Wizarding Times

I am a new knitter. I taught myself to knit over a year ago and am still finding out lots of things not to do while knitting. Here is a tidbit about what not to do when first encountering the exciting world of knitting.

I've written about attempting to knit patterns that are usually out of the skill range of a novice knitter (don't do it!; instead, choose projects that can be completed in a relatively short time frame, choosing patterns that are rated as "easy" or "beginner," and follow the pattern suggestions for the kind of yarn to use. I've written more details about the types of yarns available, suggesting that one starts with an inexpensive yarn. Use a yarn that feels good to the touch and is a pleasure to knit with.

I wrap up this series of articles with some comments about colours. Yes, colours — the very nuances that can make, or break, your knitted creations.

When you are purchasing your yarn, don't do what I've done (a few times...). When you find a yarn that you really like the looks of and it feels good to you, be sure to purchase enough to complete your project plus have a little extra left over. Why is this?

The reason you purchase enough yarn in a certain colour, and of the same dye lot, is that even if the name of the colour is the same (when you go back to pick up more of the same yarn), if the dye lot is not the same, the colour might not be an EXACT match. Sometimes that doesn't matter, whether or not it is an exact match. Most often, though, it's a crucial ingredient of your finished creation and if it's off, even by a fraction of a shade, it can look really really.... Well, suffice it to say when you notice it you might feel like throwing away your knitting needles or banishing it to the Sahara Desert.

A Tarma-approved addition from Cosmo: Yes, it's very important to check out the dye lots of your yarns and to have them match; however, some types of yarn — typically inexpensive acryllic yarn — have no dye lot, in which case, as long as you can find the same color in that brand, you're fine (trust me, I've done this). Basically, the point is that you should look at the labels of your yarn and go from there. Back to Tarma. :)

The second comment that I make about colours is this: be sure you LIKE what you purchase. Don't be talked into buying it because someone else says, "Oh, what a lovely colour!" If you are talked into purchasing something and you are iffy about the colour, well, odds are that you will never pick it up and knit something with it.

The third comment about colours is this: Use a colour wheel if you are wondering if certain colours would be complimentary. There is nothing wrong with using colours that contrast sharply or even seem odd next to each other. Sometimes that is exactly the statement that you are wanting to make. But to ignore the use of the colour wheel, because you don't want to take the time or feel funny about it, that is something definitely not to do.

The final thing that I want to mention in this little series of "What Not To Do When Knitting" is this:

Always, always go with your own best discernment of what you want to do. In other words, don't use these articles as if they are written in stone. If no one ever broke out of the box and tried new things that everyone said was stupid, forbidden, not done, or whatever, we'd not have the Firebolt broomstick, Weasley's Wizard Wheezes, or Bertie Botts Every Flavour Beans.

Read these articles, just to see how things might go wrong — and do what you want anyway. Who knows what you will come up with?

Enjoy!