Favorite Patterns

[untonuggan]

I'm curious - what are some of peoples'  favorite patterns? I have some folks in my circle who just started knitting, or who just got back into knitting, or are curious about knitting.

So here's some musings I have, if folks are up for it amidst holiday knitting and general revelry/chaos:

• What are you knitting right now? (Unless it's super sekkrit)
• What's a pattern you've knit before and have knit/want to knit again?
• What are some good patterns for beginners?
• What's a knitting skill (cables, bobbles, lace, reading charts, entrelac) that you're interested in learning (perhaps because the patterns are sooo pretty/interesting/whatever), and you want to learn? Perhaps other folks can offer good suggestions on how to learn that skill...

(P.S. I hope the mod is okay with this.)

Comments

[hazelwho]

I want to learn double knitting! Do you hold one color in each hand, or pick up/drop them as you go?

[jenett]

I have only just started, but I am:

- Doing English style (throw, and I am right handed, so working yarn is normally in my right hand)

- I keep both strands in my right hand. It took a little to figure out how to twist so things come out cleanly, but not very long. (like a row or two.) Working with two different colors, though, this is not that hard. (Though I'm starting with dishcloth cotton because it is big and easy to see.)

- Mostly, they stay in my hand and I adjust them as I go (twisting my hand, etc. as I move them back and forth - for people not familiar with double knitting, you start with them both in the back, knit the knit stitch, move them both to the front for a purl stitch, make the stitch with your purl yarn, move them both to the back for your knit stitch, etc. You're only actually making a stitch with one yarn at a time [1], but you move both strands.

- I do not have wrist/etc. issues, but I do notice I have to be careful with tension for double knitting - more than I am for other projects - and I am keeping an eye on signs of wrist strain. (and shoulder strain and neck strain, and ..yeah.)

[1] Except on the ends of the rows: I'm doing a K2 with both yarns together. I am not crazy about what this looks like, but for my actual application, where they'll be joined on the edges, it'll be fine.)

[hazelwho]

Cool, thanks for this!

I want to learn double knitting, but a lot of the instructions seem to be for people who knit with the yarn in their right hand. I knit with the yarn in my left hand, and there are plenty of fair isle instructions out there for continental knitters, so it looks like I'll learn fair isle first. =)