book sale

Thanks Sharon!

I have asked older DD if she would like this one:

DD made this for DGS for Xmas, She is really getting into knitting, so I gave her a set of these: I miss knitting! :-(

Beverly, That is one beautiful sweater! Your DD certainly has talent in knitting and DGS must be very proud to wear it.

Emily

The sweater is a work of art. I made one like only once and know how much work is involved.The needles are great. A lifetime of fine knitting for your DD. The difference in good needles and inexpensive one is the difference in enjoying smooth knitting and struggling. I love to knit but find it takes me so long because carpal Tunnel causes mme to stop and rest my hands so often. Juno

Welcome. :)

I thought about ordering that one for my mom too. She's the knitter. She's to the point now that she just picks up the yarn and needles and out comes an afghan. I have no idea how many patterns she has memorized. :) I can crochet, but something about the two needles, I just can't quite grasp.

Oh!! That is just gorgeous!!! She did an incredible job.

You could get a knitting machine.... It would be easier on your hands. And you know well the allure of a New Machine..... ;)

Sharon

Doesn't she have one under the bed or in a closet? One she never learned to use? *Tsk tsk* I love my machines. Keep planning to get at least one knitting soon. So much yarn!!!

Thanks, Emily. Yes, DGS is very proud to wear it. I'm so pleased that DD knits, my mother taught me, I taught DD, but she exceeds my skill level.

Indeed! The only one I ever made that had that much pattern was a cardigan for my (then future) DH. He wore it several times and loved it, but then took it off and left it somewhere. :-( The last things I knitted were blankets for my DGC, so that was 15+ years ago.

She was thrilled with that set. She loves knitting with circular needles. I never learned how.

I know very well, the arthritis in my hands is what stops me. I just cannot support the weight on the end of one straight needle anymore. DD wants me to learn how to use circular needles, but I think It's too late...

You are not too old to learn... ;->

Thanks, I'll pass your remarks along.

I have my mother's knitting machine. I actually used it for several projects years ago (Mom died in 1971), but it's a single bed, so making more complex patterns meant a lot of hand purling, or hand knitting the ribbed sections then transferring the stitches to the knitting machine. It was great for "yardage" but I never really got into using it for sweaters.

Yes...

Ahem! I DID learn to use it, I just found it too limiting. It's a single bed, cannot do purl stitches without a whole bunch of hand fiddling. As I recall, I have an almost-completed navy blue sweater still awaiting the finally ribbing....

I still have several dozen cans of my mother's yarn. All stored with cedar chips, so I hope they are all in good shape. I am urging my DD to take the deep red mohair I always intended to knit into a coat. Most of the rest of it will get donated to Goodwill one of these days.

i'm a beginner knitter...am currently working on this:

fornathan-i'm delighted with how well the 'gator is coming out! i envy your daughter's talent Beverly...but that's no surprise, i envy yours as well!

Circular needles are really easier to use for large projects. The weight is in your l ap and not on the needle. When I do attempt something simple and I have lots of time I'll use a circular.Last summer I made some scarves for 2 DGS. Just did them in a knit stitch. Since it was summer and I had plenty of time to rest the hands, I was able to complete them. Sweaters would take a year to do one. I can't do 4 needle knitting. That confuses me. The last pair of socks I tried ended up big enough to fit a 10 foot giant.Just couldn't get the hang of those 4 needles and kept adding stitches inadvertently. Juno

I know that, but the way I was taught, by my mother, requires that the left-hand needle be firmly planted in my lap. I just cannot get he hang of knitting with both needle points suspended in mid-air. :-} When I made the blankets for DGC, I knit them in three panels, there was no way I could cast all those stitches on one needle.

The only time I have done four-needle knitting was when I made custom dog sweaters. I knit the front sleeves in-the-round. But it was difficult for me, see above.

OMG, what a hoot. I am going to see if DD or DGD wants that pattern book!

You are too kind, thank you.

I love the those "gators." They are the best. Almost enough to make me want to pick up the needles for the summer. don't know who I'd do them for, but they are great. Juno

Will the machine you have take a ribber? If so, you can have your purl stitches, ribbing, and such. If it's a Brother that will take a garter carriage, you can do it on one bed, though it's slow.

It tickles me that you say "a whole bunch of hand fiddling" -- what is hand knitting if not a whole bunch of hand fiddling?

I honestly have no idea. It's 40+ years old now. Mom bought it a few months before she died, and gave me her older one. I actually used the older one quite a bit, but I don't recall ever opening the box of the new one. It used cards to create multi-colored patterns, I wasn't really into that...

My (admittedly poor) memory says it was a "Studio"? But it's been a long time, I may be wrong about that.

But I EXPECT "hand fiddling" with hand knitting. A knitting machine should be like a sewing machine: just throw the yarn at it "et voila!" a finished sweater. Right? ;->

I remember knitting the ribbed sections of sweaters and then tediously hooking each of those those stitches onto the machine needles. Or knitting several rows on the machine, then dropping a bunch of stitches and using a latch hook to "purl" them. Not for me....

The last time I checked, Schoolhouse Press sold extra-long double-point needles to be used with fixed-end knitting techniques. (I think your method would call for a really fat point protector too.)

I used 6" double point needles, but I struggled holding them up "in the air".

My mother's technique (with the left hand needle planted in the lap) allowed one to knit back and forth across the work without turning it. One had to convert all the 'even' row instructions to the opposite (i.e. k=p and p=k) stitch. Sounds difficult, but in reality it was easy. But mother also was able to use circular needles, she just never showed

*me* how. :-(

I have to amend that: I did turn the work for flat "garter stitch" and ribbing.

B