Knit a cardi before our babies arrive!

[MrsMcJnr]

Ready4motherhood, Minshu and Firststar - this is for you . Technically I guess this thread should be in Arts ans Crafts but as the knitting is supposed to be to get us through the 2WW, I think it can go here, don't you?

OK so, where do I get needles and does anyone have an easy cardi pattern? should we do the same one? that could be fun!

Ready - I'll dig the book out tonight and post daily tips!!

my dh invited his work colleagues round on sunday night, and they are ok, but not the most riveting of conversations so thought i'd get the jumper i mentioned before on this thread out and see if i could get going with it again.

had completed one bit but couldn't work out from the pattern if that was the front or back as it didn't seem to match any of the measurements, and so couldn't tell where i'd got too.

Will have to make sure i take it with me when visiting my parents over the holidays to try and get it back on track.

its annoying how quickly you forget what you're doing if you leave it for a bit. or maybe thats just me

Shame on me. I still haven't got my knitting needles and yarn! Although I am not quite in my next 2ww so that is my excuse!! Got BDing to do not knitting

conkertree you sound like you know your stuff!! jumpers are a long way off for me!!

Geek - I have seen that stitch and bitch book... looks good, I think I might have to ask Father Yule for it!!

Feeling very proud of myself last night I casted on my stitches (only took about 40 mins to do 30! ) and then knitted my tension sample, I couldn't believe how I just remembered what to do after 20 years (unfortunately my knitting appears to be the same standard as it was when I was 12 too!) Does anyone know what "over stocking stitch" means? My book has "stokinette stitch" which is one row of knit then one row of purl. Is it the same thing? DH asked me who I was knitting the cardi for and I told him that it depends what and whose child happens to be born when I finish it! Not much he could say to that!!

I learnt to knit about a year ago from the Stich and Bitch book it is fab I really want to try thr umbilical cord hat but don't have the right needles yet! I think my DH might also be a little concerned but I have a new 3 month old nephew so have a good excuse

There is a great site called www.craftster.org has loads of great knitting stuff.

Guess what! Guess what!! I got some needles, wool, a row counter and a beginners book with some patterns etc. I am good to go... now I am scared I will be pants!

Not been on this thread for a while and am very impressed with the progress you are all making

I bought some very fluffy wool to make a scarf, to get me back into the swing of things, which is nearly done. After that, I'm not allowed to buy any more wool until I have finished the jumper I started just over a year ago. Also have loads of wool ready to make some things out of the book I have. Feeling keen!!

Maybe just a couple more rows before bed time...

MMJ - yes, stocking stich is the same as stockinette stitch, sometimes addbreviated to st-st!

Minshu - "just a couple more rows before bed time.." I find myself saying that all the time now! It's really addictive! I'm currently practising doing basic knit stitches without looking, so I can watch telly at the same time

Ready - don't be scared! Just knit the first few things for yourself rather than anyone else! Seriously, it didn't seem to take me long for the bizarre raggedy mess that my first few pieces turned into, to become smooth even rows - you just have to practice fairly often.

I will have a go tonight, and the first couple of weeks will just be scarves. Then I will attempt a hat.

Thanks Geek

Ok... I have knitted some rows!! It's very addictive I have to confess. I am loving it. And the funniest (most unexpected part) was DH's reaction to it. He was watching me knit with a HUGE smile on his face, and told me how impressed he was!! And how cool it will be that I can knit hats and socks and blankets for our little baby (his words!)

Does anyone think that grey is a nasty colour for a blanket?? I like all natural colours and thought the grey wool looked lovely (and it was so soft) in the shop, but now I am doing a blanket I think I should have got white??????

KNIT ONE KNIT ONE KNIT ONE haven't learnt the PURL one yet!!

White blankets discolour easily.

The knitting video site is always useful.

I've just finished another hat in mock cable, very cute. Details of other recent projects on my blog .

And yes, the more you knit, the more even it gets - I made a baby blanket from the SnB book for my new nephew, and by the time it was done, my knitting was much better.

PMSL @ the pompom that looks like it has mange (not my words if anyone else hasn't seen it and thinks I am being rude!!)

You are very clever NQC!! I am very

I had a look at that site, and it looks good... but I noticed that the cast on method I use looks different done by her. She brings the needle a different way to me it seems, and I am worried I am doing it wrong now??

Yes, well, the pompom demonstrates how much I still have to learn! I think CF is planning on redoing the pompom, I did order more of the same yarn, so she could redo it!

What cast-on method are you using? There are about 40 different methods out there (I am not kidding! I have a book that goes into them!). If the end results look ok, then I wouldn't worry too much.

I got a book called "Beginner's Guide to Knitting" by Alison Dupernex. I was in Hobbycraft getting my needles and wool, and there was a limited selection and this looked the easiest to follow - And by that I mean it had big colour pictures

The cast on method I am using is called "Two needle cast on" and you start with a slip knot. This may not make any sense typed out but here goes... the way I do it, pull the loop through and place it on the left needle and tighten. On the video it looked as if she was pulling the loop through and turning it onto the left needle???? Sorry that sounds daft

Is this just about the first knot, and how you deal with it? If so, I wouldn't worry over much.

I never use a two-needle cast on, so don't know the specifics, but if you're doing something a bit different with the first stitch, that means there may be a tiny bit of the garment that looks a tiny bit odd. I wouldn't worry in the least.

it's every cast on stitch that I do it like this... I went from what the pics showed really, and I think that I am doing it right. My book just says "place the stitch on the left needle" it doesn't say twist the loop. I think perhaps I wasn't watching her closely enough on the video or she just knits too well!! hee hee. I presume so long as what I am doing is consistent it shouldn't matter too much?

Ah, right. I don't think it's worth worrying about. There are lots of twisted/not-twisted variants on cast-ons, and as long as your result looks ok and doesn't undo itself, and as long as you're being consistent, it's really not worth worrying about.

Thanks very much NQC - It doesn't come apart phew!! It's not terribly neat, but I think that is more to do with the fact that it was my first ever casting on, not the actual technique. Thanks for keeping an eye on us!!

Yeah, things are quite uneven, the first however many times.

I have a caston method I only use once in a while (pinhole method, for knitting top-down objects in the round - used it for the mangy-pompom hat), and every time I use it, it takes three or four goes before I get a result I'm happy with, so I can knit the object.

Do you unravel it all and start again then with the first few attempts? If I don't, I will end up wasting a LOT of wool.

I do unravel and start over a few times when trying something new. But as you're trying to get the knack of just regular knitting, you're better off making something relatively simple, like a scarf or blanket, and just motoring through.

I am currently 40 rows into a slim grey scarf for myself and when that is done I will do a blanket (in hope and wait for baby).

Anyone got any suggestions on colours??