- Robust collection of knitting needles: It's surprising what you can find when you let it be known that you are a knitter. I've gotten needles from friends and their families and my own family. I've also found that e-bay has needles at a reasonable price. Second-hand stores and estate sales can also be a good source of needles to round out your collection. These sources will likely not provide you with the best quality needle, but they will give you the quantity of needles so that you have needles in most sizes and type (single point, double-point, and circular). These will do for small projects and do in a pinch if you have a project that needs to get done NOW! You don't just need a stash of yarn, you also need a stash of needles.
- Let's talk about that stash of yarn. I consider it therapy, tactile and visual therapy. Yarn is potential just waiting to be molded into something spectacular. You may have plans for it and you may not. Just don't buy a lot of crap just because it is cheap. You'll then end up with a stash that isn't worthy of the effort that goes into handmade projects and your skill (don't ask me how I know this).
- Patterns! I LOVE patterns. Patterns are my source of inspiration. Yours may be the yarn. I love to dream about all of the possibilities of what can be done with yarn and needles. I also love to dream about what I'll make next and for whom (that next victim as it were). I have a favorite site that feeds that addiction on a regular basis. If you are not a member of ravelry.com sign up now! It's a great site with patterns of all skill level and price ranges--many of the FREE! Also, many patterns can be downloaded directly from the web-site. This site is also a great "jumping-off point" as well because some patterns will refer you to other sites that have wonderful patterns, such as the Rowan site or Patons or so many others. Magazines are also another source of inspiration. The only problem I have with magazines is that they seem to be pretty heavy with sweater patterns and honestly, how many sweaters does one person knit. I don't knit that many (or any since my first sweater in grade school. I had visions of an incredible garment flying off my needles. A gold chunky "home-made" looking sweater was the result and I scared the be-jesus out of me. I may just now be recovering--some 50-ish years later.)
- A space to knit that is yours alone. You need some place where you can call your own where others won't mess with your stuff. The last thing you need is someone fiddling with your knitting in the middle of a project. My spot is the end of the couch, where I have an end table for stuff (hot beverage, TV remote, scissors, cable needles, darning needles, etc . . .), a coffee table for my footstool, and room for pet snuggling on one side. I do have a bit of trouble with my dog thinking that skeins of yarn are toys and taking them outside for a good play. I'm being more careful where I put things now. This space also has to be kind to your body. You are going to spend time there so make sure that it doesn't make you sore or sick by not being ergonomic. My husband built a knitting lap desk for me because my neck gets tweaky and I get headaches, but any lap desk will work that is adjustable. Amazon.com or any other place of your choosing will have lots of options for you to choose from.
- Knitting buddies help. You can get these on-line or in local groups. Look around. You might be amazed at what's out there. I know I was at the Oregon Flock and Fiber Festival (OFFF) that my husband and I went to this week-end. Wow!!! Who knew there was such a spinning and weaving and you-name-it bunch of talented people out there? It was fascinating. I felt like a pre-schooler that had no business being there because these people were hard-core--but the nicest bunch of people you'd ever want to meet. The show was a bit constrained to inside vendors because the weather was so horrible this week-end and many of the outside vendors left and went home--they were being blown away. The ones that did stay didn't get much business, at least not from us, because it was too wet. I'm sticking in some pictures to give you a taste of what goes on at one of these festivals. The pictures below were taken upstairs were folks were practicing their craft--bobbin lace, spinning, weaving, knitting, . . .
The picture below show just a couple of the items that were submitted for judging. I wish I could show you every beautiful item, but here's just a tiny sampling.
6. Finally, you need some finished items under your belt of which you are proud. Doesn't matter how big or how small, just that you are please with them.
To that end, I will leave you with a picture of a lap robe that I just completed and gave to a friend as a wedding gift. It is a Brooklyn Tweed pattern called Umaro and I used Debbie Bliss Paloma in Basil. It is soft and oh so yummy. The new couple liked it.
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