Knitting Update #1

Materials:

I'm using the Kilim Blanket knitting kit from We Are Knitters. It comes with:

7 balls of The Petite Wool (My color selection is: Color A - Ochre; Color B - Blush; Color C - Olive)
8mm Knitting Needles
Tapestry Needles
Pattern booklet

The Wordy Bit

It's official: I've started knitting! I have spent quite a lot of time since receiving my kit going over knitting videos and reading articles about technique and execution. I have practiced a long-tail cast on more times than I can count. But this past week, I went beyond my cast on and started making stitches!

As a crocheter, and as someone who's never seen someone knit in person, figuring out how to handle the yarn and needles took a lot of getting used to. In fact, I'm still not quite comfortable with it. I'm a member of a knitting and crochet group on social media, so I asked all my ridiculous questions to them. Thankfully, many veteran knitters understood the confusion about basic yarn questions like: How do I move the yarn from back to front when alternating a knit stitch and purl stitch? Apparently, that's not a commonly asked question, but it is a common issue. That's why I'm a firm believer in asking way too many questions!

I've never had a problem asking a million questions before completing an assignment or project. It's a blessing and a curse, and some people are annoyed by it, but if the project is for them, they appreciate it in the long run! 

I'm also posting my progress on those same groups for several reasons: 1) I have no idea what I'm doing, so getting in-progress feedback is beneficial; 2) I may not see errors in progress, but someone else may point them out (This happened this week, and I was super grateful!); and 3) the encouragement is fantastic! I love the encouragement from people who know what they're doing. It means so much, and it gives me the confidence boost I need to stay interested in the project and keep going. If you are a fiber artist, or even if you want to be one, I highly recommend finding a great group to connect with. The community is super open and welcome, and I'm so happy with it. 

So, here's my first "gotta take a photo" moment.

Now, I took the photo and felt quite proud of myself. Unfortunately, I didn't think about the fact that I was pushing the limits of my needle length. I am knitting a blanket, after all. A few rows later, I did stop and count. In just a few rows, I added 11 stitches!! So, I did what anyone in my position would do...I frogged it. All the way back to my cast on. And I started again. I noticed that I was finally settling into a rhythm and getting the hang of the needle movements. It's still awkward, but it started getting smoother the longer I worked at it.  I ended up stopping my first night of knitting with 5 rows on my needle. Here it is.

This is also the picture I posted on social media. I'll show you a close up, too, because a very kind knitter pointed out that some of my stitches are twisted. Now, that isn't something I was expecting to happen (being a crocheter, all my stitches are twisted!), but once she told me exactly where to look, I can see it!

See how some of the little V shapes are twisted at the bottom? I was told this happens when the needle is inserted into the stitch incorrectly. While the stitch will hold, and I have no intention of frogging unless absolutely necessary, I will learn from this and continue. I'm going to take more care in how the needle needs to be threading through the stitch. I'm also going to review my stitch techniques before I pick up my needles again. 

Thanks for checking in with me on my knitting journey. I'll post another update after substantial progress has been made.