4 Reasons to take up Knitting

by Andrea Katz

We live in a society that moves at a relentless pace, wanting instant gratification & hardly ever stopping to take stock of what is really important in life. In this environment, many people are searching for something creative & rewarding to occupy themselves. Hundreds of thousands of people are finding that creative outlet in KNITTING. So why should you take up knitting?

Firstly, as mentioned above, it is a creative outlet. There is nothing like the feeling of achievement of taking yarn & 2 needles (or 4!) & creating a pair of socks or a jumper or a toy for your favourite small person. Knitting involves only 2 stitches that are repeated in varying ways to produce absolutely endless possibilities for your creativity.

Secondly, knitting is relaxing. After a long day at work, coming home and sitting down to knit a few rows enables you to relax (unless you're knitting a really complicated pattern & getting it wrong - then knitting can be stressful!). Have a few projects on the go at all times so you have 'relaxing' knitting & 'complicated' knitting & can knit the appropriate project depending on your mood.

Thirdly, knitting exercises your brain. 'Complicated' knitting involving intricate lace work, or a pattern that has 54 rows to every pattern repeat can really stretch your thinking processes. Not to mention having to calculate how to pick up stitches or increase/decrease stitches evenly.

Finally, you should take up knitting because you might love it! Many a dedicated knitter was initially a knit-sceptic, thinking knitting was for grannies, but once taught how to use those needles found they loved it because it's creative & relaxing & exercises your brain & a host of other reasons. Some knit-a-holics tried knitting once, many years ago & failed but on trying again fell in love & haven't looked back.

So, for the reasons mentioned above, give knitting a go & you might surprise yourself with what you can achieve.

About the Author
Andrea Katz has been knitting for 28 years & is a self confessed knit addict. She knits any & everything & sometimes designs her own patterns.
To view some of Andrea's knits, see http://babypieknits.blogspot.com/

Summer Coming On-Good Time to Learn Crafts

Summer will be upon us before we know it. With summer ,comes vacation, and longer days with hopefully a little more time to relax.

If you have been wanting to learn to do some type of crafting, why wait?

Summer is a good time to learn to do different crafts. Take knitting or crocheting for example....with learning to knit or crochet now, you can make yourself a simple scarf or perhaps a simple knitted or crocheted purse to use this fall.

There are many nice beginner's patterns out there as well as simplified instructions on learning how to knit or crochet. The manufacturers of yarns usually have a nice variety of free patterns based on your skill level. You will usually need to register with their website ,to use the patterns, but this is also free. Here a few of my favorites:

LION BRAND Yarn- http://www.lionbrand.com/

• You need to register for a free account
• Once you are registered, you can search through ALL the free patterns...
• You will also have access to free lessons LEARN TO KNIT
• Or you might want to try LEARN TO CROCHET
• There is also a Community Page to share ideas and stories with others
• Or you might wish to check out the "Free Goodies" Page on their website!

BERNAT Yarns- http://www.bernat.com/

• You need to register for a free account
• You can SEARCH through ALL the free patterns for whatever you want
• You can learn to knit using their online lessons which you can print out!
• You can learn to crochet using their online lessons which you can print out!
• You can check out the free Beginner KNITTING patterns for inspiration!
• You can check out the free Beginner CROCHET patterns for inspiration!

These are just two fine examples of websites that offer so much and for free, what better a price in this hard economy.

Learning a new handcraft will give you something to do, especially if you like many others , will be vacationing at home this year due to economic conditions. You will be able to take pride in your own handiwork, and when someone admires your finished product you can proudly say, "Thank you! I made it myself!"

Thank you for visiting Jennie Salinda and stop by again real soon.