Susan the Blue Lake Knitter's Comments

Susan,
I hope you had a good Thanksgiving. I was exhausted and I'm just recooping now.
what are you knitting now? I think I'm gonna try some mittens-- try out my purling :) wish me luck.

Susan,
I just looked at some of your online pics.

Those two dogs are adorable especially with their sweaters on!

I only hope that by next fall I'll be knitting socks!
Very nice work!

Hi,
Thanks so much for your ecouragement!
I felt like a knucklehead when I found those tutorials after I had blogged.

Just out of curiosity... where are the 'Blue Lakes" ?

I too, wish you a blessed and happy Thanksgiving!

Hi Susan,

Thanks for the tip about the tuturials on site.
I discovered them right after I signed up and left that blog.

I am impressed with your handknit presents for all your co-workers prior to retirement. Very impressed! You go, girl! I think the biggest problem I am facing right now is that so many of my WIP's are larger projects...I've managed to finish most the smaller ones already, so I have shawls, sweaters, and socks to finish up. All gorgeous with fantastic yarns, luckily, so they are a joy to work on. Good luck!

Thanks for your advice. And I feel for you with the internet connection. My husband is an IT guy, so we have to have a super-fast one (or at least he thinks so.) I'm trying to reform myself and not spend so much time on the computer...might as well be knitting!

I'm definitely impressed. Actually, we have something in common. I took knitting back up around two years ago as well. A colleague-friend was pregnant with her first baby - Jessica is turning 2 years in February 2009. Another colleague whom I travel part of the way to work with by train is an avid knitter and got me thinking "well, why not knit again". Seeing I learned reading patterns in German (being German) she was patient and kind enough to explain the English patterns to me.

Also, thanks for explaining how you manage your projects. And it makes me dare re-start my original list. I'll let you know how I'm getting on.

Again, a big THANK YOU.

I just saw your comment on ongoing projects in the run up to christmas and was impressed on your planned approach of upcoming projects. I must admit I did start something similar, but wasn't disciplined to see it through. You've definitely re-inspired me. THANK YOU !

Hello again, Yup - I'm a speed knitter! I learned years ago to knit left handed, but got frustrated trying to reverse instructions so taught myself to knit right handed using an old dime store knitting instruction book. Still frustrated by how slow my knitting was I researched methods to speed up my knitting and learned to knit Continental - which means holding your yarn in your left hand. Like anything else in life - this technique requires both patience and practice - but the time and effort to master Continental knitting was well worth it. KnitPicks has a nice tutorial that will help you with the basics and with a little time and practice you will find that Continental will have you speeding along! I will confess, that if tension is tricky, or if I need more fine control of my yarn for some reason - I DO use both my right and left handed methods to get the effect that I need. AND - an added bonus of learning to knit left handed all those years ago: I never have to purl!! I just knit back left handed. My knitting buddies call me "the Yarn Typewriter". In the photo you mentioned - it shows me knitting with a cast on my right hand and a cast on my left leg and foot. We call it "casting on with casts on" (=^:^=) Deborah

Nice dog sweaters and socks! You are doing GREAT for a recently new knitter. I've been at it several years now but still make very plain socks. Find it hard to follow a lot of patterns, but would love to knit lace.

Glad you got it worked out. It's easy to misread the knitting gobbledegook.

That is such a pretty stitch on that kimono. It's hard to believe that it is knitted and not crocheted.

The way the pattern stitch works is that, on the odd-numbered, right-side rows, you increase one stitch per pattern repeat because you're doing yo, k2 (or k2,yo across on row 3). On the even numbered rows, you decrease one stitch per repeat, which takes care of all the increases that you've done in the previous row. So if you cast on 83 sts, as the pattern calls for, you will have 83 sts when you've finished rows 2 and 4, but something like 124 sts after rows 1 and 3. With the plain rectangular shaping, you shouldn't be increasing at all, and if you have more than 83 sts after rows 2 and 4, it's probably because you forgot to pass the slip st over on one or more of the pattern repeats.

Does that make sense?

I will go and have a look at that pattern. I did swatch it, and the stitch came out looking great. I have to run and do some things now, but I'll get back to you later today.

Thanks for the pattern! It worked great. Now to learn colorwork.

Thanks, Blue Lake! My daughter does love the sweater. The funny thing is that so far two knitters have approached her and said that they had tried to knit that sweater, but they couldn't make the pattern work out. So it wasn't just me!

Those formats would be great! Thanks!

I may have to get that pattern from you and modify it for my dad and me as we are Wolverines, which seems to me to be a pretty easy change

Your socks are great! I am sure there are a lot of Mountaineers that would pay good money to show their school support!

HI BLUE LAKE KNITTER. I SEE YOU ARE IN GALLOPOLIS, OHIO. WHEN I WAS A LITTLE GIRL, I WOULD SPEND SUMMERS IN POINT PLEASANT, WVA WITH MY GREAT-GRANDMOTHER. WE WOULD MAKE TRIPS OVER THE SILVER BRIDGE TO GALLOPOLIS TO SHOP OR TAKE SOMEONE OVER WHO NEEDED A RIDE. GOOD MEMORIES OF YOUR TOWN ON THE RIVER. I AM KNITTING A SUMMER SWEATER NOW CALLED "THE WICKED". I LIVE IN LOUISVILLE, KY WITH MY DOG "VANILLA AND CAT "MAGGIE. I WILL BE OFF ALL SUMMER FROM SCHOOL, SO HOPE TO KNIT A LOT AT LOCAL YARN SHOP CALLED THE KNIT NOOK. TAKE CARE