I can't picture...

Carol i understand you , and also have a little advice ,,,, having taught knitting and crochet in the weirdest manners ,,,, even through very old phone lines ,,, [ yes we shouted;" Knit 2 stiches ,!" "You mean first stich as well or Without it? " "purl 3 ,,, purl What ? " Anyway i strongly advice you to purchase at least ONE knitting 'How to ?" mag ,,, and READ the instructions and LOOK at the drawing ,,,,, now make a sweater or vest for a DOLL, you have ,,,,, after really reading ` mag ,,, you will have a bit clearer idea about `only` reading patterns . mirjam

On Tue, 29 Nov 2005 10:02:46 GMT, "Carol In WI" spewed forth :

Because the people doing the looking didn't write the pattern and/or don't own the pages being referenced, most likely.

Several years ago a group started knit-alongs for just that purpose - to give shape to some of the "mystery" patterns out there in the wild.

Reply to the list as I do not publish an email address to USENET. This practice has cut my spam by more than 95%. Of course, I did have to abandon a perfectly good email account...

I learned to knit and crochet without pictures... my mother would NOT let me see a photo of what I was supposed to be making, and I personally feel this is the way everyone should learn. JM2C, Noreen (who LIKES using her imagination)

I also can usually figure out FROM a picture, the pattern.... JM2C again, Noreen

I prefer to have a picture of the finished item in front of me along with the pattern also, Carol. That way as I go along, I can see if what I'm doing is even *beginning* to look like the picture of the finished item. :o) I *can* knit or crochet without a picture, but I would much rather have one!

Gemini

Mirjam, you gave me a laugh this morning. I could just imagine you shouting instructions over the phone and the other person answering "purl WHAT?". ROTFL

Gemini

To each his/her own. I much prefer a picture, and won't even bother with a pattern if there's no picture supplied. When it comes to crafting something, I would rather have some idea of what the designer had in mind. That said, I have managed to crochet a bag for myself without a pattern and picture. I pictured it in my mind and carried on from there. It's the one and only thing I made without an existing pattern, and was extremely simple.

Shelagh

"Shillelagh" skrev i melding news:8Q4jf.7624$ snipped-for-privacy@fe14.lga...

I totally agree with you! If you get a pattern to a sweather, for example, without a photo, You don't know anything about how the pattern will work out in shape. Are there wide arms? Is the sweather slim? How is the shape of the neck? Of course you can figure it out by calculating, But I would be very convinced that I wanted THAT VERY pattern, if I should use it without a photo! THEN I can start to calculate and do my changes!

BUT: I sometimes play with patterns for stitches or structures without a photo! I then sit down and make a swatches, and love to see what they look like!

AUD ;-)

Hi Carol,

I'm like you, I need the pattern and the picture in order to make anything, not a creative person to do it without it. I have a friend who looks at a crochet picture and sits and does it, not me.

Hugs,

Nora

Dear Noreen , some people don`t have a `feeling` for form or 3D , some people have ,,,, I think we who have it should Thank out luck every time..... I used to know a woman , who would go to a seamstress , order a dress to be sewn. Once it was sewn she would claim "It doesn`t look Like the Picture" .....than one day i was knitting nest to her a seamless sweater , 2 sllwwvws were already dangling on my knees , i was almost at the hem ....she asked what it was , i said a sweater , i picked it up and showed it to her , holding it next to the shoulders , she said i see the sleeves , i see the body but where is the SWEATER ??? I had pupils over the years who needed detailed pictures and oi had those who could `see` it after we spoke about it ... It is not only a genetic thing it is also a cultural thing. My most interesting and problematic teaching was to a new imigrant. She was so Rich in the country she came from , that she would lie on her bed and servants dressed her up, and gave her anything, she nodded to ,,, When she came her she had a learn quite a lot ,,, she had a degree in teaching English. But when it came to learningto knit , her mind didn`t grasp the idea of the other side of the knitting and having to knit a p to get a k on the right side ,,, thus we sat and tried many ways till she got it ,,,, mirjam

You are Welcome Gemini ! the funnniest bit was that i had a neighbour knocking at my door one day asking me How to finnish a vest , the pattern looked rather familiar to me ...... i asked her why she doesn`t ask the finnishing help at the shop who gave her the instructions ..... i think you are smiling now and know the answer ,,,,, she listened in to those Shouted instructions and knitted her vest from it , but colder weather came and i closed the window ,,,,,,, mirjam

I don't think we need a pic to knit or crochet anything, but the picture helps us choose which pattern to go for, sometimes it is the colour of a piece worked that attracts me to it, and I'll look at it and think that red sweater is lovely I'll see what it looks like in green or some other colour. So I guess the picture helps sell the pattern to the buyer or user.

As to needing a pattern, well that I guess depends on the ability of the artist

Without the picture of say a sweater pattern, I'd be reading through hundreds trying to get the pic in my head of what they all looked like, in order to chose, well infact I wouldn't bother, I'd make my own up.

So a pattern for say a sweater with a roll collar, with tassels or whatever, really needs to be seen otherwise I guess I could end up knitting the darn thing and then face frogging the whole lot if I didn't like it. But with the picture you can tell straight away if you like it or not. So the pic just shows you the style. Also it gives you a colour optiion if it is a colour picture.

I don't often use patterns only for stitch guide and needle size, and with spinning my own yarn I find they aren't alot of use, unless I see something I like the look of then spin the yarn for that weight.

So to my way of thinking, a picture sells the pattern, gives the reader or artist a chance to immediately visualise the garment, unless you are the puzzle type of charactor then you'd knit any pattern given you just to see wht it looks like. lol

just my thoughts on this subject.. hugz...Cher

LOL Mirjam This immediately put me in mind of a very complicated Irish Aran pattern I was trying to do several years ago now, in the end I handed the patt over to my dh and said read that line out to me, well of course I knew the abbreviations and what they meant, but he didn't, so I got him reading it exactly or near enough how it was written

something like MB K2Tog Tw3L P2 Make bobble knit 2 together twist 3 left purl 2 or similar came out and sounded like

Embee kay2togg twa three la pee 2

I was crying with laughter, not realising it would be nonsense to him, just give a non knitter a pattern line to read it is hilarious... even K1 P1 would be kayone pee one to them..lol

-- Cheers Cher

I like to have a picture to help me choose the pattern: but after I've chosen the pattern, I'll quite happily change the yarn, or resize it, or alter the sleeve length or whatever.

Oh Cher hahahhahah i realy tumbled of my stool ,, and the cat looks at me with : What the XXX is wrong with YOU ????" ..... I once went to a craft show and somebody sold a Hungarian Embroidery book [ My Husband speaks and reads it , but IT WAS NOT FOR HIM}, i have a friend who is rather new here who reads Hungarian and embroideres and i thought i would please her ,,, came home phoned her and said i bought you a Hungarian Embroidery book ,,,,, she asked me what it`s name was , knowing that i would never get it right i said i won`t say it ,,, she begged me and i had a try ......I think i never heard her Laugh so loud ,,, for weeks she would phone and ask me to say the name again .... and would laugh a lot ... mirjam

HAHAHA I love it! That'll teach her for listening in to a conversation! LOL

Gemini

ROTFL That is funny! You're right though... what else would it be to a non-knitter? LOL

Gem

well anytime I'm feeling blue now, all I have to do is to shove a knitting pattern infront of a non knitting man...lol

-- Cheers Cher

Been alright if I knew what in the world he meant lol

-- Cheers Cher