I’ve been working pretty hard at learning how to knit double-knit patterns the last week or so. It’s been pretty exciting to say the least. One, it helps me avoid doing any actual studying or academic reading, which is how I should be spending my summer. Two, I don’t always get extremely excited about new knitting adventures so knitting a lot and also being excited about it makes me feel more like me instead of me with an optics-homework-induced headache.
What do I have to say about double knitting? It would be much easier to learn if I knit differently. If I was not an English/thrower style knitter there would probably be less fumbling and therefore tangling with the two strands. The person who made the how to video I watched on youtube was a Continental knitter (I think this is the correct term). Most often I end up having to let go of one color while I work on another. It probably gives me tension issues I’m not good enough to see or may only see when I try to have larger projects. This is mostly a guess, it could be fine. It was really frustrating the first time I tried to learn about a year ago, and I didn’t have the patience for it. It’s slower. It’s okay to decide to learn this later.
The first thing I did was to make a cute little monster face that someone did a YouTube tutorial on double knitting with. It was small. It’s size reminds me of the size you would expect a coaster would be. I would make a set of coasters but I’m not sure people use them much any more.
The second thing that I tried was a piece of similar size but instead of a little face, it was a purple and green C with a border. I did this because I would like to start making some Cakes for Causes dishcloths or potholders and that will require letters. It turned out well.
This is what the Cakes for Causes logo looks like which I have snagged from their website. It’s white, purple, and green, which I have found similar colors in cotton from Baa Baa Sheep LLC which is located in The Ghent area of Norfolk. I like the shop quite a lot, by the way and I try to make it in every time I go back home to Norfolk. The owner is very friendly and I like the choices available.
I also made a Harry Potter, Slytherin, book mark using double knitting but I think it deserves a post all on its own.
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on January 21, 2013