Good Advice for Knitters...

'Always knit in adequate light. It is much easier to work either bright daylight or good task lighting' - Erika Knight

Photography by Zoë Bull
Hipstamatic App for iPod Touch

One other reason why I started this blog was because it was at a time where I couldn't knit very much and I wanted to express my creative frustration about knitting. However, the reason I couldn't knit, or had to limit myself knitting was because of a beginners mistake.

No, it's not about the uneven tension these days or loosing my place, it's about how I was knitting in low light and not really being aware of how much that would matter. I normally knit with 4.5mm needles and when I get going I can knit a lot at time. When I knitted my mug cosy, I used 5mm needles, they were really long but I could see well and I could knit as much and as often as I wanted. Then I knitted with 3.25 mm needles. (These are all UK sizes)

I won't tell you what I'm creating, but you can see here how thin this wool is in comparison to the thicker sizes. The spectrum of colour was even more of an attractive trait for this project and sometimes I just like to wake up, put my lamp on, punch myself up in bed and go, go, go. When I had a spare minute I would sit on my floor and knit, knit, knit.

Sometimes my mum would come in 'It's a bit dark in here', which I disagreed to, but that was only because my eyes were used to it. I will mention now, that I have not been knitting in pitch black. I would knit in day time, but there wasn't much sun coming into my room at that time.

And because I was enjoying myself so much with this new project, I pushed, and I pushed…my sight until my head really complained with a massive headache. This headache from pushing myself for about a week, last a further three weeks and is just about leaving.

Straining your eyes is not a good idea. I thought going to the opticians would save me and maybe it was a sign I needed glasses. No, my eyes were perfect. 'Just take plenty of breaks.' they advised. I have got admit I was quite disappointed and had to learn the hard way. I couldn't watch tv for long, or look at a screen, phone or computer, and it just wasn't fun and it just wasn't worth it what I had been through.

For the past couple of days I have been coaxing myself back into my colourful project, but taking a row at a time and just completing two rows within a session and being fine with that. It came to mind that I had two pairs of spare needles that weren't in use. I decided to find some projects in my knitting books that used 5mm or 4mm needles, and I did.

Why did I do this? Well, my eyes and head don't hurt half as bad hurt when with 4mm and I feel more at home with it. It doesn't mean to say that I am going to abandon my 3mm needle project but that it will just take a little longer and will be more of an achievement when I have finished it.

So far I have knitted 22 rows of my colourful project and this is the third time I have had to re-do it. There is probably about 60+ in total. If it means starting again at times, then so be it.

I am never into the idea of working on two projects at once, but in this case it makes quite a lot of sense to have two different knitting projects - quick, easy and fast and slow and fiddily with patience required.

I'll be posting them up when each of them are done and photographed.

Just remember having that extra light on can make such a difference and won't have to interrupt you creative projects.

Happy Knitting!

Zoë

My History of Knitting

'I found knitting helped calm my thoughts. While I was knitting and putting my stitches in order, it was easier to put my own mind in order' - Keep Calm and Cast On

'White Beard'
My First Knit

I have mentioned recently in My Whispers of Wisdom about how I took to knitting during the 2012 olympics and used the 'Inspire a generation' tagline for my own development - not just for sport.

I had been in a bad place with anxiety and I had read how knitting is good for relaxation and promotes mindfulness that cancels out worries and stress. So, I decided to give it a go. 

I didn't know what I was going to knit and I wasn't too bothered about it either, I just wanted to practice. I bought some 4mm (UK) needles and 50g wool to match and worked with my mum to understand casting on and the simple knit stitch. 

First I was slow, and then I got a bit faster. Sometimes I lost count and rows where longer than others, tension uneven. But I kept at it as I watched the cross-country cyclists and Rebecca Adlington and Tom Daley in the pool, and found it all very exciting. Their motivation spurred my motivation, and by the time the main olympics had finished, the Paralympics gave me that extra push, and then my first knitting creation had been complete. An uneven white beard-like thing. Nonetheless I was proud of it. 

Several balls of wool later, I had completed the same type of thing, but had moved on to knit and purl, which again, slowed me down to begin with and when I learnt the method and I got faster again. 

That September, I found out my sister was having her first baby and I wanted to knit something for it. I didn't yet have a knitting book or bag, as those came that Christmas; so I thought simple. A patchwork blanket. I had made one of those for my Art GCSE but in the form of textiles and appliqué sewing, so knitting one in simple knit stitch shouldn't be a problem. I gave myself 9 months. 

My brother-in-law is a London-Irish rugby fan so it shaped my criteria in forms of coloured wool, but it was still unknown whether my nephew was going to be a nephew..or a niece. 

I got to work anyway when was living in London at my student halls and my knitting kept me occupied  on those quiet nights in. Green, white, green, white (they are the London-Irish colours) and I got my tension in 20X20 stitches and it was looking really great.

May 2013 was soon on it's way and I needed to add some more rows, which meant 10+ more squares. I hadn't realised then, that I had to stitch the squares together, which luckily I found how in my first knitting book Knitty Gritty by Aneeta Patel.

I didn't finish it on time but I made sure I took my time so it was ready for my sister and nephew.

Here it is:

 So if you have wanted to start knitting, just go for it. Buy some wool of a fun colour, of just in plain white like I did, visit a tutorial on YouTube, purchase a book or talk to someone who knows about the initial stitches and cast off, you're away! Even with the simplest of stitches you can create great things.

Happy Knitting,

Zoë