Learning to knit without throwing all my toys out the pram?

[BabCNesbitt]

I'm 17 weeks pg at the moment and really want to be learn to knit, so that I can make some simple stuff for the wee yin when it arrives. I've tried a few times to learn: I bought Stitch n Bitch and many other books; I tried to copy videos on YouTube; I even took a class. (I'm left-handed - this seemed to blow the teacher's mind. )

Every time I've just given up in frustration; there's something just not clicking. The stitches are too tight, or there are loose threads all over the place, or it gets all twisted up. Sometimes even just trying to cast on made me so pissed off that I just threw it all away in disgust.

Am I just quitting too early? Should I expect to screw up everything I make at first? Or should I just give up and accept that I have too low a frustration threshold? (If not, any suggestions on where best to re-start?)

("really want to learn to knit" - minus the stupid extraneous "be" )

|Do you live near a John Lewis? When i was pregnant with DS 4 years ago the haberdashery dept did free sessions with no hassle to buy anything. You could bring your knitting in after for advice. They also do courses you pay for that last a day or so.

Have you looked at the book by Debbie Bliss called Baby Knits for Beginners? Its great with some very simple things to try. Good luck!

ps i had to try lots before i really got it- now i can do bootees!!

I'm left handed, if you live near me I'll teach you to knit .

Took me 30 yrs to finally learn to knit. Mastered it, in most simple form, a week last Sunday.

Just keep persevering, watch the same video on YouTube bazillions of times, and you WILL get it.

Good luck!!

Oh, and I'm LHanded, but am now knitting RHanded as more people I know are right handed so are more likely to be able to help me.

I'm a right-handed knitter and tried to teach one of my left-handed kids to knit - I found it near impossible and she was very frustrated by my cack handed efforts! I'd really recommend getting a left-hander to show you how properly - a right hander trying to do it 'backwards' to show you is just as hard as you trying to learn to do it right-handed...if that makes sense! That said, my mum's left-handed and knits right-handed. She showed me a book she had when she was younger which suggested left-handers use tracing paper to trace all the diagrams and then look at them through the other side of the paper clearly just having two sets of diagrams was out of the question! The good news is that once it's clicked it will be second nature very quickly.

BriansMum: based in London :) Actually, when I learned the violin when I was wee, I was taught right-handed, and it was fine as I never knew any different. But it just doesn't seem to work that way for knitting!

I'll have a look for that Debbie Bliss book - ta! I wonder if the John Lewis in Oxford Street does something like that?

It is something which takes a bit of practice. My mum tried teaching me when I was a kid but I just didn't have the patience. Like you I was inspired to start knitting again when I was pregnant. What I knitted first of all was a bit rubbish but I am getting better, 18months later. The thing that made it click for me was really thinking about the relationship between the stitches and the actual construction of the knitting iyswim, rather than just one stitch after another. It helps me to understand what I'm doing. Hope that helps you!

You need a real live person to teach you. There are loads of knitting groups in and near London. Just join Ravelry (ravelry.com) and search for a group. You need a left-hander to teach you, you may be happy be the continental way of knitting. I use both continental and english knitting in Fair Isle and it is perfectly possible. You need someone to cast on for you to begin with, then you need to learn to do simple knit stitches and so on. And someone to bail you out when it has gone pearshaped. A book or video will never do that.
Good sources of real live people that can knit: old peoples' homes, church women's groups and you will find people in wool shops accommodating too.

Thank you for the link DutchOma - I've been trying to remember what that site was called ever since my friend taught me to knit last week.

Hmm, interesting. I'm lefthanded (and live near London !) but I'm no idea of I knit left or right handed! I was taught to knit by a right hander and I think I knit right handed but my mum says my knitting style is quite cack handed!!

JL would definitely be a good place to start .

Thanks for all the replies :) I think you're right, DutchOma - I'd probably be less likely to hurl the needles across the room in disgust if I had someone with me, too

JL brent x definitely does it- think Oxford st does too.

There would be no need to throw it across the room if I were to teach you to knit. I would just take it, sort it and give it back to you. Has never happened more than about five times with anybody I taught, and wouldn't be with you. It's easy to sort or start again, especially with somebody who is keen to learn.

If you go to John Lewis Ox St I think there is a lady from Rowan there once or twice a week who helps with knitting. They run classes too - www.johnlewis.com/Shops/DSServices.aspx?Type=DSS&Id=23&Page=0

Good luck - once you get into it it's addictive!

Sorry that link isn't working right - you can find the details on the JL website under: Our shops, Ox St, Services.

Thank you! :)

I found the link I used for teaching DS to knit

here

It is quite technical in knitting language but essentially it's knitting the right handed way, but using your left hand to do most of the work. She does say contact her if you're a novice and trying to learn from scratch!