Saturday, June 21, 2008

Rosewood

I am in love with rosewood knitting needles. I just visited Sydney's Tapestrycraft sale and the rosewood needles were 75% off. So instead of coming home with some cheapie bamboos from Lincraft, I now have 3 beautiful pairs of rosewood needles. Dark, beautifully polished and smooooth....so smooth to touch.

I don't know that I would ever buy them full price (over $30 AUS each, ouch!) but by golly if they are on sale again I would buy more. The salesgirl told me that she inherited her knitting needles from her grandmother, and these rosewood needles are the sort that could indeed be heirlooms. What a lovely thought, to pass down knitting needles.

I can't ever imagine buying plastic or aluminium needles again. It's going to be bamboo or wood for me.

Wednesday, June 11, 2008

Knitting vs Sewing

Before I started knitting, I thought that sewing must be ten times easier. Surely it mast be faster to cut a pattern and sew a few seams than to create whole fabric from scratch right?

And maybe it is when you're equipped with a sewing room with your machine already out and a big table for cutting. But trust me, when sewing involves clearing the floor to cut because your tiny round table won't fit the material and plus you have to drag the machine out of the bottom of the closet, it starts to look much more arduous. And I HATE pinning pieces together. I hate it a lot.

So knitting starts to look much more attractive. You can pick it up and put it down, it fits into a carry bag, it doesn't involve spreading things all over the house (although my husband would beg to differ). You can knit for 5 minutes or half an hour rather than having to set aside a whole day for a project.

So ultimately it's no surprise that I tend to get my knitting projects done much quicker than my sewing projects. And to think I dreamed of taking up quilting....

Saturday, June 07, 2008

Knitting for others

I seem to be much better at knitting small gifts for others than I am at knitting anything for myself.

The main reason behind this is that I enjoy giving, especially if it's something in which I've invested time and thought. Plus knitted gifts are (mostly) decorative AND practical, especially this time of year. Scarves, gloves, wraps - they don't just sit on a shelf waiting for dusting (hopefully!). They can be worn, taken out about, used and abused endlessly.

I have to say though that I am always nervous about making something that the receiver will like. So I have a habit of asking what they want, offering them a few patterns and choices of wool. It's good because I'm often surprised by the final choice. I may start off by planning a brown wrap and end up knitting green fingerless gloves. I don't mind because then there's more chance of the gift being used. In this consumerist age I REALLY don't like the pointless gift.

Another reason I enjoy knitting for others is my preference for working to deadlines. Projects without at definite timeframe languish under the bed or in my craft basket. Knowing whose birthday is coming up helps me to prioritise my queue and follow through when it gets to the boring end of the job (sewing things up etc).

I really do need a purpose to complete a project. That's why the sewing machine I was given wasn't used until I started bellydancing - suddenly I had a reason to sew (purchased costumes are expensive) and a deadline for finishing projects. I think my mum was very relieved when that sewing machine started getting some use (again - practical gift giving!)

So there you are. My reasons for knitting reflect my inner tendencies - to work to specific goals within a specific timeframe. I should give this post to my boss as a reflection on my working habits!

Tuesday, June 03, 2008

Random thoughts from the garden....

Talking about knitting seems to be almost as fun as actually knitting. Doing both seems better yet, but it's hard to type and knit at the same time. In any case, here's a place apart from the fantastic Ravelry to document my progress with various projects. It's also a space for random thoughts about knitting and craft.

By the way, if you're looking for me on Ravelry my ID is JediEnna (a hangover from my Star Wars internet days). Although I am tempted to change it to Eclectic Rose. But the thought of redoing all my data is a bit beyond me.

 
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