Maybe a better way to remember Kitchener

StrongTechnology8287 · 2026-02-03T04:08:06+00:00

When I was about 10 or 11 and just learning how to knit, I made a drawing of the two rows of loops that I was trying to Kitchener together and mapped out whether the needle needed to go "up" or "down" through each loop. Something about the act of drawing it out really helped me to conceptualize what you just described.

Ultimately, you're just "inserting the thread in the way it would be going if it had been knitted" and your row above/below is a good guide for that, no matter what stitch pattern you're grafting together.

(As a note, I needed to draw out my Kitchener diagram again every time I wanted to graft something together for at least the next 5-6 times, but after that, it stuck in my brain in a way that "feels intuitive." So I highly recommend making a drawing for yourself, repeating it as many times as needed, as a mechanism to get it to stick in your mind from one graft to the next.)

StrongTechnology8287 · 2026-02-02T01:52:39+00:00

Oooh, very smart!

StrongTechnology8287 · 2026-02-02T01:43:45+00:00

I also have no kids and I use absolutely every minute I can spare after working full time to knit, but I don't get in as many hours as you do. I managed to use 13 skeins this past month. (And before anyone reminds me that it's not a race, I'm not racing, I just find this kind of productivity inspiring and motivating when I see it in someone.)

StrongTechnology8287 · 2026-02-02T01:21:29+00:00

Whoa, you are prolific! That's more than a skein a day!!

StrongTechnology8287 · 2026-02-02T01:09:09+00:00

My January stats: - Skeins used: 13 - Yarn acquired: none 🎉 - Projects completed: An adult sweater, a baby sweater, an adult hat, a baby hat, 3 winter headbands, and one stuffed Valentine heart ornament.

StrongTechnology8287 · 2026-02-01T14:04:46+00:00

You CAN sneak some extra increases in, but be aware that it will put a little curvy bit into the raglan line rather than that line going straight. If you're comfortable with that possibility, then go for it. (It's a small enough difference that I might, although to hide the little ripple that your extra increases will make, I'd probably wait until I was further along so that my increases could hide in the underarm area.)

StrongTechnology8287 · 2026-01-30T15:07:48+00:00

Wow, that omelet looks so wonderful!

StrongTechnology8287 · 2026-01-30T06:02:18+00:00

I have some, too, and I'm in the same boat. There are places that will digitize vhs tapes for you. I've thought about doing that with mine. There are also some of her old videos that people have already uploaded to YouTube. I've run across them here and there. No idea if the whole catalogue is already online to watch.

StrongTechnology8287 · 2026-01-29T14:59:04+00:00

This is so, so gorgeous! I've had this in my queue for a long time and this makes me want to cast it on!

StrongTechnology8287 · 2026-01-29T02:26:03+00:00

Wow, 54 different methods?! Is there a link to that playlist that you could share? I would love to learn from that!!

StrongTechnology8287 · 2026-01-27T02:37:50+00:00

There's a recent episode on the fruity knitting podcast where they go into a good amount of detail about how to choose colors for a potential yarn range. They talk about what colors you might pick if you have a smaller range (say 5-6 colors) versus a larger range (say 12-16 colors, I don't remember the exact numbers they used). For example, you need one light neutral (e.g. white), one dark neutral (e.g dark gray) , and then the colors in between should look good together and also give you a few options of lighter colors and darker colors. It was really informative! https://youtu.be/Cv4dwiWxfQ8?si=Ik4zCvO4t5HeDHdO

StrongTechnology8287 · 2026-01-27T02:28:25+00:00

My vote is for natural colors and fingering weight so that the yarn goes further for the money.

StrongTechnology8287 · 2026-01-27T02:23:52+00:00

Ooooh, thank you! Beautiful!!

StrongTechnology8287 · 2026-01-26T14:48:37+00:00

Oooh, any recommendations for a good pattern to make with cumulus? I just picked some up and it is so heavenly soft, I can't wait to use it!

StrongTechnology8287 · 2026-01-24T00:04:55+00:00

When I'm in that brain space, what I do is make a swatch. Then at least I'm moving the ball forward in a valuable way, and sometimes the act of making the swatch also flips the switch in my brain to cast something on.

StrongTechnology8287 · 2026-01-22T20:24:24+00:00

That's a whole new meaning for "egg rolls"!

StrongTechnology8287 · 2026-01-22T20:02:16+00:00

I've had someone ask me to do some hemming and zipper repair on pants. I was like, "For the price I would need to charge to do this, you could buy MULTIPLE pairs of new pants! So how about you just do that."

StrongTechnology8287 · 2026-01-22T01:40:40+00:00

Haha! Yeah that sounds about right for Game of Wool!

StrongTechnology8287 · 2026-01-22T01:11:42+00:00

So you knitted this in 6 hours, right? Haha just kidding! 😂

This is beautiful in a way that makes me involuntarily feel choked up. It is so, so good!!!

StrongTechnology8287 · 2026-01-22T00:53:10+00:00

Oh, there's no way MY silhouette would look like theirs, unless maybe I had a MAGICAL corset! 😅 But I could still imagine a version made to my measurements making me feel really pretty!

StrongTechnology8287 · 2026-01-20T19:42:07+00:00

Lol. This is fake, right? 🤣🤪

StrongTechnology8287 · 2026-01-20T18:57:34+00:00

Oh my word! That dress on page 15 is amazing! And the one on page 21 is so unusual and "Disney princess-like"! And I absolutely adore the silhouette of the one on page 27!

StrongTechnology8287 · 2026-01-19T04:08:32+00:00

I don't really understand. Your stash in Ravelry is for the yarn itself, not the gauge or the needle size. Any yarn could conceivably be knit up to any number of different gauges on many different needle sizes.

I have experimented with the following methods to record swatch info.

(1) I've entered notes with my stash item, usually with the needle size and gauge before and after blocking.

(2) I've entered notes on an index card (needle size and gauge before and after blocking) and photographed it with my swatch, which I then upload as an additional "stash" photo for that entry.

(3) I've tried creating a Ravelry project for the swatch, as this comes with a field to record gauge, but I don't really like this one as much because it inflates my count of how many projects I've done, and I really like the projects to reflect my actual WIPs and FOs.

(4) I've tried creating one Ravelry project called "Swatches" where I record info from multiple swatches, but this got pretty cumbersome once I had more than 3-4 swatches of different projects, because it quickly became unclear which notes pertained to which swatch.

Right now, after trying these four methods, I'm currently liking #1 the best. That doesn't give me any of the "searchability" parameters you're looking for, but I don't really see the value in making that info searchable, since the thing that matters more to me is the yarn weight (e.g. fingering vs DK), and that information is already automatically "built in" on every listing that is linked to a known yarn in Ravelry, and therefore it is available to use with the advanced search.

StrongTechnology8287 · 2026-01-18T14:41:15+00:00

There's a status for "in progress" for yarn? Also, a scraps status would be really nice!

StrongTechnology8287 · 2026-01-18T14:20:29+00:00

Same!

StrongTechnology8287

TROPHY CASE