Monday, January 26, 2009

To knit or not to knit, that is the question

A few months ago I was at my friend Brittney's mom's house. Her mom's name is Cathy and when I mentioned that I was kind of cold she offered a scarf for me to wear. It was the most beautiful scarf I had ever seen. It was extra wide so when I had it draped over my shoulders it literally hung down to the middle of my back. It was also so long that it hung down to my knees on both sides. It was gray with white fringe and white pockets. I absolutely fell in love with it. Cathy told me that her grandmother made it for her. I asked if I could pay her to make one for me and Cathy told me that unfortunately she does not knit anymore.

Ever since then I have been on the prowl for a scarf that is similar to that one. But my search has been unsuccessful. I'm so desperate for this particular accessory that I have almost decided to take up knitting. I even went as far as to google "learn to knit" online. I read some helpful information about purchasing the proper tools and found some online patterns. My problem is that I'm not exactly sure how much I would like the actual art of knitting.

I told my husband about my plan and he said that if I take up knitting I have to get rid of all of my jewelry making supplies since our space is limited. And by "get rid of" I'm sure he means "put into storage". Which I would have no problem with since there are no bead stores here. But I hate to be the type of person who is constantly starting and quitting hobbies. After all, I am supposed to be writing a book (of which I have only wrote a measly 5 pages). So, the big questions is, to knit or not to knit?

Now, the day dreamer in me sees myself as falling in love with knitting, and making beautiful scarves that people will literally stop me on the street to ask where I get them from. I'll open a new Etsy.com store selling my fashionable scarves at $50 a pop. Get the picture? But the reality is that it takes this gal a couple of months to make a set of drapes on a sewing machine. So I just don't quite know what to do....

8 comments:

PennyCandy said...

Knitting is one of those hobbies that you can carry with you. Doctors appointment take it, dentist appointment take it. You get the idea.

HeidiTri's said...

Try it. Who cares if you hate it, you'll never know if you don't try. Buy a scan of cheap yarn, and a pair of needles. Hit up the library for a "how to book" - I think they have them in the kids section at our library. If you hate it, you've spent almost nothing. If you love it...cool.

Kendra said...

I would definitely give it a try!! You just never know!! Good luck!

Anonymous said...

I know what you mean! I was exactely in your spot about a year ago. I started it, and it here's what happened: First of all, I found it hard. I could only do the basic knit, so no chance of doing this wonderful dress I had wanted to do. But a scarve, alright. I knitted and knitted and knitted. Maybe I had the wrong yarn, but nothing happenend. I knitted forever, and still was not able to wrap the things around my neck, it was too short. I then went out and bought one. :-( But I am happy to learn about your experience. ;-)

Felicia said...

Poor Nora! But that's a great idea Heidi. I'm going to the library today so I'll have to look into that! And that's true that I could take it anywhere.

Peg of Tilling said...

If you want to start knitting with the big giant scarf, you might want to start with big needles (size 13, 15, or 17) and big fat yarn, like LionBrand Homespun (it's 100% acrylic, so it's washable, and bumpy enough to hide mistakes). Try knittinghelp.com for helpful videos.

If you really like knitting, you can incorporate beads into your work, and use your jewelry supplies to make stitch markers.

Felicia said...

Thanks dtrap! I bought a "teach myself to knit" kit at Wal-Mart. It has a #6 and a #8. And I took your advice Heidi and checked out a book from the library!

Sheila said...

Too bad you didn't tell me when you were here. LOL I would have given you the kit i have never touched. It was to be one of the things I learned in SC while pg with James.