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Tuesday, May 22, 2012

My Love Affair With Knitting & Crocheting


I have spent my teen years and most of my adult life in the northern part of India. I have memories of coming back from school/college and seeing these groups of ladies sitting on charpoys chatting away to glory, all the while their hands would be busy knitting a mile a minute! In the north, the winter season marks the knitting season as well! So all these “aunties” would be out enjoying the warmth of the sun, after having completed their chores and before the kids are back from school, knitting sweaters for the family members as well as crocheting doilies and sofa covers and catching up on the community gossip! My mom used to knit too, but not for socializing! She was more of an indoor knitter! She has made sweaters for my dad, my sister & me as well as our cousins. 

Though I saw this activity year after year at such close quarters, I never had the urge to pick up the needles myself. And I was in one of those schools where surprisingly knitting was not a part of the craft activities (most of my cousins and friends had it as a part of their school curriculum - the basic scarf knitting). I remember my sister once developing a keen interest towards crocheting and my mom teaching her the same, in fact, if memory serves right, she urged me to try my hand it as well but I refused.

Fast forward 10 years or so. I am a new mom visiting my husband’s cousin. She is into painting, knitting and such, a major fan of “Michaels”(a popular crafts store in the US)! I see her stash of yarn and have this sudden itch to try knitting. It’s a stubborn itch that won’t go away, so I ask her to teach me. She just picks up some spare yarn she has and a pair of needles and teaches me the basic knit and pearl stitches. I come home and finish of my first scarf with that left over yarn! 

There has been no looking back since! I went on the net, checked out you tube videos, bought a few books and started off. I nagged my husband to take me to Michael’s (since I wasn’t driving back then), bought my own needles for both knitting & crocheting and some yarn. I have also ordered stuff online at Joann’s and the Lion Brand website. The patterns I have used have also been from these two websites as well as some from book patterns that I bought.

My first ever scarf was a masterpiece in itself, what with the twisty curvy shape! But I wear it proudly! I stuck to knitting for quite some time, made a few scarves.  The one on the bottom left is a crocheted scarf, the rest are knit.
Once I got comfortable with that, I went on to make a sweater and hat set for my kiddo – not my best product, but hey, that was the first time I had made a sweater! Though I must admit, knitting and attaching sleeves on sweaters is still a sore point with me! The difference in color is because of some lighting problem, they are actually an exact match as I made them with the same balls of yarn!
The next I tried was a hoodie, once again for my little one. This one turned out quite good, even if I say so myself!

Then came our wedding anniversary and I knit DH this cap and scarf set. 

When I saw this yarn at a local craft store, I just couldn’t resist – the result, a rug for my kitchen area. 

I made another smaller rug/doormat for the living room entrance.

When the cousin who started me off on this hobby got pregnant with twins, I knit her this matching double set of blanket, socks & cap.
My last knitting project was this small pouch that I made with a really long strap, so that I could hang it across my shoulder and use it to carry a small wallet, my cellphone and keys on my way to the gym, school or the park. Convenient & handy!

As far as crocheting is concerned, the first thing I made was this tote. Came out pretty neat and I have been using it for the past 3-4 years.

Then I went on to make a few covers for throw pillows on the sofa, but they did not withstand repeated washes and I can’t find any old pictures of them! On a trip to Michael’s, I found this free pattern for a shawl and made it. I love it and have got compliments every time I use it. 
My next aim is to make a tablecloth with lace work. It is a painfully slow process and so I have been putting it off for quite some time now. When I will finally get around to doing it, I have no idea.

So, it wasn’t exactly love at first site, but this has been a wondrous affair nonetheless. But of late, I have been neglecting this relationship of mine. I have heard of writer’s block, but if there is some such thing as a “knitter’s block”, I seem to have hit it! It’s been almost a year and I haven’t knit anything new. I started off on 2-3 projects but have shelved them with no sign of getting back to them. So, I decided to do this write up on my blog, hoping that seeing it all in black and white will give me that much needed push! Let’s see, fingers crossed – hope to put up a few more projects very soon…

6 comments:

  1. Hope you get back to knitting soon...I'm waiting for my lessons :)

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    1. Meera, Name the time and place, won't make excuses then :)

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  2. Yeah you should definetely go back to knitting..hope to see your new projects soon..had admired your kitchen rug..nice to see your other creations..:)

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    1. Thank you Pepper, I knew this was going to motivate me!

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  3. Wow - beautiful Piu - there was a time when i used to do a lot of crocheting and less of knitting. Would definitely like to start again.

    These are simply beautiful - you are one busy gal :)!!!

    Love
    shilpu

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    Replies
    1. Thx Dilpi, just some stuff to pass the time :) Hope to see some of your creations...

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