Easy Knitting Patterns

When I first started knitting, I started out with a simple scarf.  In fact I didn’t even use a pattern, just did a straight stockinette stitch, 30 stitches across.  I moved on to a hat next, which I found to be a bit more complicated because it was knit in the round.  Still the pattern that I used was very descriptive and I learned some new techniques while doing it.  It was a definitely an easy knitting pattern. 

Next I decided to move on to knitting a pair of socks.  I had won a sock knitters basket in a charity auction with some really beautiful yarn and a pattern.  I figured if I could knit socks, then I could knit anything.  It seemed a scary prospect though because everything is so little.  The needles were tiny and I was using double pointed ones.  The yarn was tiny too, I was used to a worsted weight wool.  Still I cast on and off I went. 

The problem soon turned out to be the pattern and my inexperience.  It was part of the basket and I thought that one pattern was just as good as another.  And in truth the pattern is a great one.  It I just not an easy knitting pattern.  I did manage to knit a few inches of the cuff, but then I realized it was much too small.  Another tip: always knit a gauge swatch.  And frankly it didn’t look very good.  So I put it down and left it for a long time.

I was still determined to knit a pair of socks though.  I went in search for an easy knitting sock pattern and finally found one in The Knitter’s Handy Book of Patterns by Ann Budd.  It has instructions for knitting with any size yarn and with any gauge.  It was just what I needed.  Soon I had my first pair of socks completed and I felt great.  It was such a hurdle to overcome and I passed it. 

Now I knit socks all the time.  Once I got down the basic constructs of sock knitting, it was so much easier to take on more complicated patterns.  I still find the easy knitting patterns in my library very useful though.  I highly recommend them for your library too. 

Technorati Tags: easy knitting patterns

Knitting and other handcrafts are not just hobbies that are limited to women.  According to a recent article in the Express & Star, men are also big fans. 

David Wareham was a member of the Royal Navy for a few years and he remembers sailors working on hand crafts during their downtime.

“In the Navy everyone did something when they got back to their bunks after a shift. We made rugs, knitted warm socks and jumpers, embroidered items and used knots to make decorative pieces.”

Now he is an accomplished spinner and has learned the fine art of Tatting.  It is something that he enjoys doing, along with his wife Patricia.  They both work on knitting, crocheting and weaving tapestries as well.

“David, of Hassop Road in Great Barr, is now a keen tatter, which involves making small knots in a piece of thread and using a shuttle to create doilies, bookmarks and necklaces.”

He has been a tatter now for 10 years.  Many of his pieces take months to create.  He does sell items in order to travel to shows.  He also enjoys passing on his skills to others that are willing to learn.  He loves his chosen hobbies.

“However, it is a relaxing hobby which keeps my hands warm and my brain active – and it also takes me back to my years on the ocean waves.”

Technorati Tags: knitting, tatting