Saturday, April 02, 2011

Knitting and Crochet Blog Week, Day six (2KCBWDAY6)

So after yesterday's blip: today's theme:

Is there a pattern or skill that you don’t yet feel ready to tackle but which you hope to (or think you can only dream of) tackling in the future, near or distant? Is there a skill or project that makes your mind boggle at the sheer time, dedication and mastery of the craft? Maybe the skill or pattern is one that you don’t even personally want to make but can stand back and admire those that do. Maybe it is something you think you will never be bothered to actually make bu can admire the result of those that have.

I don' t really understand the idea of feeling "ready to tackle" a skill. In my experience, you see a project which demands that skill, and if you like it enough, you're going to make it. I haven't done much teaching of beginners, but I'd always say "whatever you want to" when they say "what should I make next?". I've seen people working on both-sides lace projects when they've been knitting for less than a year, and people happily cranking out garter-stitch blankets after many years' experience.

Having said that - yes, there are things which make me boggle. There were some fabulous crocheted scarves at the last two years' I Knit Weekender, made by someone with a French name (please, anyone)? in what looked like #8 perle cotton. There was an Irish crochet wedding dress, a photo of which was shown to me on a train, because the husband of the woman who'd made it in the 1970s wanted to take a phone-video of me knitting beads into a shawl using a crochet hook. (The bride had also crocheted bodices for her three bridesmaids; he didn't have pictures of those). Anything at all Debbie New does just alters my brain in strange and subtle ways.

I'm very glad I started knitting when I did, and where I did; there was no notion of what was easy, and what was complicated, because I really didn't know any other knitters, apart from girls my age and one or two of their mums. In some ways, obviously, this made the task harder; but in other ways, there were no boundaries. I've learned more in the last 10 years than I did in the previous 15 about knitting, because of the Internet, but I've also learned that some people think there's a right way, and a wrong way, to do things; and that's not always helpful.

4 comments:

gardensprite said...

Ah, you must be referring to Ms. Sophie Digard, French designer. I read somewhere she uses a blend of merino wool and linen. I've purchased some in colors I think approximate the Digard touch and have been collecting a plethora of tiny crochet motif patterns with which to experiment.

I agree the Internet has been a great boon to my development as a needle arts enthusiast.

Lenor

Joan said...

I see Lenor has beaten me to the punch. I too love Ms. Digard's scarves, but they are way beyond my budget. Lenor, if you are feeling magnanimous, could you please point me in the direction of those tiny crochet motif patterns? I'd be so grateful!

Anonymous said...

So agree with you about people now seem to think they have to do x because y is too difficult. At age 7 (or possibly 8) I wanted to knit a jumper for my teddy bear and the wonderful lady in the local wool shop (my mum didn't knit) told me I could do it, because cableing was just moving stitches around. So I did and teddy still has the jumper now over 40 years later. I do get wound up when I see people posting on Ravelry about "am I ready to do cables, I've done x, y and z"...

dawn

gardensprite said...

Joan, magnanimous is my middle name; yesterday it was 'tenacious', but I change it often. First I examined library books to find suitable motifs. I also checked out ebay where I found sources for many lovely Japanese pattern books. Possibly I availed myself of amazon.com as well. Have fun being a gatherer! I seem to do more of that, and am better at that, than finishing.

Lenor
lemonhead on Ravelry