Hi there everyone!
I had a very good friend that “knitted when she was little”, but was so amazed when she knitted “her first stitch”! Also, she has taken to taking my needles and not giving them back. I think 3 pairs are now living at her house. I want them back because they are my good needles. She expects me to teach her every technique I learn and will constantly bug/pester/nag me until she gets her way. :gah: :hair: :gah: :hair: :gah: :hair: :gah: :hair: :gah: :hair:
Today she made me frog the hat I was making her because she didn’t like the colors anymore. :wall: I will never EVER knit for that little pest ever again!
What ticks me off even more is that her “best friend” tells me that I should knit for her because it is a skill that not many people have. (She knits too, but not as well as I do and has never tried anything harder than a scarf. :flirt:) What should I do?
Knitting "Friend"
I’d get my needles back pronto, by telling her I will be driving her to the nearest Walmart, and helping her buy her own needles. I’d bug/pester/nag her until she gave me my needles back.
I’d tell her best friend to knit for this gal, and refer them to this website for any questions about knitting.
Knitting is supposed to be enjoyable, autonomous, and done only when you want to, I think. Stand up for yourself, and, over a plate of cookies, tell her you will now be bowing out of knitting anything more for her, since you believe she will benefit much more by learning for herself.
Tell her you like her, even when you aren’t knitting for her. Guide her about what tools and yarn to buy.
You are such a nice person to teach someone to knit! I don’t have the patience to do that - our session would probably end up with us going to the ER because the blundt end of a pointy stick would be sticking out of their heads.
Next time you want to teach someone to knit, please do not give them your “nice needles”. That is the fastest way to lose something you cherish. Please go directly to your nearest craft store, local department store w/craft section or eBay and help them get needles that way. A good way to retrieve them is go have a ‘lesson’ at your friends house. Don’t be afraid to be politely assertive and reclaim them. If it were me, I would say something to the effect of “I need my needles back, so let’s go to the store so you can buy yourself some BRAND NEW ones”. You don’t have to mention WHY you need them back. After all, they are yours and if they are your favorite needles … you probably mentioned it to your ‘friend’ and she knows how you value them.
Sorry for the speech … people that refuse to return borrowed goods really get my goat!
first of all, i didn’t give her my nice needles!! she STOLE them!! and plus, I don’t and am not allowed to legally drive… yet 
I CANT DRIVE!! GRRRR IM UNDER 16!!!
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she makes me SOOOOOOOO mad!!!
Ok, that makes her triple bad and she really should not be your friend any more! Don’t let her come over to your house any more, at all.
No wonder you are so frustrated. I would be too!
Well, Sweetie, since you’re so young, I’m assuming your friend is young, too, and we’ll try to figure it out from there.
First, where do you see her? At school? You say she’s asking you to teach her ever technique you’re learning–where is that happening? Is she taking your needles at that time?
Basically, whenever you see her next, I’d say something like, “Suzie, I really need to get my three sets of needles back now. If you don’t have them with you, please bring them on ________ (whenever you expect to see her next) so that I can get my supplies organized.”
If she’s telling you you have to frog a perfectly good piece of knitting because she doesn’t like the colors, you say, “I’m sorry, but I like them, and there’s nothing wrong with this hat. If you don’t want it, I’ll wear it myself or give it to someone who appreciates my efforts.” You don’t need to be rude, but you certainly can be firm.
And stand my your resolve not to mess with knitting for her again. Let her knit things for herself. Give her the phone number to the LYS or Michael’s or JoAnn’s where they have knitting classes and let her learn by herself.
Hope that helps.
Oh…and if she doesn’t give the needles back, could your parents get involved? I know I like my teens to handle their own conflicts, but I’m not opposed to helping out if necessary.
I know I like my teens to handle their own conflicts, but I’m not opposed to helping out if necessary.
I agree, maybe she needs a little boot from her parent(s) to get her going in the right direction.
It’s a bad idea, even though a nice one, to ever loan out things you’ll want back. My husband and I have ‘lost’ a lot of books over the years that way.
thank you guys so much for the support
Lisa, she does happen to go to my school. I bring my knitting bag to school every day (the teachers are nice enough to let us knit in class) and she found out that I knit and got furious. Before, she was my friend. Now, not so much. She saw that I was knitting in the round, begs, begs, BEGS for me to teach her. Didn’t happen. She got ticked off at me and now I knit socks (sort of :teehee:) and she thinks I should knit her some too. Not gunna happen. Thanks again.
There’s a saying - if you lend a friend £20 and never see them again, it was worth the £20. I think that may be what’s happened here - if I were in your position, given my nature (but it might not be right for you), I’d try explaining that you want your needles back and that you have your own knitting to do for yourself and for people who appreciate it. If she still acts like she is now, which to me is no kind of friend, then I’d cut my losses, buy new needles and have as little to do with her as you can, since any attempt to get them back will probably just end in aggravation and pain.
I hope it works out for you - friends like that just aren’t worth the hassle. Enjoy your knitting, and find some people who will appreciate the work you do hugs
Fi xxx
I’m SO glad I’m not a teen anymore! It’s kind of cool they let you knit in class tho!
Jen
That just might work Fi. Thank you all so much for the support. I will have to put up with her for the rest of the year. :doh: :gah: :hair: I will continue to knit away :knitting: and hopefully not frog and will ignore her (hopefully) until she switches schools in the fall.
I will surely use that saying in the future. Thanks again!
I was going to say, but maybe not. :teehee: Okay, I will. I’m actually sorta not a teen. End of discussion. :teehee:
okay, just kidding. :flirt:
maybe your friend lost the needles, and is too embarrassed to tell you.
possibly, but most likely she would have thrown them away.
My friends don’t really ask me to knit for them, but it has come up a few times that ppl have eyed my projects. Those ppl have ended up with a beautifully knitted (fill in the project here) for xmas.
For the requests I have had, one offered to pay for the project, and the other offered to pay for the supplies. I would say if your friend is asking you to knit for her, find out if she will give you the supplies…and if not…you can decide if she is worth a b’day/xmas gift later…
For me it would totally be about how good the friend is. My bff will always get whatever she asks for, 1. because she never asks for anything, and 2. cause we would do anything for eachother…but if it was ANYONE else…my first comment is always “get in line, I have lots of stuff lined up first” (that is almost always true anyway) and if they are serious…I will fit it in.
Let her bring you the yarn…but I would also tell her that the best way for her to get better is for her to try it herself. You are always there to help if she gets stuck…
PS…What is Frogging??
Frogging is ripping the yarn back to correct a mistake or ripping the project out completely, ususally so you can use the yarn for something else.
It’s called “frogging”, because you “RIP IT, RIP IT, RIP IT”
:teehee: