Find Some Friends

After knocking around by myself for twelve years, I accidentally found friends. A friend of mine (I didn't even know that she knit until she brought it on a trip) was always talking about her "knit group." This intrigued me and I encouraged her to talk about it. One thing led to another and she invited me to attend her knit group on a visit. We don't live in the same town.

One Tuesday in October I met 9 women and 2 men who love to knit. They showed WIPs (works in progress), shared stories, traded patterns, offered advice and drank coffee at a restaurant. These people didn't have to wander about in the dark wondering what to do or trying something and failing; and then trying something else. It was wonderful!!! I wanted this!!!!! I vowed when I got home I was going to start a "knit group."

Back at home, I decided to Google knit groups in my area just to get an idea how to form one. Imagine my surprise when I found that there were six groups already in existence. Some of them were too far away, but there were two that were close enough to attend. I went to both and still do because they are different.

One group is just a bunch of ladies (and one son) who love to knit. We get together and knit, share ideas, show off our yarn and chat. On my first visit one of the ladies asked how long I had been knitting. "I've been trying for twelve years, but I'm still a newbie," I said. She asked what I could do. "I can't do cables or any of that fancy stuff," I replied. She smiled and said, "Cables are easy. All you have to do is knit the second group of stitches and then knit the first group." If we still lived in the 60s we would call this a mind blowing experience. In about 3 minutes she taught me how to do cables and even shared a link to a free pattern for a scarf. The next week I have half a cabled scarf to show. Imagine...me doing cables!!

The other group is a group of ladies who love to knit...and go to fiber fairs and conferences. They formed a guild. Some of them are certified knitting instructors. They inspired me to make my own stitch markers, my own stretchy double point holders, and how to organize my knitting. This is my artistic group and they feed my creative side. They have introduced me to Ravelry, independent yarn dyers, favorite authors (I l-o-v-e Stephanie Pearl-McPhee.)

Thanks to both of these groups I have grown twelve years in just seven months. So, my next Newbie advice it to find yourself an active "knit group" and wade in. They will teach you soooo much and be a great source of support.