Nadina’s Free online knitting patterns

- they came out beautifully! In case anyone is interested, I bought some cheap wooden picture frames, some cheap mats, and double stick tape. Stuck white paper over the cardboard backing in the frame, stuck the blocked swatch onto the paper with the double stick tape, threw it in the frame under the mat & voila! So easy to coordinate with your room! (more…)

Oh yeah. You never stop ripping no matter how good you THINK you are. I’ve been ripping out  for too many years. I almost never take the work off the needles unless the mistake is so egregious, I have no choice. But when I do rip each stitch out, rather than pull the yarn out of the old stitch each time, I do an entire row (round) and then gently pull the ripped yarn.
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I’ve been using Crystal palace bamboo circulars for quite some time and it definitely has helped with the soreness. I also am firm believer in Handeze gloves. I know they suggest using these for arthritis but feel that the support they give the wrist can only help. Sometimes the best thing is rest, though…

I never block garments made of acrylic yarn. Acrylics are plastics. Plastic has no memory-unless you apply too much heat, in which case acrylic yarn will melt. Follow the manufacturer’s directions, i.e., throw it in the wash and then dry it on low for a few minutes.( Whenever I wash a garment in the machine, no matter the fiber, I turn it inside out which decreases pilling)
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As a rule, just because the gauge matches doesn’t mean you can play fast and loose with the fiber. If it is a specialty (read fashion) yarn, I don’t substitute. If it is a generic worsted, I will. I have substituted acrylic for wool in a classic cable pattern with no problems. (more…)

Knitting Rakes/Looms: it’s really simple to use. I used to have a straight one as a kid. That one was made out of wood and seemed to work quite good (I believe they were homemade though). (more…)

The good thing is that my most difficult projects have made me start keeping a knitting diary.
I write down EXACTLY what I did, what I used, what’s wrong with it, & what I think I should do to make it better next time…& I also make notes on washing & wear, & sometimes tape a scrap of yarn to the page…We all, as knitters, should be doing this especially for items such as socks and mittens…and because I also like to substitute different fibers, but to follow a pattern you must match the gauge. (I find I tend to knit a lot looser with yarns that don’t have a lotof elasticity like cotton & cotton blends, than I do with yarns like wool or acrylic. So if I change yarn I make sure to do a very good guage swatch if size is going to matter at all & write everything down in my notes. Just keep in mind that different fibers will give different looks & different feels to the finished product, but isn’t this part of why we knit? To use our creativity & our ideas & create something wonderful, or learn a very important lesson if it doesn’t come out so wonderful! )