Remembering why I love to knit and other adventures

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The Cuttle Corner – September 27, 2023

Welcome to the fifth edition of The Cuttle Corner! This week I finally got out of my knitting slump and went on a couple of craft-adjacent adventures.

If you missed last week’s post, you can take a look here.

Now, let’s get cozy!

What’s going on

A couple of adventures

On a whim, I went to a local antique mall with my friend just to look around.

I love searching through old things. There is always a mix of beautiful items, mysterious gadgets, and a few creepy old dolls for variety.

On this particular trip, I came across some very tempting items. There were three different old Singer sewing machines. One looked like it was in amazing shape and came with the original case. But I was strong and didn’t purchase any of them. I already have three vintage sewing machines (including a Singer) and don’t really need a fourth sewing machine.

There was also a tiny spinning wheel that I very nearly bought. It was placed backward in the case, but it still made me smile. I somehow made it out of there without any impulse purchases.

This week was also the last week of my local fair. I have been going to this fair almost every year for as long as I can remember.

When I was younger I loved to spend all day riding every single ride. Now I love getting to see the animals. To satisfy my love of all things wool we found sheep to say hello to. These two were Romneys.

There were also piglets which are so cute, I can’t resist them. I love the little spots they all had!

It was a fantastic trip to the fair and I can’t wait to go again next year.

Something to read

While scrolling through Tumblr this week there was a post that mentioned the book No Idle Hands: The Social History of American Knitting by Anne L Macdonald. There was a discussion about the speed of knitters over the years and which knitting techniques are faster or slower.

Of course, hearing about this book I wanted to read it myself and see what other fun insights into knitting it might provide. Luckily, the audiobook was available from my library and I was able to start listening almost immediately. Audiobooks are the perfect companion for any kind of crafting, especially when they are about knitting!

If you love to knit I would definitely recommend giving this book a read (or a listen).

What I’m working on this week

Spinning

With my most recent spindle spinning project done, it should surprise no one that I was back to spinning on my Norwegian spinning wheel.

My teal merino singles had a week to rest on the bobbin and were ready to ply. Not wanting to take the time to spilt the bobbin or wind a center pull ball for a two ply yarn, and decided to spin these singles into a three ply yarn using the chain or Navajo ply technique. This let me get right to plying without any further preparation.

This was my first time plying on this wheel, and it took some getting used to. With such a large drive wheel, my Norwegian wheel spins fast and strong. I struggled to ply fast enough and have some sections of overspun yarn.

I adjusted the tension to increase the yarn take up and this helped my plying match the speed of the wheel. Although I haven’t finished the entire bobbin of singles, now that I’ve gotten used to the feel of it, the rest of the yarn should ply quickly. Hopefully I will have some finished yarn to show you next week!

Crochet

After making over 200 granny squares for my ongoing Hygge Burst Granny Square Blanket I took a break from crocheting this week.

I made so many squares I had the pattern memorized. This made it easy to pick up and work on without much thought.

With the squares complete, I will need to learn an entirely new technique to join them together. There was never the right time to sit down and start joining the squares. Hopefully next week I start putting my blanket together.

Knitting

Knitting has been my go-to craft for over ten years. I have always had something to knit on and usually finish what I start in a reasonable amount of time.

The past couple of years my knitting has drastically decreased. I haven’t had much I’ve been excited to knit and I’ve only worked on a few projects. I just didn’t feel the love of knitting the way I had for years.

Starting my Kildalton cardigan a couple of weeks ago has reminded me why I love to knit. I’ve made quite a lot of progress on this sweater and already finished knitting one whole ball of yarn!

The yarn I am working with is beautiful and feels so nice in my hands. It’s a souvenir from a vacation to Whidbey Island I went on with my husband (before he was my husband) and in-laws a few years ago so it brings back happy memories from that trip.

I also love that it’s from a small mill that sources its wool from local sheep farms. In this modern world, it’s a luxury to know exactly where an item came from and who made it.

The Kildalton pattern is also fun to work on. The cable pattern is beautiful and easy to follow once the first repeat is complete. I love seeing it grow as I knit row after row.

Nearly every free moment this week has gone into working on this sweater. Remembering why I love to knit has been like connecting with a dear friend. We picked up right where we left off!

Until next time, keep cuttle-ing!

What are you working on? I’d love to hear about your projects in the comments below!