If Designers Can Do It, So Can You (Knitting)

Member Name: Shazzy

Product:	Knitting
Date:	01/07/01 (189 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Keeps our craft traditions alive, Nice to have something everybody doesn't have

Disadvantages: Yarn is fairly expensive these days

In this age of mass production, wouldn’t it be nice if just a few more of our traditional crafts could continue to be passed down to our children? How many of them even know how to hold a pair of knitting needles, let alone actually knit something? Not many. I’ve even had children ask me what I’m doing when they see me knit. They had no idea that it was actually possible to turn a few balls of wool into an item of clothing.

There’s a lot of stigma around hand-knitting these days. Mention it to most people and they immediately conjure up visions of mis-shaped acrylic jumpers with tacky patterns that ‘bobble’ the first time you wear them. But it doesn’t have to be that way.

My family have often been complimented on our knitwear. Admirers have imagined that they’ve cost a fortune from some exclusive little designer outlet, but in reality they’ve cost the price of the yarn, some imagination, and the patience to actually produce the garment. When I tell them, they look stunned at the idea of anything hand-knitted actually being wearable.

How did this happen? People have always knitted, so where did the stigma come from?

My theory is the 70’s. Strange new yarns became available that would supposedly tolerate machine washing and all kinds of wear and tear. And these yarns were cheap! Those who couldn’t get past one plain one purl bought a machine. Everybody got knitting! Kids jumpers were churned out by the cartload in weird and wonderful colours. Those who neither had talent for hand-knitting or the ability to operate a machine successfully still insisted on kitting out their kids with lurid green jumpers complete with polo necks that half strangled the wearer and arms that needed folding back at least 6 times! Knitting was in!

And then it went out!

Those kids grew up and told mother where to stick her knitting needles. And they certainly had no intenti
on of ever picking up the same. Why on earth would they want to force such atrocities onto their kids?

If only they’d known just how nice a properly worked jumper/skirt/jacket/dress, knitted with quality yarn, could be.

Ahh! But they do! These same people would usually be only too happy to wear a knitted garment from a designer outlet. If it has a decent looking label on the inside, it suddenly becomes chic! But it’s still hand-knitted, using exactly the same techniques that have been around for generations.

Why should a traditional craft become so exclusive? Knitting really isn’t that difficult. It just takes patience. Once you’ve got the hang of it properly you’ll find that you can knit just about anywhere. Remember Granny sitting in front of the TV, needles clicking away? She still knew what Elsie Tanner and Co were up to though didn’t she?

Most beginners make the same mistake. They’re too eager. They want to make that Fairisle jumper with cable borders straight away. Forget it! Start with a simple pattern. Make squares that can be sewn together as a car blanket. They may not be too interesting to make, but they’ll help you gain an even flow to your knitting, an even tension, which makes for a nice, smooth finish.

Once you feel that your squares are starting to look nice and even, find a simple pattern for a baby cardigan. It doesn’t matter if there isn’t a baby in the family, you just want something that’s quick to finish, as you probably don’t have much speed yet. Find a good knitting guide (check on Amazon, there’s probably lots of them listed) that will help you understand the technicalities of increasing, decreasing, ribbing etc. Once you’ve finished your plain baby cardigan, try one with a pattern. Then step up to something larger. Eventually you’ll find yourself knitting exactly what you want to knit, and knitting them wel
l.

Knitting is fun! And when you’re finished, it’s nice to have something that nobody else has, and that WILL bring you compliments. How good it feels to say, “I made it myself”. That’s not something we can say very often these days.

Summary: