Hello all! First off, a bit of an introduction is in order since I’m switching my blog topic this semester. I’m now going to be writing about knitting, so I thought it would be fitting to use this first post to explain how this hobby, which in your mind might be seen as the favorite pastime of America’s octogenarian women (or in the vernacular “Grandmothers”), became a part of my life.

It all started with sweater. Growing up, I always had a crazy collection of hand knit sweaters my mom made. Now, she no longer knits much, but luckily I’ve grown into the sweaters she knit herself, so I’ve retained quite the collection, as you can see.

A sample of the hand-made sweaters my mum has passed on to me

I’ve always been so impressed with these garments, which I considered none less than works of art. For years, I assured myself that I too would someday learn to knit and create a masterpiece of my own. But for years, I never made any step to do so. It seemed like my dream of someday knitting would forever remain in the distant future. I’d tried my hand at crocheting a few times before, and made a few hats, but never had the time or energy to really get invested in the hobby. This past summer, that all changed. I finally sat down and really learned how to knit. I’d had beautiful images in my mind of my mum sitting down next to me and guiding my hands through my first stitches, but the actual method I took was quite different. As it turns out, I am an impatient learner, and my mother is always busy. It became obvious from the start that a teacher student relationship was a bad idea.

Instead, in the spirit of a true Millennial, I turned to YouTube to learn. There are an amazing number of tutorials on every stitch imaginable, making learning painless and minimizing mother-daughter tension. And the Internet’s knitting resources didn’t stop with these videos. Instead, I discovered a haven for knitting online: ravelry.com. If you have any interest in knitting, or already know how to knit, but don’t use ravelry, I cannot recommend it enough. The site offers thousands of patterns, many of which are free, from online users. The patterns are rated on difficulty, and with so much available, it’s easy to find all sorts of things even at a beginner level, so you won’t be confined to basic scarves for the first five projects.

The first stitches were difficult and awkward. I had to constantly review each twist of the yarn, studying images and trying to match my hands to those on my screen. The feat of actually making something presentable suddenly seemed completely unattainable. However, I stuck with it, and soon enough I discovered that, like most things, all it took was a bit of practice. Soon, I was able to knit barely looking down at my hands, while watching TV, or carrying out a conversation. Now, when I sit down to watch a movie, I can’t do so without my knitting needles and a ball of yarn. My hands twitch and sitting still is impossible. Rewatching seasons of Buffy the Vampire Slayer suddenly brought with it scarves, hats, and socks.

Knitting has proved to be incredible therapeutic and relaxing. The repetitive motion is calming, and the feeling that each stitch is going towards some wonderful creation is encouraging and peaceful. I haven’t knitted my first sweater yet, but I plan to soon. My collection of knitting projects and ideas for future projects is constantly growing, and someday soon I will conquer the task of a sweater, I can promise myself that.