Self-express with threads

Emily Bishop
November 29, 2007

The winter weather is steadily becoming chillier, but your hands and head don’t have to suffer from the bitter cold. This season, instead of buying new mittens and a hat, consider learning to knit a pair yourself.

Diane Corson, knitting instructor at Rose Tree Fiber Shop, 2814 West St., has worked and taught knitting workshops and classes for 15 years.

“Knitting is a way of producing fabric for clothing or decorative objects made from a continuous strand of spun fiber,” Corson said.

Corson said knitting is considered “new” with more people taking up knitting as a hobby.

Corson also pointed out knitting is no longer an activity geared toward women only.

“I see a lot more guys taking knitting classes and learning to knit,” Corson said. “We’re going through a knitting renaissance right now.”

If you’ve never knitted before, there is no need to worry. Corson said there is plenty of time for someone to learn how to knit before Christmas if they’d like to knit a gift for someone.

“If you knit a gift for somebody, that’s way more special than buying something,” Corson said. “It’s a great thing to do for someone you really care about.”

First, Corson advises to have an experienced knitter teach you or to sign up for a knitting workshop or classes. However, if you are more of a visual learner, she said knitting books can help, too.

The supplies you will need are yarn and a pair of knitting needles with a knob and point end. For the yarn, Corson suggests Lambs Pride, a wool and mohair blend yarn.

“It’s easy to work with and there are a lot of different colors to work with,” Corson said.

Corson said it’s important to learn the simplest kind of knitting: the garter stitch. Corson described the garter stitch as “a knit fabric that’s made by knitting every stitch of every row.”

Corson said there are six basic knitting skills for a beginning knitter to learn: casting on, the purl stitch, the knit stitch, increasing, decreasing and binding off.

Before you begin knitting you cast on, which is putting stitches on the needle. The purl stitch is knitting backwards and the knit stitch is another name for the garter stitch. Increasing makes the knit piece wider, while decreasing makes it narrower. Finally, binding off removes the knit from the needles.

“Once you’ve learned the basics, you can knit mittens, stocking caps, basically anything you can think of,” Corson said. “The more you do this, the more skill you acquire.”

Corson recommends knitting a scarf using the basic garter stitch and working your way up to more complex knitting patterns.

Corson said it’s important to be persistent with your knitting and to not give up. If you get frustrated or need help, she suggests contacting a knitting store for help.

“You have to realize this will be a project you will have to put time in to,” she said.

Corson said the end result is worth the effort.

“You can learn to make something you actually use,” she said.

Amanda Senn, junior in interdisciplinary studies, wants to learn how to knit but feels it would take too much time.

“I think it’d be cool to learn how to [knit],” Seen said.

Antonio Garcia, sophomore in mechanical engineering, remembers when he was 8 years old and knitted during the summer as part of a school program.

“The things that come out of it [knitting] are pretty cool,” Garcia said.

Where to get your knit on:

Arnhild’s Knitting Studio

2315 Buchanan Drive

232-7661

The Prairie Fibers Company