Stitch Niche

In little spaces here and there throughout Springfield (and in the nooks and crannies of the World Wide Web) the old art of knitting is gathering new steam.

There’s gossip, but it’s not the catty, nasty kind. It’s the information-dissemination kind. Someone’s son will be stopping by to get measured for a sweater. (This is exciting; no one else in the group has met him yet.) Someone else has news about her daughter. Another woman relays tales of gallbladder woes.

Shoppers come in waves at Simply fibers, Ltd., a yarn shop in Springfield. It’s a little space filled with shelves upon shelves of multi-colored and textured yarn and tables that hold knitting books and magazines—from the mainstream VOUGE Knitting to the beautiful, large-format Rowan, which has photography that looks more high-fashion than hand-made. But one time the shop is predictably packed is every Thursday at 2 p.m. That’s when a group of women get together to shoot the breeze and put needle to yarn for four or five hours.

Their camaraderie laced with a sense of purpose looks so inviting, I halfway want to put down my notebook and settle in with some extra-soft yarn and get started with them. I have a love-hate relationship with knitting. I love the idea of it: having a usable, soft, beautiful object to show for your hours of work. I love the process: retreating into Knitting Land in my mind as I work on a project with defined steps, a clear end-goal and relaxation benefits to boot. But I hate that I’m a very bad knitter. I have started at least three scarves that never became anything more than frazzled-looking rectangular stumps, like full-grown neckwear that had been the victims of a tragic land-mine accident.

Now that I’m considering picking up the hobby again, I want to make sure I do it the right way from the start. In my quest to chat up local knitting pros to get tips for beginning knitters, I discovered that the Springfield knitting scene is thriving with people of all ages in all the obvious places (church meeting rooms and yarn shops) and on the Internet—where technology meets tradition.

Kate Angelo is a 29-year-old who hosts Knit Together, a knitting circle that meets at Park Crest Assembly of God every Thursday night. According to Angelo’s knitting tips, my inability to finish what I had started might have been due to learning with a scarf project. It looked easy to me. One big, long rectangle. Nothing fancy. But Angelo says hats are better for beginners. They are not complicated, but they provide great learning experience. Plus, hats are smaller than scarves, so gratification comes sooner.

Another beginner’s mistake that I accidentally adopted: using metal needles. Carol Partch of Simply fibers says she always recommends wooden needles to newbie knitters. They are less likely to slip (a problem that I remember loathing) because the texture provides a natural grippiness as you tackle your first project. Plus wooden needles are lighter in color. Partch says that starting with dark-colored yarn and dark-colored metal needles is a recipe for disaster, as it makes the stitches harder to see and hinders the learning process by providing unnecessary frustration. She says you should also begin with a thick yarn that’s not too fuzzy. Again, like light-colored yarn, it makes it easier to see what you are doing.

Barbara Nattinger, who has been knitting for more than 30 years and is part of Simply fibers’ Thursday crew, says her favorite tip for beginners is to remember how simple knitting really is: There are only two stitches. You can knit, and you can purl. “Everything else that looks complicated is just a combination of those two things,” she says. “Think about it like that, and you can tackle anything.”

Sarah Kerner is a Springfield lawyer who knits on the side. She has been knitting for about three years and is self-taught. She says books, magazines (such as Interweave Knits) and websites have helped her hone her skills. She can go places like knitty.com for patterns or simply do an online search for whatever technique she’s trying to perfect.

Despite being self-taught, though, knitting is not just a solo activity for Kerner. As with many knitters, it’s also a social one. She knits with Angelo’s group at Park Crest and, like Angelo, blogs about her projects. These two women are part of the great big online group of yarn-happy hobbyists who write about their adventures with knitting needles. A quick Google search for “knitting blog” pulls up almost 200,000 hits. There’s obviously something about this activity that people can’t resist sharing. It’s incredibly inclusive, and the Internet just provides opportunities for it become moreso.

“In a group like this, if you have a problem, there’s always somebody who can help you,” Nattinger says of the Simply fibers knitting circle. Kerner and Angelo echo that sentiment when talking about the group they knit with. In a global world, blogs are the cyberspace equivalent of a knitting circle. Kerner and Angelo both share pictures of their knitting projects, descriptions of their challenges and chatter about what’s new in the hip world of knitting.

Will I ever finish those sorry scarves I started years ago? Only time will tell, but at least I know that in Springfield (and online) I have the tools to get started. It’s looking hopeful this time around.

Wanna Knit?

Let our resources guide the way as you jump into a new hobby.

Simply fibers, Ltd., simplyfibers.com
2744 S. Campbell Ave., Springfield, 417-881-9276
Owner Carol Partch says groups are welcome to use the meeting space in her store to knit together. Several knitting, crocheting and rug-hooking groups have already taken her up on the offer. There’s no charge, but you should call her to make arrangements.

Knitworks Studio
343 N. Clifton Ave., Springfield, 417-831-2011
Owner Vicki White says a group meets every Monday at 6 p.m. to chat and knit. It’s open to anyone, and it’s $5 per night to come and learn to knit. White will sit by beginners to help them out. Call for more information.

Knit together
Park Crest Assembly of God, 3581 S. Kansas Ave., Springfield
Kate Angelo leads this circle of knitters, and she says she can teach knitting techniques to beginners. Meetings are Thursdays at 6 p.m. in the Fireside Room. Call 417-447-9000 for more info.

Ravelry, ravelry.com
This online knitting and crocheting community is still in its beta stage.

Knitty.com
A source for knitting news and patterns.

Beauty School Dropout, beautyschooldropout.net
Springfieldian Sarah Kerner’s knitting blog includes pictures she posts of her ongoing projects.

Anxious Dog, anxiousdog.com
Check the sidebar on the home page of Springfieldian Kate Angelo’s blog for links to more local knitters’ blogs. She also posts knitting tips, pictures of projects and news, such as her super-love of Ravelry.

Get Started

Photo courtesy Kate Angelo

Kate Angelo, a knitting blogger and host of Springfield Knitting Circle, created a hat pattern that she says is good for a beginner. She calls it the “417 Neighbor Hood,” (pictured, right) and says you need to know how to knit, purl, knit in the round and decrease. Does the lingo and the pattern look like Greek to you? Bring the pattern to a knitting circle or yarn shop, and you’ll find plenty of people eager to help you get started.

Yarn: 1 110-yard skein Noro Kureyon brand 100% wool yarn, color 215

Needles and notions:
5¼ mm (US 9) 16-inch circular needle
5¼ mm (US 9) DPNs
stitch marker
tapestry needle

Gauge: 4 sts/6 rows = 1 inch
Size: Sized to fit a 21-inch head or the average woman’s head.

Pattern:
• Cast on 76 stitches.
• Place marker. This will indicate the beginning of the round.
• Join for working in the round.
• Round 1: knit
• Round 2: purl
• Repeat these rows three more times for a total of eight rows.
• Switch to stockinette (knitting every round). Knit in rounds until the hat meatures about five inches from the beginning.
• At the beginning of the next round, decrease for the crown as follows, switching to DPNs when appropriate:
*K6, k2tog* end k4 (67 stitches remain)
knit round even
*K5, k2tog* end k4 (58 stitches remain)
knit round even
*K4, k2tog* end k2 (47 stitches remain)
knit round even
*K3, k2tog* end k2 (38 stitches remain)
knit round even
*K2, k2tog* end k3 (29 stitches remain)
knit round even
*K1, k2tog* end k2 (20 stitches remain)
knit round even
*K1, k2tog* end k2 (14 stitches remain)
knit round even

• Cut yarn leaving an 8-inch tail. Thread the tail through the remaining stitches, pull them closed and secure. Repeat a few time to secure the hole. Weave in the ends. Wear your hat all over 417-land and beyond!