Knitting For The Soul

After we lost our baby last year, I decided to take up knitting for peace and a bit of self therapy.  My friend was expecting her first baby, and I wanted to make something special.  I just wasn't sure where to start with this idea dancing in my head.

A moment of enlightenment occurred when Brian and I stumbled upon a great shop in the Los Rios district of San Juan Capistrano (sadly it is now closed).  I found the most amazing yarns, so vibrant and soft. Just touching them sparked my interest even further.  The shop owner was kind enough to invite me down for a lesson of which I happily accepted.  

That following weekend I met the shopkeeper bright and early with coffee in hand, ready to spend a wonderful rainy day talking about life and learning to knit.  She set me up with bamboo needles and various other supplies while I spent an hour picking out the perfect wool yarn for this special project.  I fell in love with this Australian persimmon wool that was hand dyed and hand spun.  The rustic, nubby texture was just beautiful.

My first lesson was winding the skeins into balls on this nifty contraption.  Then the project began, I cast on my first row and was hooked.  Row after row, I began to ease into the pace of the needles.  Progress was slow, but I knew it would be worth the wait.  We spent the next few hours knitting and enjoying each others company.  

Even though the blanket was a simple block pattern, it took me several months to complete as I was learning through the process. I ended up with extra balls of yarn and wanted to make something else for baby Jubilee.  I opened my Stitch n Bitch knitting book and fell in love with the Umbilical Cord Baby Beanie.  The beanie took me a good part of the day to learn since it required circular needles and double point needles.  Once I understood the methods I found it to be quite simple.  

Besides the enjoyment creating brings, knitting has become a great method for calming my mind and soothing my soul.  It is like reading a delicious book that you cannot put down, you need to see the story through.  I have found a lifetime hobby and look forward to the challenges it will bring.  I hope my projects will inspire and maybe you too will be bit by the knitting bug.