Diversity and a Shortcut

A saunter into the Ravelry group for "exotic" knitting techniques brought about several links to YouTube videos of interesting variations on preforming said humble craft. I myself knit in a self-concocted style that results from my book learning system, devoid of a real teacher. However for the sake of giving it a name, I would say I'm probably best described a continental or German knitter. That is, I hold the yarn in my left hand, and pick up the yarn with my needle tip rather than wrapping it around the needle with my right hand. I don't loop the yarn around my fingers for tension, and I don't loathe purling with the burning passion many continental knitters do. There is a mild dislike, but I'm probably not alone in thinking that, especially when in the midst of some kind of behemoth garter-stitch nightmare, the change is rather welcome.

And so I spent part of my afternoon giving some of these new skills the old college try. I had already attempted Norwegian Purling a long while back-it was advertised as a way to save continental knitters from purling, because the yarn stays in the back of the work. Alas, it turned out that we weren't meant to be. My stitches took forever and came out loose, me fighting my reflex to bring the yarn forward while ribbing every step of the way.

This time my first attempt was your basic knitting-throwing with the right hand. In the past? I had no tension control, and had to forgo the two-handed method of Faire Isle for an odd, bobbin-less, one-hand-two-strings version. This time though, I remembered reading a debate about rather it was needed to loop the working yarn around the fingers in one way or another for tension. I looped round the ring finger and over the pointer finger, and...well I'll be! Natural as breathing and even as anything I'd ever knit continental. Geezaloo. Maybe I was a throwing-type knitter in a former life or something.

My next try was...hmm I believe Irish Cottage Knitting? You know, needle tucked into armpit? Holy cow was that a nightmare. Can't even speak of it. Yarn Harlot, kudos to your for your speediness and efficiency in knitting...it seems I was never meant to reach that level. Lol you lucky duck :)

Last up was Portuguese Purling. I was going to look up Portuguese Knitting too, but read that it was basically the opposite of Norwegian Purling and opted out. Anyway, to purl this way you use your left thumb to hold the working yarn down in front of your work. I need to figure out how best to loop the yarn around my thumb, but other than that with a little practice I should be able to distribute the workload as needed by switching around to different purling methods.

All the video links can be found here:

Norwegian Purling

httphttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0DkwcejowiI://

Irish Cottage Knitting

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P51GByV0H2w

Portuguese Purling

http://http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VK5hYxupNcM

Gotta love YouTube.

Now for the shortcut part of the title...While at the cottage over the summer, I had started a zig-zag crocheted afghan with Red Heart Super Saver in some purple and blue shades. Finding it today, I realized that there was some errors in my stitching style I have since fixed, and there was nowhere near enough yarn to finish it. solution? Stop, edge it in purple and weave in ends. End up with this:

My first thought was...radiator cover! Random I know, but it fit over the top perfectly. My mind was quickly changed when I wrapped it around my dog, and she snuggled down for a good long time. Hence, the Lola Half-ghan came to be :)