A few knitting questions

#1

Hi, I am doing a research project for a class and I need some insight about the knitting community. I would greatly appreciate it if I could get some answers to a few questions I have.

  1. How skilled would you say you are at knitting? (Beginner, Intermediate, Advanced)

  2. How and why did you get into knitting?

  3. What was is your main resource for learning new patterns, methods etc…? (friends, books, this website)

  4. This is related to Q3, how helpful would you say website are for learning knitting? Are there any instances where you wished there was more information on a website?

Any other comments or even stories about how you learned to knit would be great also!

Thank you for your time!

#2

Hello! Here are my answers.

  1. How skilled would you say you are at knitting? (Beginner, Intermediate, Advanced) [B]I’d say somewhere between intermediate and advanced. I have a hard time rating myself on this scale because it’s so subjective to me. [/B]

  2. How and why did you get into knitting? [B]I learned when I was around 10 at a church camp–I just learned the basics: cast on, knit, purl and bind off. I then abandoned it until about 10 years ago (when I was 27) when I started up again. I had a job that required a lot of last minute travel, a lot of staying in motel rooms and that involved a lot of stress. I picked it up as a hobby because it was portable, relaxing and it is very satisfying to produce something with your own hands out of a couple of sticks and some string.[/B]

  3. What was is your main resource for learning new patterns, methods etc…? (friends, books, this website) [B]When I was older, I was able to remember enough from what the lady at church camp taught me to start up again. From there, I took a couple of workshops in making socks and finishing techniques, but the majority of what I’ve learned has been from books and even more so, a variety of websites, including this one.[/B]

  4. This is related to Q3, how helpful would you say website are for learning knitting? Are there any instances where you wished there was more information on a website?http://www.knittinghelp.com/forum/images/smilies/aug08_013.gif [B]I have found websites to be very helpful, including this one. I also use the technical articles at knitty.com and I have often found information I needed by searching it or posting questions here. I can’t think of any instances where I wished there was more information on a website because if I can’t find it on one, I can find it somewhere else, or in a book.[/B]

Any other comments or even stories about how you learned to knit would be great also!

[B]I would just say that I initially picked up knitting as a hobby again as a way to pass the time in airports, on the plane, and in the motel rooms in the evening, but it has turned into much more than that. Not only is it immensely satisfying to make things with my own hands, I also really enjoy the tactile sensation of handling yarn and needles, the visual sensation of looking at the pretty colors, and the wonderful sense of community I have from interacting with knitters both in person and online.[/B]

Thank you for your time![/QUOTE]

#3
  1. How skilled would you say you are at knitting? (Beginner, Intermediate, Advanced) [COLOR=royalblue]between intermediate and advanced[/COLOR]
  2. How and why did you get into knitting? [COLOR=royalblue]I saw some really cool yarn at a craft store and had to have a reason to buy it… so I took a knitting class[/COLOR]
  3. What was is your main resource for learning new patterns, methods etc…? [COLOR=royalblue]internet, knitting guild friends, knitting books[/COLOR]
  4. This is related to Q3, how helpful would you say website are for learning knitting? Are there any instances where you wished there was more information on a website? [COLOR=royalblue]very helpful, no, because there is always another website that will have the information[/COLOR]
    Any other comments or even stories about how you learned to knit would be great also!
#4
  1. Intermediate maybe? (for your future reference when designing survey questions, it’s a good idea to define terms, so we answer with the same understanding of what is meant by beginner, intermediate, advanced, particularly if you are grouping or aggregating answers based on this information.) :slight_smile:
  2. I’ve always liked doing crafty things. I was in a bookstore and there was a “learn to knit” kit with wool that was on sale for 50% off. I bought it and found that I really enjoyed knitting. However, my first exposure to knitting was as a child, when my grandmother tried to teach me. I couldn’t get the hang of it and didn’t try knitting again for years. Now I knit as a procrastination method (from writing my thesis) and also to help calm and soothe myself.
  3. At first (when learning to knit), I relied solely on books with basic instructions. I sought out help on the internet when I encountered stitches in a pattern that I couldn’t figure out without seeing them done, which is when I found this website. In terms of new patterns, I still rely on books.
  4. I think websites like this one are very useful. Not only are there a lot of videos (showing different methods to achieve the same end result), but the forums are great for getting specific questions answered. I think forums also solve the “not enough info” problem: you can always ask and find out what you need if it’s not already there.
#5
  1. How skilled would you say you are at knitting? (Beginner, Intermediate, Advanced)

[COLOR=Blue]Intermediate[/COLOR]

  1. How and why did you get into knitting?

[COLOR=Blue]I’ve crocheted for years, but I’ve always wanted to learn to knit because I like the fabric better. I am pretty much self taught. [/COLOR]

  1. What was is your main resource for learning new patterns, methods etc…? (friends, books, this website)

[COLOR=Blue]Mostly I use this website and a few other reference books and websites.[/COLOR]

  1. This is related to Q3, how helpful would you say website are for learning knitting? Are there any instances where you wished there was more information on a website?

[COLOR=Blue]Websites such as this one are great not only because of the information, but the people are also incredibly helpful, too.

Having multiple resources is extremely valuable because no website or book can have all the information you need. So no, I don’t fret when one site doesn’t have it. I have many sites bookmarked for just those occasions.[/COLOR]

#6

  1. How skilled would you say you are at knitting? (Beginner, Intermediate, Advanced) [COLOR=“Indigo”]probably intermediate[/COLOR]

  2. How and why did you get into knitting?
    I learned when I was five or six. My mother worked as a teacher and she asked a visiting craft teacher colleague to teach me. So I had a pro teaching me! I come from Finland and we had knitting also in school. I do many other crafts besides knitting, but I keep coming back to it especially when I want to have a new handmade piece of clothing.

  3. What was is your main resource for learning new patterns, methods etc…? (friends, books, this website)

Knitting magazines, books, internet.

  1. This is related to Q3, how helpful would you say website are for learning knitting? Are there any instances where you wished there was more information on a website?

The advantage over books is that you can usually find a video on any new technique. Because it’s world wide, you get a lot of new ideas which somewhere have been always known but are new in your area. All the information I need is nowadays available on the internet plus the community, there’s always someone who knows if you can’t figure out the correct search words for what you really want to know.

#7

  1. How skilled would you say you are at knitting? (Beginner, Intermediate, Advanced)[COLOR=“Blue”]i think intermediate [/COLOR]

  2. How and why did you get into knitting?[COLOR=“Blue”]At the age of 12 years[/COLOR]

  3. What was is your main resource for learning new patterns, methods etc…? (friends, books, this website)[COLOR=“Blue”]From knitting website & internet [/COLOR]

  4. This is related to Q3, how helpful would you say website are for learning knitting? Are there any instances where you wished there was more information on a website?[COLOR=“Blue”]yea we got help from friends by providing links, videos n comments[/COLOR]

Any other comments or even stories about how you learned to knit would be great also![COLOR=“Blue”] u get a personal aspirations with ur project through the books, video, n different types of forums …i even bookmarked many sites just in case i wud need it in future [/COLOR]

#8

  1. How skilled would you say you are at knitting? (Beginner, Intermediate, Advanced) Intermediate/Advanced

  2. How and why did you get into knitting? My mom taught me to knit when I was about 11 or 12. So many of the women in my family knit that it didn’t seem odd to take it up, plus I alwayd did enjoy crafty things.

  3. What was is your main resource for learning new patterns, methods etc…? (friends, books, this website) Mom was resource #1, followed by books and grandmothers. This website has been helpful more recently with verifying that I’m doing things correctly.

  4. This is related to Q3, how helpful would you say website are for learning knitting? Are there any instances where you wished there was more information on a website? Websites are very helpful. I’ve always been able to find what I need.

#9

  1. extremely beginner (if knitting progress was a person, I wouldn’t be a baby, I’d be a zygote)

  2. it was while I was in my first year of law school when suddenly literally out of the blue, I had the unshakeable yearning to learn how to knit…I swear I have no idea how or why or where it came from, and I thought it might be a good way to cope with my stress so the next time I went home I started to learn

  3. my mom taught me knit and purl (she used to knit long ago), I also try to learn online just because I don’t have the time or money or people to teach me the more advanced stuff (mom’s very rusty) so lots of youtube how-to videos, but I’ve learned very little thus far and have knitted bunches of scarves but nothing else…am hoping to make some more progress soon though

  4. I think website demonstration videos (like the ones I find on youtube) are helpful, but just looking at pages in books and those black and white diagrams are of no help to me at all, and neither are instructions or patterns in words. If I can’t actually see someone doing the knitting, I don’t learn by reading about it, which is why I prefer videos and in-person demonstration. Websites are very helpful to finding patterns and other sources of help, like answering questions about materials, that kind of thing.

Hope this helps! I’m probably the most novice knitter here so I don’t know if my perspective will help as much as the experienced knitters’ would. I don’t know if it’s just me but I think I would’ve had a much easier time learning back when I was a child and I’d just soak up a new skill or subject like a sponge. I consider myself a very intelligent person, but not crafty at all (my sister’s the gifted crafter in the family, also one of my cousins). I would say I’m probably struggling to learn this more than I’ve ever struggled to learn most things, but it’s not something that I’m pressured to learn (like a class at school or doing it for a business) so I’m taking it slow for now and just having fun, which is all I wanted to do in the first place! :slight_smile:

#10

Oooo what fun! Hooray for you for starting this thread!

  1. How skilled would you say you are at knitting? (Beginner, Intermediate, Advanced)
    Advanced - I’ve been knitting 50 years. Do fair isle and aran easily, some lace. Last summer took 6 blue ribbons in the County Fair. Design my own projects, mostly.

  2. How and why did you get into knitting?
    I saw my creepy cousin knitting a blanket for her cat - and it looked so neat, I just had to learn. But I learned to knit and crochet both at once, so I held the yarn the same way for both… in my left hand.

  3. What was is your main resource for learning new patterns, methods etc…? (friends, books, this website)
    I learned from a Scottish neighbor lady. She taught me the basics and gave me my first and favorite sock pattern. The rest I learned kind of by gosh and by golly. I remember at first I held the left needle between my legs… then went to a friend’s mother for help with a wonky pattern. The girl came into the room and squealed, “Oh Mom, looook at how she’s holding that needle!”

“Hush, Bonnie,” the mother whispered.

“But MOM! Just LOOOOK at it!”

I didn’t understand, but decided it was high time to learn how to hold the needle in my left hand instead.

  1. This is related to Q3, how helpful would you say website are for learning knitting? Are there any instances where you wished there was more information on a website?
    Uh, since I’d been knitting almost 50 years before discovering websites, all I learn from website is that some of the things I’d always believed from my own experience were not exactly true. For example, knitting worsted weight yarn is not always 4-ply.

I have learned a few things, like I-cord and that there are other ways to cast on… but I’m stuck pretty much in my own groove by now. And have the blue ribbons to show it’s not all bad!

Hope this helps,
“Aunt Dot”

#11

1)How skilled would you say you are at knitting? (Beginner, Intermediate, Advanced)

Beginner- again

  1. How and why did you get into knitting?

My sister taught me to knit (the knit stitch only) when I was around 6 or 7. Over the years I have taken a class at a church and have friends who have shown me a few things and I also have a book I have referred to. I picked up knitting again a couple of months ago to help relieve some stress. Although, I have only knit 2 scarves and half a baby blanket so far and have started and ripped out a 100 times it seems it has helped greatly in bringing some peace at this time in my life.

  1. What was is your main resource for learning new patterns, methods etc…? (friends, books, this website)

Presently, it is this website and friends

  1. This is related to Q3, how helpful would you say website are for learning knitting?

This website is extremely helpful and looks like the forum is going to be very helpful also.

Are there any instances where you wished there was more information on a website?

Maybe instructs on how to use the forums for the newbies like me- (ex: start a new thread etc. i am getting there :wall: )

Any other comments or even stories about how you learned to knit would be great also