Any knitters out there?

[mlp]

Ptree15, very nice - I really like the brioche stitch - it results in such a thick, soft fabric, and has an almost sculptural quality.

When knitting lace, I try to remember to put in lifelines, so that I can frog back to a lifeline if I make a mistake. But with a narrow piece of knitting, like a scarf, if I'm not sure how the stitches should lay, I *unknit*, one stitch at a time, until I get back to the mistake. If the mistake is further back (or, as in your case, where you've already removed the stitches from the needle), I'll frog back to the mistake, then pick up all the stitches on a needle and *unknit* for a row or a couple of rows, until I'm confident I have all the stitches, and they're in the position they should be.

 

[mlp]

The general rule for needles is this: Metal ones are good for fast knitting, because the yarn slips on and off quickly. If you're working with a slippery yarn though, you'll be more prone to having stitches slide off when you don't want them to. Yarn clings more to wood and bamboo, so knitting is a bit slower on those materials, but they are good for slippery yarn.

I really like the feel of wood and bamboo needles in my hands, and I'm a slow knitter anyway, so they don't impede me. (My mother, OTOH, was the fastest knitter I've ever seen, and she hated to work with wood or bamboo - they slowed her down too much.) I don't like the feel of plastic, so I never use plastic needles.

And yes, you can transfer to different needle types in the middle of a project, as long as the needle size is the same and you don't tend to knit more loosely or more tightly with the new material. (I tend to knit somewhat differently with metal needles than with wood ones, so I would have to change needle sizes in order to maintain the same gauge if I changed from metal to wood, or vice versa, in the middle of a project.)

 

[Pirate]

Oh wow, I love the scarf so far. I also cant see any problems with it

 

[PTree15]

Thanks for the tips, guys. I pretty much ended up doing what mlp suggested, pulling out rows and putting the stitches back on to where they were correct. I couldn't do one at a time, though, with the yarn-over business. It was too confusing. I'm not the greatest sometimes with visually trying to figure out how the yarn should lie. In any event, I'm knitting much slower on this project to reduce the potential for more errors . Liz, thanks! I really love the feel of the work, as it's so plush, even with a coarse yarn.

 

[mlp]

PTree15, yeah, brioche is terrible to figure out when you have to go back to correct a mistake. It's the kind of knitting where it's good to put in a lifeline every once in a while, so you can just unravel back to the lifeline and then put the stitches back on the needle. (You create a lifeline by using a smooth yarn (a plain cotton is good) in a contrasting color, and after you've finished a row, just thread the lifeline through the stitches along the needle. When you no longer need the lifeline, you just pull it out.)

 

[PTree15]

Good plan on the lifelines!

 

[SummerRain]

I am nearly getting to the end of my scarf... the first proper thing I have knit. It's just plain knit stitch but I can't wait to try something more exciting next time... I think I will get a thicket yarn and needles though, this one has taken ages.

What do people knit with, in particular people who don't knit with wool? I have made my scarf with a cotton and acrylic blend, and before that I knit dish clothes with plain cotton. I really liked the cotton but it was trickier to knit with.

 

[Fyvel]

Right now I'm working on a rainbow afghan (http://www.knitpicks.com/cfpatterns/pattern_display.cfm?ID=41112220) that is knit with acrylic. I have also used cotton and cotton blends. I haven't tried bamboo but it is also an option. There are others too I am sure.

 

[mlp]

I am nearly getting to the end of my scarf... the first proper thing I have knit. It's just plain knit stitch but I can't wait to try something more exciting next time... I think I will get a thicket yarn and needles though, this one has taken ages.

What do people knit with, in particular people who don't knit with wool? I have made my scarf with a cotton and acrylic blend, and before that I knit dish clothes with plain cotton. I really liked the cotton but it was trickier to knit with.

There are different types of cotton yarns. The kind one uses for dischcloths is generally pretty rough to knit with - it doesn't have any give. (*Give*, or the lack thereof, is a problem with cotton, even the softer cottons - it doesn't *bounce back* the way wool does.)

Knitpicks.com, which Fyvel linked in her post, is a good source for affordable, good quality yarn. I used to buy quite a bit of yarn at elann.com, but their selection is really down the last year or so.

I like all of the Knitpicks yarns I've tried so far: Shine is a cotton/modal blend - I'm starting a lace shawl for my sister out of that. Brava is a really good quality acrylic. Comfy is a cotton/acrylic blend that I like. I like their Simply Cotton. I've just ordered a bit of Billow, their new cotton, to try out. If you go to the Knitpicks site, you can click on yarns, and then select either the Acrylic or Cotton/Cotton Blends section.

James Brett Marble is a nice acrylic with long color changes. I plan on making an entrelac stole out of it. Bernat's Mosaic is another acrylic with long color changes. It's not as good of a quality as the James Brett, IMO, but has much of the same look as the Noro color change wools. But for solid color acrylic, the quality of Knitpicks Brava can't be beat, IMO.

It kind of sucks, because the loveliest yarns have animal fibers in them. Sigh. For cold weather knits, the best non-animal fiber substitute for wool is acrylic. For lace - bamboo, tencel, and cotton blended with bamboo or modal.

Before I buy a yarn, I check it out on ravelry.com. I read the reviews, and then also look at photos of projects worked with that yarn - that pretty much gives me an idea as to whether it will give me the look I'm wanting to achieve.

Ravelry is also a great source for free patterns of all kinds.

 

[mlp]

Right now I'm working on a rainbow afghan (http://www.knitpicks.com/cfpatterns/pattern_display.cfm?ID=41112220) that is knit with acrylic.

I like that very much. I'm a ***** for color.

 

[Fyvel]

Right now I'm working on a rainbow afghan (http://www.knitpicks.com/cfpatterns/pattern_display.cfm?ID=41112220) that is knit with acrylic.

I like that very much. I'm a ***** for color.

The instant I saw it in the catalog, I knew I had to make it! It's great easy knitting, too.

Slightly off topic rant about KnitPicks:

Spoiler

I am a bit skeptical of buying from KnitPicks again. I love their yarn and love love love their Harmony wood needles. They had a security breach with their software and people's credit card numbers were unprotected on their server, just sitting there for anyone who knew where to look. Our credit card was compromised, but luckily our cc company caught it right away. Huge pain in the butt to replace the card on everything. I know that's just the price of doing business online, but what gets me is KnitPicks knew about the security breach and didn't say anything. They said they sent letters out (in early Feb) to people who could have been compromised but as far I know nobody has yet gotten a letter, yet if you go on their Facebook page there are hundreds of people saying their credit cards (or worse, debit cards) had fraudulent charges in that time frame. So yeah, while the security breach itself wouldn't have affected my decision to buy with them again, their handling of the situation and seeming attempt to cover it up has me very skeptical about giving them any more of my business. Which is a shame, really, because they were my main source of knitting supplies.

 

[PTree15]

Very nice, Fyvel!

 

[SummerRain]

I have finished my scarf! Although a bit where I joined new wool in has come undone and I'm not sure what to do about, hopefully my mum will tell me tomorrow.

I'm just practicing new stuff for a bit now, I just knit a stripped ball. I think at easter I will knit a blanket

 

[SummerRain]

Ta daaaa! Just the scarf, not the tablecloth! Be kind, it took me months.

My ball. I think next time if I knit a neater one I'll add some ribbon and use it as a christmas decoration I was really just practicing.

 

[PTree15]

Great job, Summer Rain!

 

[ledboots]

View attachment 1920 Ta daaaa! Just the scarf, not the tablecloth! Be kind, it took me months.

View attachment 1919 My ball. I think next time if I knit a neater one I'll add some ribbon and use it as a christmas decoration I was really just practicing.

I love that ball! You should put a hanging ribbon on it and use it for Christmas!

 

[SummerRain]

Thanks guys. I tried showing off my knitting to my Fiance, he was a bit muddled at why I was holding knitting at him and beaming, but soon caught on and gave me a bemused well done... it's nice to have fellow knitters to chat to

Bought some new chunky wool now so that I can knit a blanket.

 

[kibbleforlola]

Would it be ok if I posted crochet projects/questions in here, or should I start a new thread?

 

[ledboots]

Would it be ok if I posted crochet projects/questions in here, or should I start a new thread?

Crotcheting in a knitting thread?!? I think not, young lady!

/not that I can knit OR crochet...

 

[SummerRain]

I'd like to see crochet projects, but I can't actually crochet.