Certainly. And it's going to sit in that position until your arm is ready to commence the next downstroke. For that reason, I don't see how the spring action can speed up the work.
Isn't that the holy grail--being able to knit at the movies? At this point I definitely have to check everything visually. I was trying to imagine what knitting is like for the blind.
Long ago, I reported here, that my father had an Icelandic roommate in college that put himself through school by knitting a pair of fancy, Lopi ski socks every day. He went to the (very cheap) student movie theater, sat through a double feature, and walked out, having knit a pair of socks. That is my Dad's story any way.
I have no idea if he used a knitting pouch or not. I doubt if he used a knitting sheath. I doubt if we would consider the socks that he knit fast during the movies "fancy."
Still, my Cornish gansey was mostly knit in the same room as my wife watched DVDs, so there was a fairly low level of light (like a movie theater). In the light of day, I see a lot of errors in it. (My computer informs me that it is thousands. Where I see a skipped row of knit stitches, as one error, my computer says that is 324 errors. : ) ) My stitching guild has pronounced the knitting in this gansey somewhere between "excellent" and "wonderful". But, they are nice old ladies that may not be entirely honest. On the other hand, they did get excited and there was a bit of a disturbance during our "show and tell" .
Firmer spun yarns are much easier to knit in low light conditions.
Aaron
I'd like to know how he managed to knit fancy socks at the movies. I can knit at the movies, and I have done socks there, but only the leg, since I can't see well enough to do anything else.
Higs, Katherine
Katherine my question as it came into my mind EXACTLY ,,, Many years ago i went to visit a weaving workshop that employed blind people , the colored threads were hung in a special order the flyshuttles had different sounding bells for each side of the loom , and there always was seeing person there just in case. Knitting a color patterned sock ,in the dark ???? Maybe he knitted Abstract Patterns ??? This IS just the kind of STORY that i would take with a bit of salt ,,, mirjam
More likely, they were VERY PLAIN Lopi boot socks. My guess is, that my father called them "fancy" because they were comfortable and durable; and, my mother called them "fancy" because they were made from an expensive yarn.
Still, it is a modern story of a professional handknitter working in near darkness.
Aaron
Yes, Mirjam, indeed! Some people remember things differently, I guess.
Higs, Kather> Katherine my question as it came into my mind EXACTLY ,,,
Aaron, I am an experienced knitter, and I cannot do patterns in a movie theatre. Even plain socks require shaping, and it is very easy to drop a stitch
- not very easy to pick one up in the dark. I am not questioning the story, although two socks during a double feature is a tad unrealistic as well. It takes me a couple of days to knit a pair of worsted weight socks, and people comment on my speed.
Higs, Katherine
I had a totally blind friend who knitted. she made up the pattern as she went along and felt for the size. No, she couldn't do very fine lace but her garments were always more than adequate and she was very enthusiastic.
Several beekeepers have been blind too, one of them discovered a very important truth about honeybee queens, his finding revolutionised the way we manage bees.
Mostly I'm very impressed by what blind people can achieve.
I'm not at all impressed with what many sighted people say they can't achieve, mostly because it's too much trouble, they can't be bothered.
Rant over :-)
Mary
There is a big difference between Lopi and worsted.
I have done maybe 20 pair of Lopi ski socks. There are many differences between the socks that I knit, the socks that were 55 years ago in Zurich, but my Lopi socks took a lot longer. (I have not knit any Lopi socks since I learned to knit faster with a knitting sheath.) I think that fellow would have had to have fingers as strong as Lance Armstrong's legs to knit Lopi socks that fast. (Not to say that Lance was as good as the great European circlers.) On the other hand, he was a trained professional knitter, and the story was told by a respectable old woman. If we can not trust the stories of an old woman, what can we trust?
Over all, I would say that we do not have enough evidence to judge the truth of story of the fellow knitting a pair of Lopi sock per evening while watching movies.
Aaron
LOL I agree!
Higs, Katherine
Seconded,
Dennis
Last summer I made a knitting sheath and needles for knitting socks, but then focused on a gansey and never tried out the sock tools.
So, yesterday I pulled some *OLD* Lopi out of the stash, some sock tools, and started knitting some nice tight Lopi ski socks.
The result was a nasty blister on the right hand where the yarn crosses the middle finger. Things like Sport Shield or tape seem to interfere with my tension.
It took me a good part of an afternoon to knit a sock and a half. I did not think that was too slow for someone that has not knitted a sock in a year, and the first try of a new knitting style, and new, hand made tools. And, these are pretty are pretty tightly knit socks. Very suitable for a "Short Trek in the Hindu Kush." The needles are about #5. In accessing the damage, it turns most of my DPN were in the wrong needle cases. It would be easier if I made the same thing everyday, and did not fuss with a bunch of different needles.
How do you get to Carnegie Hall? Practice!, Practice! Practice! Aaron
I can't imagine knitting like that. It would be no fun at all. And I don't like blisters!
Higs, Katherine
Maybe he kept one color in each hand and used a simple repeating pattern.
For example, I speculate here: If you have an eight-stitch pattern repeat and the socks have 64 stitches around, the pattern is regular, but if you have an eight-stitch repeat and the socks have 63 stitches, the pattern shifts over by one stitch on every round, making a noticably different result - but done with the same sequence. Then you only need to remember one sequence.
=Tamar
I repeat, "fancy" for that bunch of die hard skiers would have meant very warm, durable, and comfortable.
A few years back, I knit my parents each a pair of Lopi socks for their 50th wedding anniversary. Then, I was told that those socks that I knit were as good as the Lopi socks that my father had gotten from his roommate, and which my Mother, as a new bride, had ruined.
However, in those days, it took me 3 or 4 weeks to knit a good pair of Lopi ski socks. That was just after the time that members of this group converted me to continental style knitting, so that I could knit faster. I have a few pair of ski socks in my closet from that period, and they are good socks for skiing, hiking, and keeping the toes warm. One problem is that those socks that took me 25 or 30 hours per pair to knit, seem a little too precious to wear for everyday activities, so they do not get worn much. They are still in pristine condition after 4 years.
After a bit of tromping up "Mud Ridge" in my hiking boots, it is clear that the old socks are not as good as the boot socks that I just finished in 7 hours of knitting time with my knitting sheath. The new ones are tighter and have more cushion. I expect that they will last longer also. This really changes the economics of wearing hand knit socks.
Aaron
But if you inadvertantly drop a stitch, then it is a b*tch picking it up, I speak from bitter experience here.
Higs, Katherine
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