Someone stop me, I beg you.

Posted by on Thursday, June 29th, 2006

Watch Crazy Lanea knit socks, and then tell her what she is doing is wrong.

I need your help.  And I need it enough that I was willing to hold itchy yarn in my décolletage to make that little film.  And grow a third arm. 

Ok, fine, Scott took the movie, but please humor me anyway.

Knitting recently re-introduced me to a type of injury I haven’t experienced in a long time.  I grew up embroidering, and I am used to developing a callous on a finger of my left hand, only to later crack it, puncture it, and, well, realize what it feels like to stick steel right onto a nerve.  In short: I don’t recommend poking any of your nerves, especially those very sensitive ones in your fingertips, with steel needles.   Not pleasant, that. 

I rediscovered this particular displeasure because I was knitting always and only socks between March and the week of the festival.  I was starting to get really bored with the plain old socks, but the Festival work, soul-sucking beast endlessly rewarding avocation it can be, prevented me from anything wacky like "reading a pattern" or "knitting lace" or "forming sentences with more than five words that contain no profanity."  And socks are easy to knit on the Metro.  Right before the festival, perhaps because I was a little tense, I drove a US size 1 needle right into my finger.  I should have taken a picture.  Be glad I don’t have a picture.  I tried to knit some during the festival, but that hurt like hell.  And it still hurt like hell in the week after the festival, despite all of the good first aid and medicinal adult beverages applied.

So, dear readers, I am beseeching your assistance.  Reform me.  I knit English style–wait, no, I’m calling it Insular style from here on out.  I’ve toyed with Continental, but I have a chronic injury in my left shoulder, and Continental knitting seems to irritate it.   When knitting, I form a stitch, and then push the right needle back towards my right hand with my left index finger.  Obviously, that’s not the best thing to do  when working with the tiny needles used for socks.  But I can’t picture what I could change to stop myself.  Can you?  Please?  I can only think of so many things to do on size 9 needles.  Thimbles have been recommended, but I’m sure I would never follow through.  I’d rather retrain my hands than rely on an extra implement.

Filed in knitting | 9 responses so far

9 Responses to “Someone stop me, I beg you.”

  1. Ellaon 29 Jun 2006 at 8:53 pm 1

    I knit pretty much the same way but don’t put the needle through the stitch as far, and when I push with my finger the needle seems to sit flat against it rather than pointing into it. Thimbles are awkward but you could try a leather finger sock that you get at the quilting stores, or a heavy duty band-aid.

  2. Vicki in Michiganon 29 Jun 2006 at 8:55 pm 2

    My advice is — don’t let go of your right-hand needle. Then your right-hand fingers can pull the needle (rather than your left index finger pushing it). I also knit English. I throw the yarn over the needle with my right index finger while still holding the needle with the other fingers of my right hand. Sometimes I push the needle a little with my left index finger, but mostly I’m using my right hand to move the right needle.

    When I first learned to knit, I would prop the right needle between the outside of my right leg and a pillow, and switching to holding the right needle in my hand while still using throwing the yarn with my right hand took a bit of practice. I learned when I tried circular needles….

  3. Janeon 29 Jun 2006 at 9:09 pm 3

    I agree about the right hand needle. I knit in what I think is lever-style. I don’t let go of the righty, so it is used to move the stitches off the leftie. Also, I don’t throw the yarn, but flick it, almost the way Continental knitters do. Like Vicki, I sometimes push it a bit, but mostly it’s in the form of a nudge. I can get up a lot of speed this way, too. Verrrry interrresting!

  4. Nora Mackebeeon 30 Jun 2006 at 7:20 am 4

    I don’t believe for a minute that there’s a “wrong” way to knit. However, here’s a thought that might help you with the problem you mentioned. You are keeping the stitches on both needles fairly far away (or so it looks to me) from the tips of the needles. If you allowed them to stay closer, say half the distance compared with what you are used to, then you wouldn’t have to push so far with the left forefinger, you could kind of twist the new stitch off the left needle. Of course, you can’t get so close to the tip that your new stitch ends up being too small for the needles cuz you pulled it too tight by knitting on the tips of needles only. Another balancing act here, like lots of things in life. Hope this may help you.

    Nora

  5. The Purloined Letteron 30 Jun 2006 at 7:54 am 5

    Try knitting with not-sharp wooden DPNs like the cheap ones they sell in craft stores. If you are already wounded they may not work, but when you have healed enough, they’ll keep you whole.

  6. laneaon 30 Jun 2006 at 7:56 am 6

    See, I knew I should ask you knitters. I’m going to try all of these suggestions.

  7. Taraon 30 Jun 2006 at 9:31 am 7

    Ok, so I’m not a knitter, but I watched the movie and pondered your dilemma anyway, and I thought–what if you fashioned some sort of protective sleeve for your fingertip? Not a thimble (which I have always found annoying and fall-off-y), but a little tube (maybe knitted, even!) that would hug your finger and have a little pad of rubber, canvas, or something else protective right where you push the needle tip.

  8. lellaon 30 Jun 2006 at 9:25 pm 8

    Lanea, I knit almost exactly as you do. I don’t have to push the needle back, though; I just have my left index finger right up there at the edge of the fabric, and it holds the knitted part while the right needle pulls the stitch, under tension, just like yours, off the left needle. Good luck!

  9. Junoon 11 Jul 2006 at 11:57 am 9

    I would say try moving the stitches closer to the end of the needle, but also – have you seen the little stick on thimble pathes that quilters use? Like a bit of moleskin for the pressure point.

    (Yes, I am tardy to the party. I supplicate for forgiveness with the lateness)

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