Suiting Up - The Supplies You Need For Knitting

One of the reasons knitting has again become so popular is because it can be one of the cheapest hobbies to adopt. If you exclude high-quality yarns like angora and mohair, you can easily work up a gorgeous knit piece for less than $10 (and that includes the price of your knitting needles!). That same popularity, however, can increase the cost of your hobby through sheer volume. Walk into the craft department at your nearest Super Wal-Mart and you’ll understand immediately – the popularity of both knitting and crocheting has encouraged manufacturers to come up with thousands of new textures, colors, and types of yarn that have never before been available to the general public. Now, if the relatively small crafts department at a superstore has such a wide selection, imagine the vast array at a craft or, heaven forbid, yarn store!

The choices can be daunting and confusing for even the experienced knitter. If you’ve been knitting for longer than a month, chances are that your closet/dresser/any open storage area is crammed with scraps, leftovers, and even unopened packages of yarn for the hundreds of projects you planned and never had a chance to finish. Ever consider the cost of all of those pieces? Doesn’t sound like such a cheap hobby anymore, huh?

For beginning knitters, yarn displays can be an even bigger pit of quicksand. You may not know exactly what you can make, but you know which yarns feel nice against your skin and which ones have the prettiest colors. Just look at all of them! Surely there has to be something on your skill level that can be made with such fun fabrics! Wait a second, wait a second, put down the chenille. No, really, put it down. Do we need to call security? Before you max out your Visa card just because something feels soft and smooth, there are a few basic facts you should know about yarn. I'll write more about that in my next blog post.

Yarn Yoga - Getting Started Knitting

So you want to learn to knit, huh? Well, what are your qualifications? You think we’re going to let you just stroll in here like you own the joint, hand you needles, and let you go at it? You do? Hm. Interesting. Maybe we can go at it that way.

Welcome to the ranks of new knitters! While knitting has been around for centuries and exists in many different forms throughout the globe, it has enjoyed a renewed popularity recently. Knitting may not have the tie to survival it once had for much of the globe, yet new knitters are getting into a needle habit in droves. Why? Some feel it creates a connection with our heritage in a time when living in the moment is in vogue. Others believe it’s a way of separating oneself from the inundation of technology in our lives. Still others feel that it’s a pastime, something to do while waiting for the kids at soccer practices and recitals. But why do people stick with knitting?

Once you get into it, you’ll be asking why people don’t stick with knitting. While it gives your hands something to do, it’s a hobby that allows you to work and create while your mind can roam free or go blank. It’s meditation with tangible results. Many knitters begin working on a pattern only to look down two hours later and realize that they’ve finished half of a baby blanket and feel centered, focused, and refreshed.

You don’t have to be flexible to pick up knitting. You don’t have to commit 10 hours a week. But when you’re in need of replenishment or nourishment, you can reach into your knitting bag, get to work, and lose yourself in creativity.