I really got hooked on knitting ONE SKEIN projects lately (of all the things people get hooked on, I think this was the safest one. Though, knitting needles are a bit sharp. :) ). It's a big change for me because ever since I started knitting some 6-7 years ago (and by this I mean "knitting seriously", not the "5 year old mad kid running around the house with a pair of needles and using knitting and a 10cm piece of yarn only as an alibi in case someone gets hurt" kind of knitting) - all my projects were big. The smallest thing I ever made was a 2,5m (2 yards) long scarf (and I only made two). Cardigans, bags (big ones), coats, dresses, decorative pillows, wraps, sweaters and sweaters again... No socks, no gloves or mittens, no hats (not that I'd wear a hat even if I did make one!).So, my first one skein project was actually triggered some 20 days ago when my sister took me to one of those accessories shops where you should always go severely sedated and with no money or credit cards in your pockets! Everything is shiny, striped and in colours in there- it is so hard to stay calm. The fact is, if you'd just concentrate a bit (which, again, could be a little tricky to do in case you really are sedated)- you would probably end up buying only a thing or two because, eventually, you'd realise you don't really need a felted necklace in lemon-yellow or a shiny-silver-disco pair of leg warmers (though, as for the last one, you never know! :D ). But the fact is also that, in the end, you would never wear at least one of these things. Now, knowing that my sister, just like me, is not really a jewelry fan (thank God for that genetic mistake!!!), I thought we were on safe ground. But then she showed me a pair of striped gloves. That pair of gloves was actually the main reason why we went there in the first place. I checked the price label and it said their price was a bit less than 50 euros! 2 gloves, 10 half-fingers, a bunch of stripes, less than one skein of yarn = 50 euros!!! And there was no "famous" signature on them either! Taking a knitting addict to see that is something you just don't do. I did tell her that, of course! :))
Ok, so, that was it- I decided to make my first pair of gloves. The moment I came back home, I managed to find all the needles from my 3,5mm DPNs set and gave it a shot. I don't really knowwhy I never made anything using a set of DPNs before- I guess I thought was too tangy and complicated and didn't want to bother. Well, the first row was a disaster, I admit, but, than again, first rows usually are because the gauge is still too tight no matter how loosely you cast on. But, few more rows and I began to like it. Knitting with DPNs is cool! :) The only "problem" was- I had no way of making preliminary measurements so I just had to knit and try on repeatedly. I had to frog and "TINK" some parts of the first glove for more than 5 times before I managed to calculate the exact number of stitches for each row and the right place to start the thumb gusset.
Once I finished the first glove, knitting the other one was as easy
as pie.And it only took me about an hour to finish it (it took me
more than two days to finish the first one! :) ). After finishing both gloves - the only thing left to do was to add caps/hats because the 50 euros pair of gloves that almost killed me was a pair of fancy convertible gloves and mine had to look just the same. Though one might think it's the easiest part to make- it turned out to be an extremely tangy process. I even managed to twist the 1st row stitches 3 whole times while making the hat on the first glove (I thought these IQ tests were more accurate than this, my spatial IQ score was high each time I took the test :) ). But I made it and I managed to create my first pair of (convertible) striped gloves
which I'm proudly presenting you!
The facts is - I didn't choose when to
But, I'll leave other projects for later - I think this is the right time to finish my first ONE SKEIN episode. What matters is that my sister's gloves are finished and that they turned out just fine. As a matter of fact, it all ended up great- it feels so good to make something for the first time, even better to learn something new, and it feels GREAT to save 50 euros. :) Though, if my sister shows me a broche the next time we go to that shop, I'll just have to take my credit card out because no way am I going to twist metal. :)
Finally, I like working with DPNs now (with special thanks to a pair of overly expensive convertible gloves!).
as pie.And it only took me about an hour to finish it (it took me
more than two days to finish the first one! :) ). After finishing both gloves - the only thing left to do was to add caps/hats because the 50 euros pair of gloves that almost killed me was a pair of fancy convertible gloves and mine had to look just the same. Though one might think it's the easiest part to make- it turned out to be an extremely tangy process. I even managed to twist the 1st row stitches 3 whole times while making the hat on the first glove (I thought these IQ tests were more accurate than this, my spatial IQ score was high each time I took the test :) ). But I made it and I managed to create my first pair of (convertible) striped gloves
which I'm proudly presenting you!
The facts is - I didn't choose when toget hooked on this type of knitting (do we ever chose when to get hooked onto something?!) but I don't think my timing could have been better. It's the New Year/Christmas time of year ie presents time and if you're a knitter then everyone expects you to make them a knit-gift. Now, I usually do make gifts myself instead of buying them but, mind you, knitting a sweater for everyone
would be just a bit too much to handle. And I'd have to start making gifts a year in advance. J But one skein projects for everyone? - I can swing that. So, as you'll see from my future posts, that is exactly what I did- I continued making "small knit-gift" for everyone; cutting the hats in half and turning them into headbands, dressing coffee mugs into sweaters :) and finishing the scarves as soon as they reach the neck wormer length. For some of these projects I even used only 1/3 of a skein. I THINK MY WORLD IS SHRINKING!
would be just a bit too much to handle. And I'd have to start making gifts a year in advance. J But one skein projects for everyone? - I can swing that. So, as you'll see from my future posts, that is exactly what I did- I continued making "small knit-gift" for everyone; cutting the hats in half and turning them into headbands, dressing coffee mugs into sweaters :) and finishing the scarves as soon as they reach the neck wormer length. For some of these projects I even used only 1/3 of a skein. I THINK MY WORLD IS SHRINKING!
But, I'll leave other projects for later - I think this is the right time to finish my first ONE SKEIN episode. What matters is that my sister's gloves are finished and that they turned out just fine. As a matter of fact, it all ended up great- it feels so good to make something for the first time, even better to learn something new, and it feels GREAT to save 50 euros. :) Though, if my sister shows me a broche the next time we go to that shop, I'll just have to take my credit card out because no way am I going to twist metal. :)Finally, I like working with DPNs now (with special thanks to a pair of overly expensive convertible gloves!).
P.S. Oh, yes, and their name is "Lollipop gloves"! :D
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