Well, let’s jump right in because I’m a little late getting this post up, so here goes!
Smooth Start – I’m sure you hate it when you’re knitting in the round and you have a little step at the beginning of the first round, right? Well, just like the color jog, there’s a way to fix this too. Cast on one more stitch that the pattern calls for. When you set up your needles to knit, slip the first stitch on the left needle to the right needle. Now pass the extra stitch on the right needle over the stitch you just slipped. Pass the slipped stitch back to the left needle and start knitting!
Wood Care – Even though bamboo is technically a grass, it has a lot of properties similar to wood. You should treat your bamboo needle with the same care you do your wood ones. That means you might have to put some wood filler on them and sand them smooth on a regular basis. I actually find the tips of my bamboo needles get dull or blunt much faster than wooden ones and need to be sharpened regularly.
Split the difference – If you’re working with bulky yarn, instead of seaming it together using a whole stitch from either side (assuming you’re using the mattress stitch), use a half stitch from either side. You’ll end up with 1 more stitch in your pattern, but a much thinner and neat edge!
Tighten it – When making cables, the first stitch and mid way stitch can end up being a little loose. When you get to the next right side row you will notice this as a really long right leg on the stitch. Take the tip of your knitting needle and gently tug the slack tight. Repeat this process over a few stitches to take in the unevenness and make your cables their best!
Plan ahead – Figure out how many rows of knitting you need to do before doing shaping (multiply your row gauge by the number of inches of knitting). Instead of having to measure or count rows, take that number of sunflower seeds and put them into a small bowl. As you finish each row, take one seed and place it into an empty bowl. When the first bowl is finished, you’re ready for shaping (or done, depending on the pattern). Now use the second bowl that is now full for the other side or sleeve of the sweater, but this time, you can eat the seeds as you finish a row! Yummy!
Put a cork in it – Ever need a stopper for the end of your needle and don’t have one? Well, save the corks from your bottles of wine (let me know if you need one – cork, not bottle of wine) and use those instead. You can also use a small elastic, like the kind you probably have laying around for your ponytails!
Wow, that was quick. I’ll leave you with an extra tip this week. Look both ways before crossing the street!
Was that really terrible? Okay, here’s another tip and a great joke I heard – although it has nothing to do with knitting. The tip is to pay attention to the posts starting back about a week or so ago. There’s a contest going on that hasn’t been announced yet that will depend on answers from these posts. Here’s the joke …
A blonde and a lawyer are seated next to each other on a flight from LA to NY. The lawyer asks if she would like to play a fun game? The blonde, tired, just wants to take a nap, politely declines and rolls over to the window to catch a few winks. The lawyer persists and explains that the game is easy and a lot of fun. He explains, “I ask you a question, and if you don’t know the answer, you pay me $5.00, and vice versa. ” Again, she declines and tries to get some sleep. The lawyer, now agitated, says, “Okay, if you don’t know the answer you pay me $5.00, and if I don’t know the answer, I will pay you $500.00.” This catches the blonde’s attention and, figuring there will be no end to this torment unless she plays, agrees to the game. The lawyer asks the first question. “What’s the distance from the earth to the moon?” The blonde doesn’t say a word, reaches into her purse, pulls out a $5.00 bill and hands it to the lawyer. “Okay” says the lawyer, “your turn.” She asks the lawyer, “What goes up a hill with three legs and comes down with four legs?” The lawyer, puzzled, takes out his laptop computer and searches all his references, no answer. He taps into the air phone with his modem and searches the net and the library of congress, no answer.
Frustrated, he sends e-mails to all his friends and coworkers, to no avail. After an hour, he wakes the blonde, and hands her $500.00. The blonde says, “Thank you,” and turns back to get some more sleep. The lawyer, who is more than a little miffed, wakes the blonde and asks, “Well, what’s the answer?” Without a word, the blonde reaches into her purse, hands the lawyer $5.00, and goes back to sleep.
Hugzzz 😎