It’s hardly believable that I learned how to knit nearly 6 years ago now. I’ve been having so much fun with this, certainly the longest I have been able to keep on with any hobby. I still read when I can and I think reading will never really be out of my system, but I need my hands for knitting so holding a book at the same time is sometimes tricky. Knitting or anything craft related requires that extra bit of dedication, passion even!

I’ve dabbled with other crafts long before I focused on knitting. I guess it took a while for me to find something that I really like. There was cross-stitching for a while. I managed to finish quite a few items, even had a couple framed up but it’s not portable and with all the threads and pattern and needle…well, it’s a logistic nightmare. Then, there was a couple of years or so where I had an affair with silk painting. I am hardly artistic, so when I say painting I meant mimicking prints of work by talented, celebrated local silk painters. While I enjoyed working with paints, the hobby needed a dedicated space and lots of finishing to showcase the final piece, i.e. framing them up, or in the case of scarves, seaming by hand which is a bit of a pain.

Needless to say, I haven’t touched these two in years, unless you count the times that we had to move around so I was forced to take the threads and aida cloths and silk paints and fabric from their hiding place and into boxes and back into a new hiding place.

Knitting is a lot trickier in some ways, but in more ways it is the best form of craft. For one, depending on what you are making, you can carry it with you at all times. On bus/train/airplane rides, roadtrips are never the same without a knitting project to keep a knitter company, while waiting in queues at the dentist, the bank, the check-out counter at any store, and sometimes even when listening to a droning speech at your son’s school program. Yes, been there, done that, guilty as charged! But I did get a hat finished so it was productive. Oh and some of the best bits about knitting is after clicking your needles away for hours, days, weeks or months even, you end up with a work of art. Something that can be worn or used around the house. And of course, there’s the amazing community of knitters. I’m glad to be a part of a local group which has since grown from just being a knitting group to real friendships. It’s not everyday that you get to find like-minded people who share and know and understand your obsession with getting that darned pick-up right or that your yarnovers on the left side are wonky and who will offer help using their collective experience and talent as knitters so you can quit whining about that mistake that no one else is going to find anyway. I love the Amiras, I do! And of course, there’s the virtual community of now 3 million knitters on Ravelry.

The only downside is the size of the yarn stash. Which can grow exponentially while you sleep, because you have a club subscription, or two or three, that charges from your Paypal account automatically and ships yarn to you on a monthly basis. Until you run out of space in the three huge IKEA bins under the bed and realize you have nowhere else to hide, erm keep the yarns so with so much reluctance you cancel said club subscriptions. And you realize I’m only relaying what I’ve heard from other knitters, yes? Umm, oh okay, busted! You got me there. I have way too much yarn. Who doesn’t?

Anyway, my point is this, if I ever did have a point when I started writing this post, I have grown as a knitter. I can confidently call myself a knitter now because I don’t just start a dozen projects and leave them unfinished. I actually finish them. Granted a lot of what I have knitted remain in my closet, a few have been gifted away to family and friends, some of whom were not paying attention about the explicit “handwash only” instruction I gave them while I held on tightly to the precious finished project before reluctantly letting it go and then “accidentally” dropping the item in the laundry basket which went into the washing machine resulting in a 50% wool, 50% silk luscious shawl to be reduced to nearly half its former glorious size. Sigh. Only superwash for said individual from now on! Yes, I know you’re reading this and you know who you are.

I have so many knitting goals yet to accomplish including but not limited to colourwork projects. One of these days I will learn and be confident enough to knit a proper Fair Isle project. Oh and steeking! Yes, I will put scissors to knitted garment soon. With steady hands I hope.

Looking back in my short, still new venture as a knitter, I am rather pleased to see that since 2008 I have knitted 57 pairs of socks, 61 hats, 46 shawls with 2 currently in progress, 23 scarves/cowls with 1 in progress, 25 cardigans/vests/pullovers with 1 in progress and 21 pairs of gloves/mittens (mostly fingerless) with 1 in progress. Last year I took the plunge and bought a loom so I can add 4 woven scarves/wraps on this list of craftiness.

What about you? Do you knit? I know most people who follow my blog are knitters, but if you’re not, would you ever consider picking it up?