Gosh Yarns It!!

Ok it’s me again well who else would it be, For those of you who are new knitters or thinking about trying knitting or are just reading blogs about knitting because you just are contemplating taking up a hobby and knitting or amigurumi has crossed your mind and your unsure if you can either understand it or actually learn it. Well I’m here to tell you any one can learn to knit or do amigurumi ( which is a form of crocheting mostly toys ). I’m sure for you beginners or people thinking about starting  you feel apprehensive because not sure what needles go with what yarn, how many skeins or balls of yarn will you need,  why is dye lot important what’s a gauge or swatch, why take the time to do it, when a project says easy, is it really ? Straight needles verses circular  and why?  What’s the big deal with knitting socks,when you can go out and buy socks for a few dollars for a couple pairs?  All of these are excellent questions and will ...

Today I think about a desire of my own to lean to spin wool into fiber/ yarn, then knit into something  thats on my to do list.and hopefully  I can check that off  project by project.                 Over the years I have done many, many, many different crafts in many different media’s textiles (quilting needle felting  macramé) Mixed media paper clay fiber paper crafts Metal and soldering, beading and fusing of glass, lamp work beads and Cross stitch, needle point, crewel, designing teddy bears both out of mohair and mink for collectors. you get the idea.  name it and if tried it my studio is proof of all the things I’ve done. Yet I come back to knitting every single time.  Maybe to the simplicity of it, the colors, or the rhythmic calming feeling that falls over you while you create. Honestly knitting truly has health benefits as proven in studies by the medical community Maybe...

As I sit here knitting way past my bed time, and think about the days events . I am amazed at how fast the fun stuff goes by, I had and amazing time with my grandson at a pumpkin patch we took a hay ride, wandered the grounds taking pictures being silly and just watching the twinkle in my grandsons02* eyes as he wandered over under and around pumpkins wondering what he was thinking at almost two years of age about this great orange ball like thing adventure, if he wondered why mommy was taking pictures and nana was just happy to walk holding his little hand, I saw lots of beautiful colors today in the punkin patch that would make beautiful socks and scarves, many different colored pumpkins than I’ve seen in the past, even some stripped ones. Before I knew it  it was time to head home from our adventure.   Children and grandchildren cause you to look at things we take for granted and see the magic and the fun in things like we used to, reminding us of...

I would like to say that all though I love hand died yarns and specialty yarns I cant always sit and visit every yarn shop out there. There is something to be said about using certain big box stores it’s ok to buy it, it’s ok to use it,nothing to be ashamed of !!!!!!!!!     The yarn stores have far nicer yarns and most of the time nicer people and have more knowledge about what you need for certain projects , however if I’m whipping up a few slipper sock that are getting thrown in the washer 50 times or beanies for toddler snow trips that they will out grow before seasons end, a dog or cat blanket for the sofa and chair  that gets washed and chewed on a lot  I don’t want to use the real nice yarns, so why not buy at big box stores?   There are a couple things you should watch for though. First and foremost check your dye lot numbers, just because they are all red doesn’t mean the same dye lot. Big box stores mix their yarns as th...

You might ask really, another blog on knitting and amigurumi and two different needle arts. knitting verses crochet . .? I  can answer that:   First and foremost it’s about the love of knitting and on occasion the love of amigurumi . Another reason is to inspire people to create and think outside the box. Reason three is to help answer question for you while you're in your pjs with your project and the hot or cold beverage of your choice, with out you having to buy a book or go to your local yarn shop  ( which would mean no pjs no comfy chair or couch and possibly no favorite beverage.) My desire is to answer the forever questions on yarn types and needle sizes what goes with what , why it’s important to find out gauge and how it work.   I will have a q&a section to answer your questions ,and if I don’t have the answer I will do my best to find it for you and tell you who, where or how I found it .  I ask that we all share picture...