Knitting

I packed shiny, new, yellow knitting needles and a bright, multi-colored skein of soft yarn to bring to North Carolina. My oldest granddaughter had shown an interest in knitting the last time we were there, so I thought I’d teach her to knit this time.

At Hobby Lobby I told a stranger in the yarn aisle what my plan was. She helped me pick out a good size knitting needle for a young girl. I appreciated that. 

Zoey loved the color of the needles, and the yarn, and she was excited to learn. It didn’t take her long to catch on – how to cast on and the knit stitch. What fun. 

Knitting on the front porch.

Because this is something new for her, she was knitting almost every time she sat down…hopefully she will continue to like it and it will be a fun skill for her to use in the future. 

Knitting can be done almost anywhere…even in the car.

Unfortunately, I don’t remember who taught me to knit (I hope Zoey will remember who taught her!) I have pages torn out of a girl’s magazine with knitting instructions…did I teach myself? I remember knitting slippers…

Creating her own space in the morning sun.

Later I learned to crochet. And, back then (50 years ago), I learned to make granny squares…they were a big deal at that time. I remember I made a vest from them. I have seen granny square vests for sale in vintage clothing stores recently.

This afghan I made for Gary before we were married.

I also crocheted several afghans, using granny squares.

An afghan I made for my son before he was born.

Several years later I went back to knitting. I knit winter scarves and then I learned about a prayer shawl ministry. I loved the idea, so I started knitting prayer shawls. I made several prayer shawls to give away.

Two of my cousins in Norway knit beautifully, and gifted me with these slippers and scarf when I was there last summer. I never learned to knit like this! There are so many beautiful knitting patterns.

Now that I’ve shown my granddaughter how to knit, I need to refresh myself on how to crochet, so eventually I can show her how to do that. And who knows, she may want to learn how to crochet a granny square…