I started knitting with the vague idea of knitting socks. Which I do, as they are an addiction. I learned to knit several types of heels and in both directions, and I switched from five needles to magic loop.
I wanted to knit lace. And while my first lace project was a worsted-weight scarf, my advice is, if you’re already a sock-knitter, to knit lace socks first. You’ll get the gratification of finishing sooner, plus you’ll learn the major skills of lace-knitting – knit, purl, yo, k2tog and ssk – in a more friendly way. Having the wool congruent to the needles helps a lot.
I just finished a lace scarf – still needs blocking – for which I used a sock pattern that I just fell in love with. I have realized that for rectangles, I need patterns I can memorize or read easily – working from a chart gets frustrating. For triangles, though, with different patterns every few repeats and the challenge of it changing size – I want a complex chart. I haven’t done a square yet.
So. Socks. Lace. Complex garments (I’ve made five sweaters, each with a new technique). What was I missing? Well, lots, but the next thing on the list for me was colorwork.
I bought the Knitpicks Palette Tranquility sampler, which comes with a tote bag pattern. And. Turns out that knitting with both hands? Not as hard as I thought. I’m only a few rows in, though. We shall see.
