Knitting: I Did It My Way!

Nineteen years ago when I was teaching myself to knit from a book on knitting socks, Youtube videos weren't an option. I found the whole front and back thing confusing and that's how I ended up knitting through the back loop instead of the front. I knit my first sock inside out because I thought the front should be what other people saw and the back was what I was looking at. I knit everything through the back loop for nine years until Ann, a Canadian colleague sat knitting with me one afternoon and mentioned, oh, so, casually, that the sock I was knitting was inside out because I was knitting with the needle farthest from me instead of the closest one, by the way, in case you'd like to try it sometime.

Before that, I'd had Chinese knitters snatch my knitting from me, tell me I was doing it wrong, knit at lightning speed and hand it back. I started stating that I knit American style. Later, at home, I'd rip out their knitting and re-knit it my way so it would look the same.

Patterns started working so much better after I got that whole front and back thing worked out. But, you can knit wrong and still knit. Your way of knitting may make following a pattern a bit problematic at times, but there are so many ways to knit. Different ways to hold the needles and guide the yarn. Trying different things is how wonderful new stitches and designs are born.

Keep learning about knitting and different ways to hold your needles or carry your yarn or make a stitch. And never stop trying new things to see what happens. You never know, you might invent something wonderful!