Learning to knit didn't come so easily for me. When I was pregnant with my first child way back in 1986, I desperately wanted to be able to knit a pair of booties. I had no clue how to knit, but my mother-in-law was a knitter, so I turned to her for help in learning. That didn't work. I tried; I really did, but I just couldn't master it. I was disappointed.
Fast forward to the late 1990s, David and I started a charity called Littlest Lambs that gave items to premature babies and babies in need. I could crochet, but my volunteers could do so much more. Two of these volunteers, very sweet and talented ladies named Mrs. Poole and Mrs. Walters, could knit up a storm. They could have a pair of booties knitted in the time it took me to cast on. Though they had their work cut out for them, they took me on. They had a great deal of patience and taught me to knit.
They knitted two entirely different ways. Mrs. Walters did what she called the "throwing method" and Mrs. Poole, from South Africa, knitted continental style. Mrs. Walters got to me first, so the throwing method stuck. She said the reason that my mother-in-law couldn't teach me to knit was *because* she was my mother-in-law. Some things just don't work, no matter how hard either party tries.
I can see that the continental style that Mrs. Poole used would be much faster if I could just master it. With the throwing method, there are all sorts of opportunities for dropping stitches or having the needle just slide right out of everything if I'm not really careful. I am in search of a tutorial or video that can help me to fully grasp the continental style so that I can speed up my knitting. Right now I'm slower than a snail.
Crochet comes much easier for me and I can do it much faster than knitting.
What about you? Do you knit or crochet? Which do you prefer to do? Which comes easiest for you?
Please share your answers in the comment section. A link to your family-friendly blog is welcome!
Who doesn't like a really cool headband? I love cables, but I don't have too much experience with making them. What about you? Do you find them easy or difficult to make?
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