Medical Drama! English Paper Piecing! Continental versus American style knitting! Me versus a hank of yarn! So much drama in this episode! And exclamation points!!!
Medical Drama! English Paper Piecing! Continental versus American style knitting! Me versus a hank of yarn! So much drama in this episode! And exclamation points!!!
Can’t wait to listen. I always look forward to my Friday evening commute. Knitting? wow, I am a continental knitter, can never figure out all those “throwers’ out there
I’m still listening, but I just had to say I’m only laughing at the yarn hank story because it pretty closely resembles the first time I was confronted with a hank of yarn. I didn’t catch whether you wound it into a center pull ball, but if you haven’t, it’ll be easiest that way. I hear you can build or buy a swift that holds the hank and turns while you wind it off to make the whole thing easier, but I’ve always just put it over my knees or the back of a chair while I wind it. The first time this happened to me I’d been crocheting for a couple of years and so of course I thought I knew everything, but I’d only used yarn that was already wound into skeins, and cue zany hijinks and interested cats getting all up in the yarn hank while I tried to figure out what to do with the thing.
Knitting — I absolutely agree with Kristin that continental is easier. I originally learned to knit English style, and I stopped for a while because I was having wrist pain. I re-learned to knit continental, and I haven’t had any wrist problems from it at all since. I also find it to be faster, and I’m not flinging the yarn around or moving my wrists as much. I have heard there’s some crazy left-handed way to knit, and I think there are a few books out there make it sound like you have to do it that way because as a left-handed person you are clearly backwards in all ways, but I never learned it (I’m left handed also, and I think I have an older book that shows that method). I just used standard instructions and never had any problems. I can’t imagine crocheting left-handed — I actually tried at one point while I had my left arm in a cast and was bored and cranky, and it went pretty poorly — but since knitting uses both hands anyway there’s no need to learn to do it backwards. (I do have to mentally reverse crochet charts since I do it left-handed, but that’s no biggie.)
Also! There is nothing as scary as an after-hours phone call from a doctor, is there? I got a midnight phone call once from the doc on call at my doctor’s practice to inform me that I had almost no platelets and to please not hit my head on anything or use any sharp objects until they got me in to see the hematologist the next day, and of course I sat up for an hour consulting Dr. Google and became convinced that I had leukemia or some crazy thing like that. Turned out that the whole thing (and the virus-like symptoms that had sent me to the doctor in the first place — I had a fever and I had swollen lymph nodes all over, in places where I didn’t know I had any) was a drug reaction, and now I can’t take sulfa drugs anymore because that could happen again, and the worrying was for nothing because the platelets came back super quick since I’d already stopped taking the drug the day before when my dr got wind that an urgent care had prescribed me 10 days worth of Bactrim (it should have been 3, she said, since I only had a UTI, but by then I’d taken it for over a week), and the only lasting problem was that I was a little anemic and tired for a couple months because a bunch of my red cells got trashed in the process. So. Good times. I hope your stuff gets better the least painful way possible!
Loving your Celtic Slostice, I’ve been bad and haven’t even started. I’ve had kidney stones myself, not fun! Wishing you all the best for 2014. Love listening to you, really is the highlight of my week 99% of the time
Oh man. I am wincing at your kidney stones! I have only had them when pregnant, and as our family is complete, I hope I won’t have anymore. (But I think I’d suffer through them if it was because I lost weight… just sayin’.) All I can say is: “At least they’re aren’t gall stones.” 😉 THOSE are worse than labor. Kidney stones - the jury is still out. And “You have to pee and throw up at the same time” is pretty accurate.
Dang, I can’t remember anything else. A lot of the episode had me giggling (quietly because it’s 1 AM and everyone in the house is sleeping, like normal people, while I’m up cross stitching). Thanks!
Oh! I can’t knit worth beans. I keep trying because there are a lot of cute baby blankets, scarves, etc. that are knit. I an crochet, however. I forget which one (English or continental) but one is supposedly similar to crocheting. I think it’s continental. A friend is really into knitting, and I think that’s the one she does and she said something along those lines. I just can’t do it. It’s too confusing for my fingers. I will keep trying, though. But I tried to pick it up last year, so I’ve got four years or so before I try again.
Enjoying the podcast… d/l it each Friday and listen just before sleep over takes me .. calms my nerves after watching BONES, GRIMM & DRACULA . Do not laugh but your quilty chatter soothes my nerves. Love your Diamonds in the Sky quilt from Tula Pink quilt.
Loving INTELLIGENCE … do not know the actor but I have been following Megan since she was RED RIDING HOOD on ONCE … as for Margret I have all the CSI dvds and initially I did not care for her but she grew on me. After Griffin left they expanded her character and she became more interesting… looking forward to this show being great.. loved the first episode.
Live long and prosper… NONNIE
Wow - Royal Gardens is a stunner! I love the Diamonds in the Sky quilt too, especially the Acacia prints. One queen-sized English pp’d quilt was enough for me.
Have you been introduced to the knitting/crocheting site Ravelry.com? It’s a great resource for any topic related to yarncrafts, including patterns, yarn reviews, etc. Most of the knitting-related podcasts have forum sites there and make frequent references. One tip on winding yarn is not to wind it too tightly as you will lose some of its body.
As I was listening, I had to jot down what I wanted to comment on! I must say, there was some belly laughing involved!
First, in no particular order, knitting. Yes, it is a hank. If you decide to get into knitting, you may want to invest in a “ball winder”. I will say, they are not inexpensive. I have been crocheting since I was elementary school age. I was taught by my grandmother. I am a self taught knitter. my first project was a pair of socks with fingering weight yarn! As the saying, you don’t know what you don’t know! Now, continental vs. throwing style of knitting. I prefer continental. It seems to be more comfortable for me. Another suggestion, buy circular needles. They can be used for flat knitting as well. Make sure you get a cable length that can be used to accommodate future knitting endeavors.
For TV watching, I have recorded and will be watching episodes one and two of “Helix”. I think it is going to be something that will keep my attention. I will let you know how that works out.
Say it with me….. Li-Tho-Trip-See (phonetic spelling for pronunciation). Now, say it again…..
OK, yes, I will admit, my “seam ripper” is my friend. I wish that friend was one that visited occasionally instead of several times a week.
BTW, Congratulations on your weight loss. An inspiration for sure.
Until next time….have a great week
half way through the podcast but thought that since I now can’t listen till I go to bed (cause the family is all up and we are watching tv together) I would comment now
Yes I am a woman of many parts or at least many names. Most people call me Philipa. Ozzypip is my moniker on Twiter (and ebay) My family call me Pip or Pippa and people who know me through them… but I really don’t mind. Some friends use Pip as well. Just don’t call me Phil…. that was my Dad’s name and I find it weird to be called that.
Still cutting my way through the scrap pile. Emptied the basket once and have filled it up again as I have sorted through more of my stash. Getting there.
Also set up an excel spreadsheet with assistance from my daughter to calculate stash usage using your formula although we had to alter it as we use metric for purchases. I have had two finishes in the last 2 days as I finally got the binding stitched down on two special quilts so I got to add them. Yay me
Been running right through Christmas season… up to wk7D1 of my program which means that I ran 20 minutes this morning. My knees are a bit sore this afternoon.
Listened to your podcast today. Your yarn-antics had me laughing! To add to the knitting discussion - I learned to knit English style, but then switched to combination-knitting (or combination-continental). It’s a crazy way of knitting, the yarn is held in the left hand, and it is so fast. It’s knitting-reverse-engineered, you might like it! Sometimes I have to re-write patterns, but that’s okay - I have no wrist pain and it’s a lot faster. If you end up exploring it further, be sure to check out Annie Modesitt - I learned the method from her.
Also, Ravelry is awesome. All kinds of yarn/pattern organization, and lots of oogling!
I had meant to comment on this earlier, but listening to you next podcast reminded me. My grandmother (from Scotland) taught me to knit. It’s not continental OR English. I don’t know anyone else who knits this way. Basically, one needle is held steady, and the other one does all the work. It’s super fast, which is good because I have a very short attention span!
As for winding hanks of yarn. I do lots of stuff with hanks of yarn and thread (including braiding on a stand… called Kumihimo) and what I generally do when I have to wind it in a ball is get two spring clamps and space them as wide apart as you need. This way, you can wind the ball anywhere. (However, if you plan on doing LOTS of winding, you might as well invest in a swift… they are very cool, and useful, and there are many out there that fold up.
Sorry, checking in late here because I only listened to the podcast yesterday on my 250-mile round trip car journey to London (I make sure I have good listening material).
Wading in on the knitting, English v Continental discussion, most of what I would have been said has already been commented on, but if it helps, I’ve been knitting longer than you’ve been alive (I started at 6 years old, I’m not that ancient) and I still don’t own a swift (although I do have a ball winder. I loop my hanks around the backs of two chairs placed back to back, sometimes employ the OH and have been known to use my feet!
Please as has been mentioned, check out Ravelry, but be warned, it’s the biggest rabbit hole going.
If you are a left-hander, then continental is absolutely the way to go. You’ll be knitting in the conventional, right-handed way, but holding the yarn in your left hand, and if you already crochet it shouldn’t feel that weird. I’m an English knitter (doh!), that’s the way I was taught. Of my friends, only one whose mother is German knits continental without having to relearn that style, but, and not wishing to boast, I can knit both ways. For some types of knitting (fair isle) it’s great to be able to both so you can hold two colours, one in each hand. Sorry if I’m freaking you out here, Quilting is a real source of joy, but knitting is my first love.
I bet Quiltingpiecebypiece’s grandmother tucked the needle under her arm too. A lot of Scottish people knit that way - at least the ones I know. Some use a contraption called a knitting belt to hold the needle steady, it has holes in it and not surprisingly, goes around your waist (in your case that would be a much reduced one).
Sorry about the kidney stones. I hope they break up and go painlessly of their own accord due to the measures you are taking. Here’s hoping for no more. .