Is your knitting perfect?

#1

I hope this doesn’t sound like a really stupid question, but I’m serious. I’ve only been knitting for about 6 months now, but compared to what I see people post on here, the stuff I’ve made looks, well…sad. I haven’t really seen many hand knit items up close, other than my own, of course, but I’m just wondering what other people’s stuff looks like. Would anyone be able to tell it’s handmade?

I guess I’d like to know what level of “perfection” I should be shooting for. Not that I expect my stuff to be perfect, but I am trying to improve and I just don’t have any sense of what things “should” look like. I know it’s silly to compare my hand knits to store-bought items, so what do really good hand knit items look like?

#2

I’d also like to know…

I get so frustrated, I’ve never finished anything. I’ve frogged everything I’ve started. I’m feeling really discouraged. :confused:

#3

Umm…no. My knitting is far from perfect! I don’t think anyone has perfect knitting, but those who have knit a long time have an edge. The more you practice the more even your tension.

If you are making mistakes a lot it helps to have a lifeline which is an embroidery thread or something that you put through a row which has no mistakes. As you work you move it up. If you make a mistake you can’t fix or live with you can frog to the lifeline and start from there. It’s saved my butt a bunch of times!

#4

My knitting is far from perfect too :shock:

But hey, its a hobby that’s good to know, eh? :wink:

#5

[color=blue]I’ve been knitting more than 40 years now. I think somewhere between when I started and now, I did a better job.

I have never compared any handknit to a machine knit. We’re not machines.

I think I frog or tink everything I make now. I know I have to pay a lot more attention to what I’m doing when I’m doing pattered stitches.

You can look forward to getting better over the years. Be patient with yourself and enjoy the process. [/color] :thumbsup:

#6

Teiris, a little word of advice: stop ripping everything out! I tell that to new knitters all the time. Just keep going forward, knowing that your first few projects are going to look wonky. It’s a fact of life…but you will be finishing things, have something to show for all of your work, and you will gradually learn how to fix tour mistakes and you’ll become more consistent. You can do it! :thumbsup:

#7

The more you knit, the more even your tension. Don’t go for any kind of perfection, just knit. You automatically get better.

I’d say my stitches are even and I can follow just about any pattern, but perfect? Never.

As Lana said, we’re talking hand knits here. My sweaters from Land’s End are more even than my knitting, but then again, if I wanted another Land’s End sweater, I’d buy one–probably for less money than I can knit one, too! :wink:

The more you knit, the better you get; the better you get, the more you know how to hide/correct mistakes, because there always are some.

#8

Egad, perfect? I don’t even go into a project hoping for that; I just hope that I don’t have a lot of mistakes, and that’s good enough for me. I now scoff at the perfection of my Land’s End and LL Bean sweaters! :rofling:

And chances are, most mistakes only YOU can see because you know what was supposed to happen.

#9

Perfect? What’s that? :??

#10

I have to answer this with a resounding HECK NO! My tension is usually pretty good, and I can generally catch big mistakes and tink to fix them, but my knitting is definitely not perfect. I’m only human.

#11

LOL, okay, I guess “perfect” was kind of a strong word. But seriously, when I look at people’s FOs on here, I think they look pretty close. :wink:

It’s good to know my tension will get more even with practice. Right now, it’s pretty variable. :frog:

#12

Well of course we turn the booboos AWAY from the camera you know… :roflhard: :roflhard:

#13

I’ve been knitting for only about eight months, so I’m FAR from perfect. However, I can see the progress I’ve made since I started! Keep going and you’ll get better, faster, more even.

I think part of the reason people’s FO photos on this site look “perfect” is that they are just photos…you can’t see all the detail you would if you held the item in your hands and examined it carefully. Your hand knitting would look better in a photo, too, or from across the room.

Hang in there, and happy knitting!

Patty

#14

Most of my finished projects look much better in the photos, usually, if that’s any comfort. :wink:

#15

I think that is a true statement…

“Perfect” should exist. Everything has it’s flaws.

#16

I consider a FO that doesnt have major flaws or holes to be perfect :cheering:

I finished a pair of socks - (will do photos later) and there are some flaws, yes, but darn it, they ARE perfect!

And my hairball kitty purse - (will photo that too) - I get compliemnts on it all the time - its way different - and oh yes flaws in there too!

Don’t be so hard on yourself!

#17

It’s all already been said, but I second that emotion! :wink: Handknits never look like machine-knits from the mall, and thank god for that! I think one of the best things about being a more experienced knitter is that I’ve learned what I can and can’t expect from myself.

#18

:happydance: Yeah! What they said!

Plus… please stop frogging everything that you make! One day you will be teaching a daughter, neice or grandchild how to knit and they will get frustrated. You can then pull out that scarf that looks nothing like a scarf and comfort them with the fact that everyone starts out making mistakes! I know this because I have done this with my own daughter and one neice already and I’ve only been knitting for a handful of years. Now I look back at that wonky scarf and smile when I see all of those little “oops” places - I can also figure out how they happened. It was a huge comfort to my daughter to realize that I didn’t start out knitting “perfect”! You will be so glad to have kept some of that early work - I promise!

Good luck, Angela

#19

One more vote for appreciating imperfections! I feel like I do pretty well, and I’m mid-range in experience (I think, from reading this forum) - and I have yet to make anything “perfect”. However, I have made a lot of things that have made me and the recipient PERFECTLY HAPPY!!!

#20

:roflhard: I find that very hard to believe, Ingrid. Your work is AMAZING and I can’t imagine the photos even do it justice. But, thanks for trying to make me feel better! :wink:

It does make me deel better to hear that other people’s knitting isn’t always perfect – or I guess a better word would be “flawless.” I think I’ve just been feeling a little down about my knitting lately b/c I’ve been trying to knit sweaters and I keep making mistakes – big ones. It’s frustrating to spend so much time on something and not have it work out. But, I’m stubborn (and, I really :heart: knitting), so I won’t give up. I guess I just need to keep everything in perspective and view each mistake as a learning experience.

Dang it though, I want to knit a sweater that doesn’t suck!!!