop, it's still so new that I'm slightly fascinated by it. I also love that I recently went shopping for my little lady and bought her summer clothes and some co-ordinating yarn to make her cardigans myself.

I have learned so much in the last few months and blogged my 10 week observations here a few days ago so I won't repeat myself, but looking back at those leggings and Sammy's hat this morning, I also realised how much my knitting has improved 

(And incidentally, the sewing machine hasn't been very used much at all since I started knitting!)

8 comments:

  1. I think you are a natural Sarah, much, much more so than I will ever be!

    I love that bottom photograph.

    ReplyDelete
  2. My sewing machine is also sadly neglected, following my introduction to knitting! Not sure why, but there's something far more satisfying (for me at least) to knit something - making the fabric myself!

    ReplyDelete
  3. Sarah, I just cant believe how quick you can knit. Almost everyday you post a new item of clothing on the WCHYWOT thread, there's me still plodding along with my blimin granny stripe and you're on something new.

    Fab post :D

    ReplyDelete
  4. I have a list of things the kids want me to make, it's going to take me most of the year to get through them all :)

    Great post :)

    ReplyDelete
  5. I think knitting will always remain fascinating, witch each pattern that you knit. It's funny that you started with sewing and moved to knitting, whereas I started with knitting and moved to sewing as I wanted to line my felted bags. Now I do both and love both.

    ReplyDelete
  6. you are a fab knitter indeed, glad I'm not the only one who thinks about what I;ll be knitting when buying clothes, ha!

    ReplyDelete
  7. The outfits are charming. And the knitting is grand!

    ReplyDelete
  8. Cute outfits for the doll! That is a gorgeous cowl too.

    ReplyDelete

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