What knitting means to me

Some people don't know this, but I'm well in the knitting scene. I
always have a couple of projects on the needles and am thinking about
what I'd like to make when I can afford some lovely soft yarn.

In fact, last time I went clubbing, before getting into the night, I
spent a good thirty minutes thinking about my socks-in-the-making
while boogying on the dance floor.

I didn't learn to knit from a mother, grandmother or aunt as many
women did. I never even thought of it until I saw other young women
doing it in cafes and other public places. They were always artsy,
individuals who didn't care what others thought. Still,
I didn't think to try it out until I had finished uni and was feeling
a bit bored.

Learning from digrams on the internet was very frustrating. My basic skills were brushed up on with the help of a woman I worked with and I started to enjoy it once I
got past the frustration stage.

I worked on my first scarf for about a month - halfway through you can see when i finally clicked for me and my rows
became straight and even. I was a bit scared to move on from
scarves and little scraps and for a while moved onto jewellery making.

Then on arriving in London I met Elvira, another relatively new
self-taught knitter who attempted - and perfected - quite complicated
designs. With her inspiration and advice I knitted my first garment -
a small cabled cardi that took a fair few months.

That's still the most complex thing I've made but since then I've made lots of new projects, joined Ravelry, the knitter's facebook, and attended several knitting club getogethers and the London Stitch'n'Bitch convention.

I love the idea of making something totally unique, even just the idea of making something. If I knit when stressed my stitches are tighter, if I'm calm they are looser. That creation represents a point of time in my life, and no matter my mood at the time, every stitch was made with love and intention. I've met some lovely, creative, inspiring people through this craft and really enjoyed the process.

Elvira discovered this pattern for the jelly baby hat and has made a few for the boom of babies recently born. Here is my first one - for the baby of my cousin Julie, due next month.