Here’s my photo of the latest arrival of Wollmeise Wool Mice in the shop. 🙂 Tricia from Earthly Hues sent us this amazing box of chocolates and when you open them up, there are two mice nestled into the layer on top. There must be a nut in there, but they’re too cute to eat. This company gets a lot of kudos for presentation. 
The whole wooden box of chocolates was tied up in a beautiful red ribbon with a gold wax seal on the front. That means that our postman wasn’t able to open it up, sneak some chocolate, and then deliver it to us later in the day. Not that he would do that. I’m sure not. (Now Brenda, the UPS gal just might. She loves chocolate and sometimes needs a handful of Loopy kisses to get her through the day…)
This gal is obviously not unwrapping Loopy kisses, or knitting, for that matter. Although maybe she will take it up now that she might be able to use her fingers again. (Holy cow.)
This month’s blog contest question is a two-parter. 1) Why do you knit? and 2) Do you think you’re a knitter-for-life or do you think that this is what you do “now” and you’ll move on to the next thing eventually? For me, I knit because I like having something to do that is relaxing. I knit because there are so many beautiful colors and fibers out there that I want to see done up. I knit because it’s something that Knitting Daughter and I can hang out and do together. I knit because I like hand-knit socks and scarves (and mitts and gloves and sweaters.) I knit because it can be very challenging, or very mindless, depending on what pattern I choose. And yes, I will be a knitter for life. I ran out of things that I wanted to cross-stitch long ago (and really, how many things like that do you need in your house?) and I caught up on my scrapbooks a few years ago (although I will still do that with current photos), but I can’t imagine running out of knitting inspirations, or the need for hand-knit items in my life. Plus, it will take me close to forever to use up half of the things in my stash. How about you? Why do you knit? And do you see yourself doing this for now, or forever? Leave your answer in the blog comments and we’ll draw the winners a week from today. (The prizes – Wollmeise. You’ll like it!)
Sheri wishingthatthefluorescentlightsinmyofficewouldstopbuzzinganddrivingmenuts
I learned to knit when I had breast cancer. I needed something to do that would soothe me and help fill the time at doctors offices and such. Needless to say EVERYBODY got scarves for Christmas that year and I don’t think anybody was safe form the curse of the “fun fur”. I still knit because it is soothing to me but it is also fascinating to me what I can create. Who knew two sticks and some string could have such endless possibilities?!??!!?
I’m sure that I will be a knitter for life. It is part of who I am, not just something that I do.
I started knitting because I wanted to create things. I wanted to quilt but I didn’t have room to leave everything out and by the time I got everything out it was time to put it up. I had knitted as a child and also crocheted but just a little. I thought crochet would be easier because I remembered that I dropped stitches a lot as a child. My mom didn’t do either so I was on my own. Then I watched Knitty Gritty and they were making baby booties and I wondered if I could figure it out. Well 20 pairs later plus socks, hats and I am hooked for life. I have taken up spinning but that it just part of process. I haven’t made anything for myself, given everything away so my new thing is to make something for me.
I started to knit a little over 2 years ago and have been having a blast ever since. I felt a gap in my life and felt that I needed to find a new hobby and so I asked my friend to teach me how to knit. It’s strange that I never got into it in my younger years, as my mother knit all the time. Now that I’m in my mid-30’s I’m wanting to learn how to knit and sew and do all the things my mother had been doing this whole time – whodda thunk? 🙂 I love seeing the FOs and giving them as gifts and to have people ask if I really made it. I’m amazed myself sometimes 🙂
I hope I’ll be a lifetime knitter because I’ve met wonderful people through this hobby and who could give up feeling all of this yummy, soft yarn??? Not I!
I started to knit because a woman, where I used to work, and I wanted to stay in during lunch in the winter and she knit so she taught me the basics. She stopped knitting but I haven’t. I enjoy the process and the fact that I’ll have made something at the end of it. I’ve given away alot, if not most, of what I knit and it always makes me happy when someone is in “awe”. I’ve even given away the hat that was on my head! I am pretty sure I’ll be a knitter for life because it has been a few years and I’m still loving it and there are still challenges out there for me to work on and master.
I knit because I love everything about it…the process, the beauty, the feel, the calm. I began knitting when I was deep in a depression and I feel that knitting has saved my life. I now spin as well and enjoy that just as much but for me they go hand in hand.
I will knit for the rest of my life!! ( I already think about who to will my yarn to when I pass on!!!)
I can’t remember a time when I didn’t knit but I keep knitting because for me it’s hypnotic. I can get into a rhythm and forget about the what’s going on around me. I will be knitting until I can’t use my hands anymore or my mind is unable to comprehend what is going on.
I’m a teacher so I need a quiet stress-reliever at the end of the day. I knot so I won’t strangle myself some days! I’m definitely a knitter for life though sometimes I’ll put it away for a few months.
I knit because I love it, it’s relaxing most of the time, and I don’t like just sitting and doing nothing. If we watch a movie I’ll knit, at least I’m accomplishing something! I’ll knit for life, since I have enough yarn in my stash to last me the rest of my life!
I knit because… it calms my mind. I have a problem sometimes with too many words in my head, to much I want to do. But when I knit.. everything stops and I can only think of knit or purl. It’s a welcome relief. I go to my closest yarn shop which is very small, when I need to sooth my soul. The colors are a welcome renewal to me and I come out of there refreshed. I lost my job, so I have to be very selective in my purchases, but it doesn’t cost anything to look and breath in all the colors. I have taught quilting in past years, but just don’t enjoy that “process” like knitting. I will always knit. My DH calls it my “mind full time”.
I knit for several reasons, my mom taught me and now it is the main source of conversations we have, one of the few things we can agree on. I knit to calm and relax myself. With other projects I knit to challenge my self, reverytine I leran and apply a new technique I feel so smart.
I also knit because I love the act of creating something, being able to give someone a thing I have made for them is like giving them a part of me.
I knit for many reasons, I knit because I want to! It gives me pleasure to see what I come up with I love the yarns today and their colors. I have knitted for over 30 years and the yarn these days are 150% better. I love to see the reactions of others when they see what I make! I love to make items for people who love to receive things that I make and appreciate it.
As far as how long I will knit, I will go to my grave with some yarn, needles, markers, fabric, thread and needles!
I knit because I love to create. In the past I’ve painted, embroidered, stamped, stenciled, scrapbooked and sewn. I still get the urge to do those things but because I don’t have a craft room the set up is a bit much. I want to make sure I can get a bunch done in the time I have so the set up & clean up time will be justified. I love the ease of just picking up yarn and needles and being able to create instantly!
I will knit for the rest of my life. I enjoy being able to pass my yarn and my creations on to my friends & family. I feel that I am investing bits of me into each project. My love is covering their toes or ears or fingers. I can’t stop giving that love away!
I knit because I am happy when I am knitting, my brain seems to be satisfied both creatively and analytically. I had some amazing dreams last night, that I knitted up some beautiful creations of my own, having used lovely hand dyed yarns, big circular wooden buttons: scarves, hats, capelets. I’d been flipping through the ‘capelets’ search I’d done on Ravelry moments before sleeping. It makes me happy. I’m in for life (at 37:)
I knit because when my fingers are doing their work, my mind is free to wander and burrow into its happy place. It’s wonderfully relaxing and a great way to ease tension. Which leads me to the second part of the question – am I a knitter for life? How could I say anything but yes to that? Knitting makes me happy. We need all the happiness we can get in the world, and this is how I spread it.
For me, knitting is magical. I love the process of knitting; creating beautiful fabric with yarn and two needles. I love how the fabric flows from my needles, looking so different than the plain yarn put up in the skein. I love the texture; the way the light plays in the nooks and crannies of the knitted fabric.
I love how knitting helps me think. I am finishing writing my PhD dissertation; it’s hard and stressful to create new knowledge! Sometimes I get stuck–seemingly unable to figure out how to accomplish what I want to do next–that’s when knitting becomes my greatest ally. By picking up the needles I relax, and the soothing rhythm of the needles helps me to think rather than fret about what I need to do. Magically, the answer appears. Maybe not immediately, but a few hours later or after I wake after a good night’s sleep. The sweater that I’m knitting now will always be a favorite because I know without a doubt that the magic of knitting helped me finish a very difficult task!
For me, the process of knitting is magical and dually creative!
PS I’m a knitter for life. The more I knit the more I learn and the more I want to learn!
I have always loved color and once I wanted to be a painter, but a rude comment from an 8th grade teacher made me so self-conscious about my artistic ability that I didn’t pursue it, so I knit because I can be near colors all the time. I have this orange sock yarn that makes me weak when I see it. I can’t wait to get it on my needles, just so I can see this yarn everyday until my socks are done! I have been knitting for so long I could never stop now. It is part of my daily routine, and when I can’t get to it I feel like something’s out of place.
I knit for the pure joy it brings me! Knitting is for me (even when I am knitting an item to gift)! I choose what I want to knit and what yarn I want to knit with. I knit because it is a part of who I am. It is a part of what defines me. Knitting excites me and it can calm me, too. It is all-encompassing for me.
I don’t just knit–I am a Knitter, for life.
I knit because I am a tactile person that loves color and knitting requires little to no set up. So if I need a “fix” I can knit a row on a project I have going with a moment’s notice and put it back down again 2 minutes later. I love the feel of the yarn, the colors, the excitement of seeing how different the yarn will look in the finished project vs the cake vs the skein and I love the challenge of a new pattern.
I will knit and crochet for the rest of my life. Neither me nor mine will ever wear a hat from Target or Walmart. We will not buy our scarves at Old Navy. Our socks will never come in a 6 pack. We will always have something unique, beautiful, and made with love that fits exactly right.
I’ve been knitting since I was a little kid – mom taught me and my older sisters when I was five. But I really started knitting when I was pregnant with my son and stopped smoking. Then, it was something to do with my hands, and a way to make beautiful baby things. But over the years, it’s become something more – a kind of meditation. I knit to relax, I knit to produce something useful, I knit to create. But I also knit to put problems on the back burner for a while, and often when I’m knitting the solution to the problem gets worked out. I don’t think I would have finished my dissertation without knitting! Some people “sleep on it” but I “knit on it.” I’ve been knitting for more than forty years, and I know I will knit for the rest of my life. I occasionally will do needlepoint, but it doesn’t provide the mental health benefits that knitting does. Besides, with all the nieces and nephews, and someday (I hope) grandkids, I’ll never run out of people who need handmade sweaters, socks, mittens, etc.!
I knit because it relaxes me and because I really enjoy the thrill of seeing something I made coming off my needles. It’s such an amazing feeling. Besides, I love handknitted socks and can hardly put the “other” kind on my feet so I’ve GOT to keep knitting.
I am a lifer. I started over 20 years ago, took a break and am now back more enthusiastic than ever. In fact, I’m taking Lutein to prevent Macular Degeneration just in case.
And my gosh, how can someone tie their personality to their fingernails. That is, in my opinion, for what it’s worth, totally weird.
I knit for so many reasons….I knit to soothe my soul during troubling times, I knit because I love to be able to create somehting with my own hands, I knit because I love the look on my daughters face when I make her something especially for her, I knit because it makes me feel connected to all the previous generations of knitters in my family.
I learned to knit and crochet as a teen. I didn’t do much with it then, but picked up some crocheting in my early 20’s. Then, 20 years later, I was involved in a serious auto accident that gave me mobility challenges. The hobbies I used to do with ease were no longer pleasurable or do-able, so I had to find something else. I rediscovered knitting in January of 2006 and haven’t looked back. The needles just felt right in my hands.
I love knitting, and I know it will be with me in the rest of my life, not just a passing interest.
Why do I knit and am I a knitter for life? That is the most philosophical question I have pondered lately. I took my first crochet lessons from my grandmother who was a renassiance crafter and did most every type of handicraft possible while watching the novelas (mexican soap operas). I never learned to crochet while she was alive but her memory inspired me to learn. I learned to crochet in a continuing education class after my grandmother passed away and then later learned to knit. I realize in thinking about why I knit is because it is my creative outlet and as a way to express my love for the receipient (because I almost never make anything for me!) – I am thinking of the recipient with every stitch – it is a way to be with my children or my husband or mother or sister or friend during the lunch hour while they are elsewhere (be it day care, work or in another city) and I am at work. It is usually totally silent in the lunch area and while I may be sitting in the lunch area alone trying to hurry up eating so I can knit, I am don’t really feel alone because in my mind, I have the recipient with me , patiently waiting and watching the progress. Inevitably, someone will walk by and see me knitting. Without fail, the person will have a knitting story of how they remember their grandmother, or aunt or mom or sister and yesterday someone mentioned his daughter. The knitting brings back memories and creates memories – both remembering those who have knit for us for us that have knit for them. I have things that my grandmother crocheted and knitted and when I hold them in my hands I am reminded me of spending time with her – having her make a glass of chocolate milk for me, Thanksgiving and Christmas dinners and I am with her again. We have things my husband’s grandmother made, and whenever he sees these little toys, he always tells me a beautiful story of a woman I never knew. Will I be a knitter for life? As long as there is life to knit for, I will knit. Hopefully, someday, my children will hold something I made and remember me too – and even if I am gone or far away neither one of us just for that moment will be feel alone.
I knit for two reasons.
1. I have to have something to do while watching TV. I absolutely hate sitting still. I need to be accomplishing something!
2. I can create beautiful, one of a kind pieces that are made for me (or whoever I am knitting for), and I know that because I made them, they’ll FIT. I have such a hard time finding clothing that is well-made, reasonably priced, and flattering. (This is also the reason I sew!)
I am a knitter for life. How else will I finish all of the projects in my queue on Ravelry?! 🙂
Why do I knit? Because there is nothing else I would rather be doing. I am addicted. I knit everyday, mostly at night as I work during the day. I do knit on my lunch break though. I love the feeling of accomplishment when I finish a project. I love all the wonderful fibers and colors of the yarn. I don’t think there is a yarn I don’t like with the exception of Acrylic. Knitting also makes me feel better physically as I have a few chronic health challenges and knitting takes my mind off of the pain and I actually feel better.
Will I be knitting for life? Absolutely, what else would I be doing. ;0)
I knit because it helps me get through times of stress, relaxes my mind, and makes me feel good about myself as a person. I like the feeling of accomplishment when I finish a project (I am predominately a sock knitter). I wear my end result with pride, even though it may not be perfect! I recently was out of work due to some minor surgery and I knitted six pairs of socks in a little less than three weeks. It’s so hard to be back to work and having to put my knitting “on the shelf” while I am working. I don’t know what I would do if I couldn’t knit. I will be eternally grateful to my mother for her initial knitting lessons many years ago, and to my sister for her patience, guidande and encouragement as I picked up the craft again last year!
I knit to relieve stress. Having tired many different crafts, knitting is the one I keep coming back to even at my busiest times. I’d say that makes me a knitter for life. Goodness know I have enough yarn to know for the rest of my life : )
I knit because I love making things and I love doing things with my hands. Its also a connection I have with my Grandma who doesn’t knit and only knit dishcloths, but I’m the only one in my family that knits now so its something that only we have. I mainly started knitting to do costume things, but now its what I do most of the time, and I have to force myself to put it down so I can work on other hobbies.
I do think I’ll be a knitter for life, though it might not always be at the current level I knit at now. I have about 6-7 other hobbies and I try to rotate through them, but for that last 2 years or so knitting has been at the front.
So long as I am able to knit, I will.
I knit for many reasons… To relax, to relieve stress, to create, to share, to play with yarn, to have and enjoying wearing handknit socks, scarves, hats, shawls, and on and on.
I LOVE knitting. I LOVE yarn. I knit EVERYWHERE. And I will knit for as long as I can. I don’t see myself giving up knitting, not for a very long time.
PICK ME! PICK ME!
Knitting can be calming, challenging, delightful, frustrating. But overall knitting is not just a craft, but an artform — especially with beautiful yarns like Wollmeise. When I knit with my 13 year old daughter, it is the best part of my day.
I know I started to knit to stave off boredom. Now it’s just automatic! And I’m definitely a knitter for life.
I knit because I have have the need to create and am an anxious person. Knitting satisfies my creative urges and keeps me calm. I am definitely a knitter for life. I have been at it for 3 years and know that I won’t be able to put it aside.
I knit for my sanity. I started knitting, because it was something my Gram did. As her cancer began to overtake her…I knitted more furiously. It was as if all my stitches could keep me from unraveling with loosing her. Knitting is what’s kept me together the last few years with all the loss our family has survived.
I’m totally a knitter for life!
I can’t not knit! I’ve been knitting since I was 7 and derive a lot of pleasure from the process. Knitting can be very calming and lends itself to reflection; it’s the perfect accompaniment to a good film, a creative outlet and just plain good fun:)
I knit because I love it. It is fun and I can make something that is perfect for whoever is getting it. I also find it very relaxing. I love playing with different yarns and different colours. I have been knitting constantly for a couple of years and I think I probably will keep doing it until I can’t any more.
My mom taught me to knit and crochet when I was so small that I don’t even remember learning per se; I simply always remember playing with yarn and needles or hooks as my mom guided me towards doing one thing or another, or as I simply had fun with them all on my own. Now as an adult, I love knitting for so many reasons. I love being able to clothe the people I love — including myself — with the labor of my own hands; I love being able to thrill others with a special gift hand-made by me; I love that knitting keeps me busy, keeps me company and keeps me calm when I might not otherwise be; I love the process and the finished product equally. How could I not be a knitter for life?
I knit for several reasons:
1. I knit because it’s in my blood. My great-grandmother tatted. My mother crochets. My grandmother knits, and after I knit her a scarf (the Liesel scarf, the first lace-pattern project I ever knit), she gave me her box of needles, chibis, stitch markers, and crochet hooks. She’ll pick up whatever size needles she needs for her latest project whenever she visits me, and I now have her amazing collection of vintage knitting tools.
2. I knit because it relaxes me. I was diagnosed with ADD when I was 10, and have never really been capable of sitting still in peace. The constant motion of knitting is a calming, productive form of fidgeting for me.
3. I knit because it’s a way to show my love for other people. I love knitting gifts for my loved ones.
4. I knit because it allows me to custom-fit my clothes. I’ve always had trouble finding clothes that fit my proportions, and originally learned to sew by altering store-bought clothes. Knitting my own garments gives me the freedom to make exactly what I want to wear, exactly how I want it to fit.
I will always knit. I love it!
I knit to keep my hands busy while watching TV with DH and because I love having a useful product to show for it!!
I’m a knitter for life–been knitting since I was 12.
I knit because it is challenging, relaxing, creative, orderly, adventuresome, and comforting all mixed up together. There is an incredible sense of satisfaction from the creation of an item out of yarn and diligence, and it is infinitely customizable, or perfectly reproducible, depending on what I want it to be.
I started knitting about 10 years ago, gradually building my skills (very gradually!), and cannot now imagine that it will not always be part of my life. Knitting has been a gateway, taking me further into the fibre world, and I am now spinning and weaving as well. I think that it takes a certain depth of character to persevere in these kind of creative hobbies; I have met many wonderful people through these interests, and my life is richer for it.
Thank you Sheri, for starting this insightful conversation about the hobby that we all love 😉
I knit to feel productive while I am watching TV. I knit as a creative outlet. Working on a computer all day, sometimes I need something where I can make progress. I knit because I can look at the finished product and know that I made it.
I will be a knitter for life because between the fiber for spinning and the yarn, I have to keep knitting to at least make a dent in it.
I knit because I love all the beautiful colors and textures in the yarn and it is so much fun to create something beautiful out of it. It is also relaxing. And what a nice way to show someone you love them
I am definitely a knitter for life.
I knit for several reasons….it’s relaxing, my hands need something to do while I watch TV, I enjoy the process itself and watching myself *making* something, I love the challenge of trying new things, I love the yarn and all its gorgeous colors.
I’m definitely a knitter for life, if for no other reason than the stash of yarn that is constantly calling my name! I taught myself to knit about 4 yrs ago and haven’t looked back.
I knit because I love to see the knitting grow in my hands, the combination of yarn and pattern. I really enjoy to start new objects, the only reason why I finish them is because I want to start new ones. I am definitely a knitter for life, but I suppose it will be some years more intense than others.
1) Why do you knit?
I knit for many reasons: the transformation process of taking a linear string & making dimensional fabric; the joy of working with my hands; the creative possibilities; the opposite-ness from a job that requires me to work with computers all day; the connection to centuries of past handcrafters; the fact that you always have something new you can learn/try; and the satisfaction that comes from clothing or cloaking loved ones in something I made myself.
2) Do you think you’re a knitter-for-life or do you think that this is what you do “now” and you’ll move on to the next thing eventually?
I’m a knitter-for-life. Completely & utterly bonkers for knitting. I love it & don’t plan to give it up unless I become physically incapable of knitting. When I first learned to knit about 5 years ago, it was like I had come home to something I’d loved for years.
I knit because I cannot imagine not doing it. I have been knitting since I was 6 years old (37 years now) and have no plans to stop – so I guess I am a lifer.
Knitting and fiber keep me sane – not to copy what others have said, but knitting keeps me from getting angry at the little things, it centers me, and allows me time to process and work things out in my head. I love the colors, the textures, the process, the fact that I am always learning some new technique… and the smell of wool.
I knit when I am stressed, to relax. I knit when I’m happy, to celebrate. And all of the times in between because it brings me joy to see the wonderful colors and squishiness of beautiful yarn come to life on my needles. I’m a knitter for life, for sure.
Oh, I’ve fallen half-off the knitting wagon a few time, as I have been know to jump-ship and do different crafts once in a while. I might have been a grasshopper in a last life!
However, I know that while I might be learning to weave/rug-make/bead, in the back of my head I am thinking about which shawl to knit with that gorgeous skein of Handmaiden Sea Silk or which sweater to start for that dreamy Malabrigo. So yeah, knitting for me is for live. It might have been left for another craft but NEVER forgotten.
Well, I knit because it’s something that keeps me connected with my sister who lives overseas and unable to visit home even on holidays because airfare costs too much either way. Thank heavens for Skype! She taught me to knit on the one time that she was able to make it home. Every single craft that I learnt, I learnt it from her! When I knit it reminds me of how patient she was when she was teaching me to knit&purl when my brain just couldn’t work out how to even hold the needles.
I (continue to) knit because it’s something that relaxes me, something to do to unwind after a hard day. I (continue to) knit because it’s something that keeps me sane when I feel that my life is falling apart. I (continue to) knit because it is something exciting for me to do and always new thing to learn. I taught myself how to do cables the other day (when I have always had the mindset that it is too difficult and my brain is too stupid to do so). I (continue to) knit because I know it’s a constant and anything else could leave or drop off the face of the earth but knitting will always be there for me.
I knit… because of the wonderful knitting network of people on the other side of the pc whom I have never met in real life (and might never get to meet) but are so fantastic and selfless about helping other people with their craft-freeze & so very devoted to the craft. I knit… because my sister or someone somewhere out there is knitting together with me… and it makes me happy and thankful to be a part of this warm & fabulous community.
It makes me feel like home.
i knit to relax. i like that i can knit anywhere at anytime. it makes the train ride to work enjoyable or waiting in line tolerable. it starts conversations. it is solitary and social. easy and difficult. whatever you want or need it to be. and then there’s yarn. color and fiber. options are endless. i’ll be a knitter for life.
I knit because it links me to my mom, who died in 2001. She taught me to knit as a little girl and she always knitted in the evenings while watching TV. It just seems like the normal thing to do, so I can’t imagine I’ll ever stop.