Category: knitting needles

Hello everyone. I am venturing back out into blogland, adding my Knitting & Crochet Friends group and fiber arts to my blog.  In these blog posts, I plan to share links to patterns I find on others websites and other blogs, share some patterns of my own that I am currently creating, and help you with any crochet or knitting questions you might have.  I hope you to feel free to ask for help.  Also I want you to meet Spike, whose picture you see here on this post.  Spike, the scuba diving doll (amigurumi), is our mascot for our group.  I will share more about Spike in a future post.

First let me share how this group got started.  It was May 2009 when my best friend, Linda, asked me to teach her to knit.  We were in Michaels arts and craft supply store, Linda, our husbands and myself.  We were looking at some very pretty yarns and Linda asked me, Do you know how to knit?  I told her that I did.  She asked me if I could teach her.  I told her I had not knitted in many years, but yes I could teach her.

We both decided to buy some yarn.  As we looked at all the pretty yarns, I started to pick out something I liked for myself, when my Husband, Rick, said, If your going to knit something, make me an afghan for the couch to cover up with when I take a nap.  Rick picked out a a nice variegated yarn in burgundies, browns, blues and tans, (to match the couch), and then I went home and dug out all my knitting needles from years prior and Linda and I started meeting every week.

It wasn’t long before more people wanted to learn first knitting, then crochet and by Sept 2009 we officially started a local group here in Bradenton, Florida called Knitting & Crochet Friends.  About a year later I created our Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/KnittingAndCrochetFriends

Leading this group has been a blast for me.  I love teaching.  I had not knitted or crocheted in about 25 years and I forgot how much I love the needle arts too, along with my Jewelry Design and Silk Painting Design.

Various people have passed through the group in the past three years.  Mothers and daughters learning together, from ages 6 to 70 we have had quite the variety, some rank beginners, some intermediate, and some well accomplished needle artists.  It has been fun getting to know each one.

If you in the Bradenton, Florida area, or are in the area for a visit, please join us on Sunday nights, we would love to have you.

Here is a pic of that first knitted afghan for Rick:

This afghan was my own design.  I knitted 6 rows, with the standard knit stitch (garter stitch), then I knitted one row and purled one row, for 10 rows (sockinette stitch), and alternated that pattern to create an afghan.

Over the past 3 years, I have went on to make afghans for each of my 7 grand children, and have made hats, scarves, fingerless gloves, angels and snowflakes (more about all these in future blogs).  It has been a fun adventure and I am looking forward to many more years of teaching.  I especially love teaching young people, seeing them learn handcrafts is so rewarding.

In wrapping up this post, I will share two great places to find all kinds of patterns for free.

If you are looking to find crochet patterns this is a great place is:  www.crochetpatterncentral.com

For knitting patterns:  www.knittingpatterncenteral.com

Christina

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