Lankahamsterit:
Idea on kiva, mutta haluan mahdollisuuden ostaa lankaa myös helmikuussa! Ehkäpä varastoni eivät sitten ole vielä tarpeeksi täynnä... Tai sitten minussa ei ole tarpeeksi masokistin taipumuksia.
Ja onhan niitä lankoja tullut osteltua:
- Tämä ihan vain uteliaisuudesta... (97% mohairia, 3% polyesteria)
- Nämä muut alarivin punaisille kaveriksi... (peruslanka 100% villaa)
- Nämä muut vasemmanpuoleisimmalle kaveriksi... (100% villaa)
- Nämä olivat alennuksessa, paitsi ylävasemmat ihanat Cocoonit... (Sandnesin Lanett, Dalegarnin Falk, Idénan Juvel ja Løve Garnin Cocoon kaikki 100% villaa mutta Sirdar Spreen puuvillalanka oli vikatikki, huomasin vasta kotona että puuvillan seassa on 40% akryyliä)
- Nämä ostin muuten vain... (Dalegarnin Ara 100% villaa)
- Ylärivin langoista oikean puoleinen ostettu vastikään, muut viime vuoden lopulla (kaikki näistä 100% huopuvaa villaa, oikeanpuoleinen nimetön, muut Askeladen merinovillaa)
Neuleolympialaiset:
Inhoan aikatauluja! Ei ole mitään stressaavampaa kuin kutoa kädet verillä ja kirves kohotettuna, jotta jokin riepu valmistuisi määräpäivään mennessä. Huom., kokemusta on mm. joululahjoista enkä rupea tällaiseen vapaaehtoisesti ainakaan. Varsinkin, kun aina ei tosiaankaan ehdi kutoa niin paljon kuin haluaisi. Tyttö nimittäin vaatii huomiota ja töitäkin pitäisi tehdä kaikesta muusta puhumattakaan.
Fifi, Clapotis ja muut hullutukset:
No, olenhan tehnyt sen bibon, koska pidän mallista todella paljon ja tarvitsin uuden lakin. Ja vieläpä verkkoponchon olen saanut aikaan (God forbid!) koska malli oli kiva ja nopea. Eipä silti, ei Fifissä tai Clapotiksessakaan mitään vikaa ole, mutta en vain tarvitse juuri niitä juuri nyt, ei ole vielä ainakaan tullut sitä tunnetta, että haluan tuon päälleni juuri nyt. Sitä paitsi, onko kaikkien pakko tehdä kaikki mitä muutkin neulojat? Joskus vähän tuntuu, että maailmassa on vain muutaman malli ja muutama lanka, kun tuhannessa ja yhdessä neuleblogissa (Suomessa ja muualla, hmph, tämäkin eräänlaista globalisaatiota) on juuri samat jutut. Minusta on kiva lukea omaperäisiä juttuja ja kokeiluja ja samoin tehdä juttuja oman pään mukaan vaikka onnistuminen ei olekaan niin taattua. Olipa kumminkin idea ja sain toteuttaa luovuuden puuskaani ja toivottavasti ainakin opin jotain seuraavaa kertaa varten, jos ei heti kerralla onnistunut.
- Joskus 90-luvun lopulla piti kokeilla tyynyyn Clapotiksessakin käytettyä tekniikkaa: kudo ja pura silmukat. Pujottelin sitten vielä väleihin lankoja, joten raidoista tuli tavallaan kuin kangaspuilla kudotut.
Vaihdot:
Lapas, pipo, sukka ja mitä niitä onkaan, ovat sinällään kivoja. Vain kaksi asiaa tökkii. Ensinnäkin aikataulu. Pitäisi saada jotain valmiiksi ja lähetetyksi tiettyyn aikaan mennessä. Ei välttämättä onnistu ilman stressiä ja lisästressiä en kaipaa. Toisekseen, tuotoksen pitäisi olla hieno ja sitäkään en voi taata. Ehkä joskus, kun huomaan hyvissä ajoin tällaisen vaihdon olevan alkamassa ja jos luulen pystyväni tekemään jotain jonka kehtaa lähettää, voisin osallistua.
Napit:
Napit ovat periaatteessa kivoja ja nättejä ja minusta olisi kiva kokeilla suunnitella itselleni sellainen, ihan vain kokeillakseni saisinko jotain kivaa aikaa. En kuitenkaan aio tehdä tätä ja vaikka sortuisinkin kokeilemaan, en aio esitellä lopputulosta julkisesti. Vaikka juuri taisin tulla moittineeksi neulojia liiallisesta yhteisöllisyydestä, kysymyksessä on kuitenkin yhteisö jossa on mielestäni vallinnut hyvä henki. Miksi siis erotella neulojia toisistaan? Kaikki neulojat löytyvät ringistä. En halua nostaa ketään muiden ylä- tai ulkopuolelle laittamalla erityisen, pysyvän linkin. Joku aika sitten projektinani oli lukea läpi kaikki suomalaiset neuleblogit ja kirjata samalla ylös kivoja ideoita ja ohjeita. Liioittelematta lähes joka blogista (melkein kahdesta sadasta sellaisesta!) löytyi jotain kiinnostavaa. Olen siis neuleblogien kastijakoa vastaan. Tämä nappiantipatiani muuten koskee ainoastaan henkilökohtaisia nappeja. Vaihtojen, keräysten ja muiden napit sekä linkit muihin kuin yksityisille sivuille ovat ihan ok.
Keräys köyhille lapsiperheille:
Tämä on ainoa, jonka suhteen harmittaa. Tähän olisin halunnut osallistua. Keräyksen alku meni kuitenkin minulta jotenkin ohi ja sitten luulin, että on liian myöhäistä ja kun huomasin, että aikaa olisikin ollut helmikuulle, olikin jo helmikuu. Toivottavasti saan uuden mahdollisuuden osallistua. Tällainen sopii minulle, kun saa kutoa mitä haluaa järkevään tarkoitukseen eikä tarvitse olla niiin hienoakaan (vaikka kiva tietysti jos on).
Vielä yksi juttu, joka jättää minut yhteisön ulkopuolelle - kirjat ja lehdet:
En ostele. Aika hyödytöntä, sillä minulla on ideoita ilmankin. Yleensä kudon (askartelen, ompelen...) jotakin, kun joko tarvitsen tai haluan jotain, jonka uskon pystyväni tekemään. Inspiraatiota saa kauppojen tavaroista, kadulta, netistä, ystävien tekeleistä - yleensäkin kaikesta ympärillä olevasta. Ideoita on enemmän kuin ehdin toteuttaa, joten ideoiden takia en lehtiä ja kirjoja tarvitse ja valmiita malleja ei kuitenkaan ehdi tai jaksa toteuttaa. Olen joskus tilannut käsityölehtiä alunperin askarteluideoiden takia, mutta parin vuosikerran lehdistä olen toteuttanut muutaman hullun jutun. Minusta on kivan haastavaa yrittää tehdä jotakin ihan omasta päästä. Voihan tietysti hakea suuntaa-antavia ohjeita tekniikoista, silmukkamääristä jne. samantyylisten juttujen ohjeista, mutta kivointa on, kun itse suunnittelee ja toteuttaa ja huomaakin osaavansa (ja kaikkein parasta on, jos lopputulos on edes jokseenkin mukava - tosin kokeilemisesta oppii seuraavaa kertaa varten). Joskus ohje tietysti on paikallaan ja sellaisen ostin mm. norjalaisvillatakkia varten. Ja on minulla muutamia kirjojakin ja toisinaan selailen niitä huvikseni kirjastossa. Kirjoissa minua kiinnostaa eniten uusien tekniikoiden oppiminen.
Lopuksi vielä yksi juttu, nimittäin kommentit. Luen neuleblogeja säännöllisen epäsäännöllisesti, sieltä täältä summamutikassa ja usein on niin, että aihe on jo "ohi", kun luen jotain kiinnostavaa, jota voisi kommentoida. En sitten viitsi viikkoja - tai jopa kuukausia - vanhaan juttuun kommentoida, varsinkin kun moni on jo ehtinyt ennen. Kaiken kaikkiaan kommentoin siis todella harvoin. Ihan liian harvoin. Voisin ottaa tavoitteeksi kommentoida edes kerran päivässä. Itsestäni on kiva saada kommentteja, mutta niitä tulee tosi harvoin. Kunpa useampi vaivautuisi kirjoittamaan vaikka sitten vain että "eipä ollut kummoinen tekele". Tuntuu, että ihan sama mitä paulaute on, kunhan edes on jotain. Melkein mikä tahansa on parempaa kuin täydellinen hiljaisuus. Laskurin mukaan väkeä sentään käy sivuilla, mutta epäilen, että juttuni ovat niin tylsiä, ettei niitä kukaan edes lue, kunhan selaavat läpi neulesivuja ohittaen epäkiinnostavat lukematta ja kommentitta.
For some reason it seems like I am not participating in any common knitting activity. Why?
Yarn hamsters:
The idea is nice but I want to have the option of buying yarn also in February! Maybe my stash is not large enough…Or else there is not enough masochist in me.
And I certainly have bough some yarn:
- This out of mere curiosity... (97% mohair, 3% polyester)
- The others to go with the reds... (100% wool)
- The others to go with the leftmost... (100% wool)
- These were on sale, except for the lovely Cocoons on top left... (Sandnes Lanett, Dalegarn Falk, Idéna Juvel and Løve Garn Cocoon all 100% wool but Sirdar Spree was a mistake, I only noticed at home that what I though was cotton had 40% polyacryl)
- These I bought for no particular reason... (Dalegarn Ara 100% wool)
- The one on top right is bought recently, the others late last year (top right namess, the others Askeladen merino wool, all 100% non-super wash wool)
Knitting Olympics:
I hate schedule! There is nothing more stressful than trying to knit with bleeding hands and the sword hovering over your head in order to finish some or another piece of cloth for a specific date. N.B. I have some experience of e.g. Christmas gifts and I choose not to get into this kind of situation voluntarily. Especially since I have less time for knitting than I would like. My daughter needs attention, I should work – not to mention all the rest.
Fifi, Clapotis and other popular items:
Well, I DID make bibo because I like the model and I needed a new cap. I even made the popular poncho (God forbid!) because the model was nice and easy. Not that there’s anything wrong with either Fifi or Clapotis, but I simply don’t need them right now. As of yet I did not get the feeling I have to have them right now. In any case, does everybody need to do exactly what everybody else is doing? Sometimes I get the feeling that there are only a few models and few yarns in the world. Thousand and one knitting blogs (in Finland and elsewhere, hmph, this is like a variant of globalism) have exactly the same stuff going. I enjoy reading original stuff and finding out about experiments and I like likewise to do my own stuff in my way, although it’s far from guaranteed that I’ll succeed. At least there was an idea and a chance to be creative and hopefully I learnt something for the next time.
- During the late 90’s I tried the same technique that is used in Clapotis for this cushion – knit and let go the stitches. Then I weaved in a few colourful threads.
Exchanges:
Mittens, caps, socks and all the others are nice as such. I find only two objections. First, doing stuff under time pressure. Something should be ready and sent by a given date. Stress is perhaps unavoidable in this scenario and I really do not need more additional stress. Then there is the little thing that what ever you knit should be nice and I have no guarantees on this one either. Maybe some day when I have a good warning on a coming exchange and I get the feeling I might contribute with something nice that one can think of sending to somebody I’ll consider participating.
Buttons:
Buttons are in principal nice and cute and cuddly and I’d love to try and design one just to see if something pretty would come out of it. However, I have no intention of doing this and even if I would lapse as far as to design one, I will not display it publicly. Although I seem to be guilty of accusing knitters of excessive communal spirit I still find that we are talking about a community with a good internal spirit. Why make difference? You’ll find links to all blogs on the ring. I do not want to lift anybody above the others by adding an additional, separate and permanent link. A while back I had a project to read through all Finnish Knitting blogs and I used the opportunity to write down interesting ideas and the like. Without exaggeration I can say that there was something worth of notice in nearly every blog (and there are around 200 of them by now!). I’m against cast separation of knitters. This antipathy against buttons is by the way reserved only to personal buttons. Buttons one gets from participating in different common activities and the like are just fine by me.
Collection for children living in difficult conditions:
This is the only thing about which I have real regrets. I do wish I had participated. However, I somehow managed to miss the beginning and I thought it was too late. When I discovered that the time had been extended to February, it was already February. I hope I’ll get a new chance to participate. This kind of thing I find meaningful and one gets to knit whatever one likes and nobody judges the results so severely, so one does not have to make the most wonderful things in the world (although beauty would be a great bonus).
One more thing puts me a bit on the sideline – magazines and books:
I do not buy them. Quite useless, I have more than enough ideas without them. Usually I knit (sew, crochet, whatever) something when I either need it or when I want something that I think I can make. I find inspiration in the shops, on the street, in the net, in what my friends made – in one word from anything around me. I have more ideas that I can put in practise so I really don’t need books and magazines to get inspiration. And I really have no time or energy to use many of the models you find in books and such. I used to subscribe to a magazine but I have really used the descriptions very little. I find it nicely challenging to try something on my own. I do look for some kind of guidelines (different techniques, number of stitches etc.) in something similar I intend to make but it is at its most gratifying to be able to compose something completely on your own and even better if it turns out at least acceptable (and even if it does not you have hopefully at least learnt something for the next time). Sometimes one really needs a proper description and I e.g. bought one for the Norwegian sweater. And I do have some books and I do also read library stuff at times. What I really look in books is learning new techniques.
To finish this ranting I wish to comment one more thing, namely comments. I read knitting blogs quite randomly, if regularly, and pick one from here and another from there. Often it happens that when I read something interesting and worth commenting it is not current anymore. I don’t feel like leaving a comment to something that is weeks, if not months, old and already probably commented by many people. All in all, I leave comments seldom. Quite too seldom. I should really take the habit of commenting at least once a day. I like getting comments but I get them very seldom. I wish more people would bother to write something even if it is just to mention that what you wrote was not so nice or interesting. I get the feeling that it is not so relevant what the comment is about just that there is one. Almost anything is better than total silence. The counter on my page tells me people hit the page but I’m getting doubts that my blog is so boring that nobody really bothers to read the posts and people who land on the page just move on to the next one fast, leaving the uninteresting page without a comment.
Lopuksi vielä yksi juttu, nimittäin kommentit. Luen neuleblogeja säännöllisen epäsäännöllisesti, sieltä täältä summamutikassa ja usein on niin, että aihe on jo "ohi", kun luen jotain kiinnostavaa, jota voisi kommentoida. En sitten viitsi viikkoja - tai jopa kuukausia - vanhaan juttuun kommentoida, varsinkin kun moni on jo ehtinyt ennen. Kaiken kaikkiaan kommentoin siis todella harvoin. Ihan liian harvoin. Voisin ottaa tavoitteeksi kommentoida edes kerran päivässä. Itsestäni on kiva saada kommentteja, mutta niitä tulee tosi harvoin. Kunpa useampi vaivautuisi kirjoittamaan vaikka sitten vain että "eipä ollut kummoinen tekele". Tuntuu, että ihan sama mitä paulaute on, kunhan edes on jotain. Melkein mikä tahansa on parempaa kuin täydellinen hiljaisuus. Laskurin mukaan väkeä sentään käy sivuilla, mutta epäilen, että juttuni ovat niin tylsiä, ettei niitä kukaan edes lue, kunhan selaavat läpi neulesivuja ohittaen epäkiinnostavat lukematta ja kommentitta.
For some reason it seems like I am not participating in any common knitting activity. Why?
Yarn hamsters:
The idea is nice but I want to have the option of buying yarn also in February! Maybe my stash is not large enough…Or else there is not enough masochist in me.
And I certainly have bough some yarn:
- This out of mere curiosity... (97% mohair, 3% polyester)
- The others to go with the reds... (100% wool)
- The others to go with the leftmost... (100% wool)
- These were on sale, except for the lovely Cocoons on top left... (Sandnes Lanett, Dalegarn Falk, Idéna Juvel and Løve Garn Cocoon all 100% wool but Sirdar Spree was a mistake, I only noticed at home that what I though was cotton had 40% polyacryl)
- These I bought for no particular reason... (Dalegarn Ara 100% wool)
- The one on top right is bought recently, the others late last year (top right namess, the others Askeladen merino wool, all 100% non-super wash wool)
Knitting Olympics:
I hate schedule! There is nothing more stressful than trying to knit with bleeding hands and the sword hovering over your head in order to finish some or another piece of cloth for a specific date. N.B. I have some experience of e.g. Christmas gifts and I choose not to get into this kind of situation voluntarily. Especially since I have less time for knitting than I would like. My daughter needs attention, I should work – not to mention all the rest.
Fifi, Clapotis and other popular items:
Well, I DID make bibo because I like the model and I needed a new cap. I even made the popular poncho (God forbid!) because the model was nice and easy. Not that there’s anything wrong with either Fifi or Clapotis, but I simply don’t need them right now. As of yet I did not get the feeling I have to have them right now. In any case, does everybody need to do exactly what everybody else is doing? Sometimes I get the feeling that there are only a few models and few yarns in the world. Thousand and one knitting blogs (in Finland and elsewhere, hmph, this is like a variant of globalism) have exactly the same stuff going. I enjoy reading original stuff and finding out about experiments and I like likewise to do my own stuff in my way, although it’s far from guaranteed that I’ll succeed. At least there was an idea and a chance to be creative and hopefully I learnt something for the next time.
- During the late 90’s I tried the same technique that is used in Clapotis for this cushion – knit and let go the stitches. Then I weaved in a few colourful threads.
Exchanges:
Mittens, caps, socks and all the others are nice as such. I find only two objections. First, doing stuff under time pressure. Something should be ready and sent by a given date. Stress is perhaps unavoidable in this scenario and I really do not need more additional stress. Then there is the little thing that what ever you knit should be nice and I have no guarantees on this one either. Maybe some day when I have a good warning on a coming exchange and I get the feeling I might contribute with something nice that one can think of sending to somebody I’ll consider participating.
Buttons:
Buttons are in principal nice and cute and cuddly and I’d love to try and design one just to see if something pretty would come out of it. However, I have no intention of doing this and even if I would lapse as far as to design one, I will not display it publicly. Although I seem to be guilty of accusing knitters of excessive communal spirit I still find that we are talking about a community with a good internal spirit. Why make difference? You’ll find links to all blogs on the ring. I do not want to lift anybody above the others by adding an additional, separate and permanent link. A while back I had a project to read through all Finnish Knitting blogs and I used the opportunity to write down interesting ideas and the like. Without exaggeration I can say that there was something worth of notice in nearly every blog (and there are around 200 of them by now!). I’m against cast separation of knitters. This antipathy against buttons is by the way reserved only to personal buttons. Buttons one gets from participating in different common activities and the like are just fine by me.
Collection for children living in difficult conditions:
This is the only thing about which I have real regrets. I do wish I had participated. However, I somehow managed to miss the beginning and I thought it was too late. When I discovered that the time had been extended to February, it was already February. I hope I’ll get a new chance to participate. This kind of thing I find meaningful and one gets to knit whatever one likes and nobody judges the results so severely, so one does not have to make the most wonderful things in the world (although beauty would be a great bonus).
One more thing puts me a bit on the sideline – magazines and books:
I do not buy them. Quite useless, I have more than enough ideas without them. Usually I knit (sew, crochet, whatever) something when I either need it or when I want something that I think I can make. I find inspiration in the shops, on the street, in the net, in what my friends made – in one word from anything around me. I have more ideas that I can put in practise so I really don’t need books and magazines to get inspiration. And I really have no time or energy to use many of the models you find in books and such. I used to subscribe to a magazine but I have really used the descriptions very little. I find it nicely challenging to try something on my own. I do look for some kind of guidelines (different techniques, number of stitches etc.) in something similar I intend to make but it is at its most gratifying to be able to compose something completely on your own and even better if it turns out at least acceptable (and even if it does not you have hopefully at least learnt something for the next time). Sometimes one really needs a proper description and I e.g. bought one for the Norwegian sweater. And I do have some books and I do also read library stuff at times. What I really look in books is learning new techniques.
To finish this ranting I wish to comment one more thing, namely comments. I read knitting blogs quite randomly, if regularly, and pick one from here and another from there. Often it happens that when I read something interesting and worth commenting it is not current anymore. I don’t feel like leaving a comment to something that is weeks, if not months, old and already probably commented by many people. All in all, I leave comments seldom. Quite too seldom. I should really take the habit of commenting at least once a day. I like getting comments but I get them very seldom. I wish more people would bother to write something even if it is just to mention that what you wrote was not so nice or interesting. I get the feeling that it is not so relevant what the comment is about just that there is one. Almost anything is better than total silence. The counter on my page tells me people hit the page but I’m getting doubts that my blog is so boring that nobody really bothers to read the posts and people who land on the page just move on to the next one fast, leaving the uninteresting page without a comment.
