2025 Fashion On The Ration Challenge

PollyWollyDoodle

I can’t really remember learning how to knit, my mum taught me and she used to cast on for me and then I would just knit, very badly, often ending up with the wrong number of stitches!  I think I probably started with a scarf for my teddy bear or something. 

There must have been a stage between that and being able to turn out things with even tension, follow a pattern, and so on, but I can’t remember it.  The first thing I can actually remember knitting as a garment is a short-sleeved top when I was in my late teens. I still have the pattern, of course! 😄

I do think there’s quite a lot of boring repetitive stuff while you are perfecting the stitches.  Your way sounds great, Laura, but I can’t imagine managing to knit evenly enough as a complete beginner to produce a wrist warmer.  

Laura_Elsewhere

PollyWollyDoodle said:

I do think there’s quite a lot of boring repetitive stuff while you are perfecting the stitches.  Your way sounds great, Laura, but I can’t imagine managing to knit evenly enough as a complete beginner to produce a wrist warmer.  

Oh, people definitely can! I suspect it might have a lot to do with teaching people late-teens or older, rather than teaching a child who is still learning manual dexterity (think of how your handwriting changed through your school years). 

Sarahspangles

Laura_Elsewhere said:

PollyWollyDoodle said:

I do think there’s quite a lot of boring repetitive stuff while you are perfecting the stitches.  Your way sounds great, Laura, but I can’t imagine managing to knit evenly enough as a complete beginner to produce a wrist warmer.  

Oh, people definitely can! I suspect it might have a lot to do with teaching people late-teens or older, rather than teaching a child who is still learning manual dexterity (think of how your handwriting changed through your school years). 

I do think one advantage of British style ‘flat’ knitting is that it makes it very clear if your knitting is even!

I have a couple of works in progress that I think I will have to restart - as in starting from unravelled - when I’m demobbed. Over Christmas I was planning to knit in front of the TV but I had an allergic reaction to something and my eyes were all puffy and tired. And there was Much Coughing. I think my gauge may be very different when I pick them up again.

There are daytime knitting groups just round the corner at the Church Hall, and another at a local yarn store. I wonder though if I would be frowned upon if their output is for charity and I’m knitting for myself? 

laura_lau

Oh I got so behind so quickly! I have a few things in my head I want to comment on, but I read 3 pages worth of posts just now so I might be forgetting something!

1. The wool show - it will be filmed in Scotland across a a few weeks, I think about 4 weeks, and filming is supposed to start very soon, at some point between March and May, so as you have been saying time will be very limited... How do I know? Well, I was reaaally curious to see what it took to apply, and I went through the questionnaire when applications were open. I went through all the questions, and only in the last page, after answering all the questions, a page appeared with the above very sparse details. By that point, I had spent so much time answering all the questions (you couldn't progress without answering them) that I thought "oh well, maybe I should just apply, who knows what can happen", added some pictures as they requested and applied without thinking twice. I received a very polite email exactly a week ago, which almost gave me a heart attack as from the title it looked like they were calling me for an audition, and I definitely wasn't ready for that, but it was to say I hadn't been selected, but not to be discouraged and to apply again in the future (I won't). I definitely didn't expect an email at all from the channel, but I must say they are much more polite than most companies I have applied for normal jobs at during my entire life.
2. I fly very often to visit my family, and have been doing that for more than 12 years now, and never had a problem. I do not knit on the plane, but most of the time I still have at least one project in my hand luggage (sometimes 3, oops). They never questioned my knitting in any airport I have been, however as a rule of thumb, if I fly with a new (to me) airline or from a new (to me) airport, I always check on both the airport and airline web FAQ. for example, on the Heathrow website they specifically say that knitting needles are allowed, same as scissors with the blade smaller than 6cm (apologies, I'm Italian and can't think in inches). Ultimately, though, the decision is with the officer on the day, as they still have the power to confiscate anything they deem dangerous, so I never bring metal needles and usually avoid straight needles, I always try to bring the least sharp needles I have, however it is not always possible. The airline also has the power to confiscate your needles, if they deem they pose a safety risk on board, for example during turbulence, but in that case is less heartbreaking because they would just ask you to store them safely in your bag and not taking them out in the cabin. Some airlines do specify this on their website, and some specifically say they do not allow knitting in the cabin. With crochet I wouldn't worry at all, I've never seen it mentioned. I can tell you the airlines I've flown with and never had problems, if you want.
3. Teaching / learning to knit: I learned from my grandmother when I was 8, she encouraged me to make a garter stitch scarf which, to this day, is still no longer than 20 cm. I do have and use the bamboo needles she bought for me, and that is a very sweet memory. In 2016 I asked my mum to teach me to knit, and she made me do little 10x10 cm squares. First in garter stitch, then reverse garter stitch (all purls), so far so good. Then she made me do one square in seed stitch and one in 1x1 rib. I kept messing it up and getting it wrong, and after unraveling my seed stitch square for the 8th time, she told me "Laura, I think you should give up, knitting is really not for you, go and look for another hobby" (my encouraging sweet mum, ahah). And this is the story of how I got totally hooked on knitting, because nothing could have ever given me more motivation than proving my mum wrong.

@sarahspangles I have never tried joining a group in the Church Hall, so I can't speak for that, and neither for a group in a yarn shop, however I have joined 2 groups organised by lovely ladies at 2 different local pubs, and it was one of the best decisions I ever made! They are not judgmental at all, and there is always help at hand, and, even if they are both called crochet group, some of us sometimes only bring knitting, and everyone is just very curious to see what we are doing. I made really good friends there, and I will totally encourage everyone to join a local group, if they want. Most of them have groups on Facebook, I found my groups by looking for "knitting or crochet group in xxx (name of my town)". 

Just remembered I've seen a gorgeous knitted work with colourwork squares, don't remember the name, but it's beautiful, may I ask which technique are you using for joining the squares? I have a lot of colourworks squares I've made in 2020, while following the "Quarantine podcast and knitalong" by Arne & Carlos, but never got round to join them! (one of my many works in progress).

Laura_Elsewhere

laura_lau said:

 (apologies, I'm Italian and can't think in inches). 

Good lord! It had not occurred to me for a moment that you had English as a second language- wow, yours has to be amongst the most fluent I have ever read (and I grew up in a hugely international household and wider environment)! 

I am absolutely in awe at your ability!!

thriftwizard

@PipneyJane, Fraycheck is IMHO quite clearly an invention of the devil himself! I actually think I may be allergic to it; if I wear a garment where the label has been fraychecked (as most are) & it touches my skin, within an hour or so I'm close to ripping it off and tearing the label out, no matter where I am! And there'll be a red mark & a rash where it's been against my skin. So now I rarely wear new, or new-to-me, garments out until I've worn them round the house for a few hours, and most of my garments have had their labels forcibly removed, with scissors if they're lucky. So washing is sometimes a bit pot-luck... however, apparently most people don't have this problem! Obviously it's far more economical for the manufacturers & convenient for the stitchers than tying the thread off manually, but it does make new clothing a bit of an ordeal for the likes of me...

alicef

@laura_lau if you are referring to the picture I posted of colourwork squares (?), then I'm using mattress stitch to join all the squares together. 

 The KAL, (Martin Storey's Midwinter Blanket & Cushion covers), was run by Rowan back in 2023, (not 2024) - eek, time flies.  All the details are still available on Rowan Connect, (all free).  The KAL was one of the most joyous I have done.  Some of the knitters designed their own squares, (e.g. moose instead of reindeer), and the colour combinations people put together were stunning.  I stuck to Martin's 'festive' colourway.  If I ever get round to the cushion covers then I will probably knit columns as there will be less stitching up!

I did see that Arne & Carlos had a lovely Christmas stocking KAL this year, (I might see if I can track down the pattern) 

I'm very impressed you applied for the competition!

Sarahspangles

Talking of competitions - at the end of the 80s I was at a professional event where a woman said her hobby was knitting. She mentioned she’d recently won a competition to design a knitted item. The prize was a cruise to New York on the QE2!

Diane1276

PipneyJane said:

Please share your hints and tips on short row heels @Dianne1276.  There are several sock knitters in the Much Mending WI.  

I've been away too long, so much to catch up on! 

I do my short row heels over half of the stitches (so 32 for my typical 4-ply sock). I first learned from this pattern: https://knitty.com/ISSUEfall06/PATTsoxon2stix.html

It's a two-needle seamed sock pattern but the principle of the short rows is the same.

When I'm knitting in the round I either shuffle some stitches so I've got 32 on one needle temporarily while I work the heel, or just put a stitch maker at either side of the heel stitches. I knit to the last of the heel stitches, wrap & turn (w&t), turn work, purl to last stitch, w&t, turn work, knit to last 2 stitches, w&t, turn work, purl to last 2 stitches, w&t, turn work....
I carry on like this, one stitch less each time, till there's about twelve stitches between the wrapped stitches 
Then you repeat the process knitting one stitch more each time, till you're back to all 32 stitches.

I hope that makes sense, I think the actual pattern will explain it better!!!!

CapricornLass

I've heard of dishcloths being knitted from string.  One of my friends mentioned that her grandmother always used string which she knitted into dishcloths and of course it should be easy to find string made from 100% natural materials.  

Can't say I've tried it though.