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Knitting has always been the most popular of the crafts for
obvious reasons – it’s relatively easy (with the emphasis being on the word
‘relatively!), it serves a practical purpose in that it produces
clothes and wool is always readily available.
However, one would have thought that these days, with the advent of
cheap clothing from the Far East, knitting would have gone out of
fashion. Indeed it did for a number of years towards the end of the
20th century and the start of this one but it has now come very much
back into fashion. It seems to be led by film and pop stars who want
to be seen to be ‘real parents’ and this is spreading downwards to
the rest of us.
Whatever the reasons, it’s to be welcomed because knitting is an
excellent way of keeping the brain and the fingers active and
getting a real sense of achievement by producing lovely things of
your own.
Did you know that there is a Knitting and Stitching Show that you
can visit if you want to find out more about knitting and, indeed,
other crafts? In fact, there are four such shows at the NEC,
Birmingham (September), the Alexandra Palace, London (October), the
RDS, Dublin (November) and the International Centre, Harrogate
(November). To find out more about these shows, visit
www.twistedthread.com .
You could also join the Knitting and Crochet Guild (www.knitting-and-crochet-guild.org.uk)
in order to gain access to their library and news desk, get tuition,
attend workshops and visit their exhibitions and open days at their
centre in Holmfirth, Yorkshire.
If you want to start from scratch, never having done any knitting
before, there are any number of magazines you can buy to help you.
Most shops that sell knitting wool are only too glad to help, or you
could go to
www.knittingtips.com and enrol for their free five-day
course on getting started.
One word of caution. Don’t start knitting if your motivation is to
save money – because you probably won’t. Almost anything you decide
to knit can almost certainly be bought for less than the cost of the
wool you will buy. But think of what you will be missing if you just
buy it!
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