Galactic Headquarters of the Knitting Empire

Knitting has been called the “new yoga,” “zen-like,” and other terms that make it almost seem like a panacea to all things bad and stressful. I’ve used those terms to describe knitting, and I’ve even believed it.

But you know what? It ain’t true. And I’m not going to apologize for feeling that way.

The past several weeks have been incredibly frustrating and stressful. The reasons are unimportant and certainly not unique to me and my life. When such things have happened in the past, I’ve often turned to knitting for relief. And it often worked. There was something soothing about sitting and knitting, especially if it was something simple and not to taxing on the mind. During such times, the routine of knitting was as important–if not more so–than the project.

Over the past several weeks, that hasn’t been the case. Even projects that might have been easy for me at some point seem to cause frustration after frustration. Sometimes it’s technical issues–such as the Knit Picks’ needle tips coming out of the metal casing–and sometimes it’s stupid mistakes made because I’m tired or distracted. Whatever the cause, while some frustration may be relieved, it’s replaced by frustration of a different type. The end result? I learn not to like knitting. And I certainly do not want to turn off of something I love.

So, what do I do instead? In most cases, I turn to something I’ve loved for as long as I can remember: cooking and recipe development. When the weather permits, I may garden. I read. I nap. And I may, on occasion, pick up the needles and knit a row or two.

I’m happy to say that while life continues to be frustrating and stressful–and really, whose life isn’t?–I have actually done some knitting lately. My current projects of choice are shawls. Besides being pretty, they’re also practical. Especially since I’m trying to keep my thermostat lower than in the past. I’m not much of a lace knitter, but I have found some patterns that piqued my shawl-knitting curiosity. My current project is Rose Beck’s Sugared Violets. It’s not just garter stitch, but the pattern is easy to memorize. And I’m using yarn from my stash–Caron’s Simply Soft. The more I work with that yarn, the more I like it.

I already have my next project lined up: Heather Zoppetti’s Sweet Retreat. It’s so pretty, and I must admit I am tempted to start it before finishing Sugared Violets. But I will be strong and won’t. Heather’s pattern is part of her Flax collection but can be purchased separately.

(And speaking of Heather, if you’re looking for a gift for a knitter or one for yourself, check out Crafty Detour’s CSI Most Wanted sock pattern collection. The patterns can be purchased as a collection or individually. In the interest of full disclosure, I am affiliated with that project.)

What have I learned from this knitting hiatus experience? The most important thing is probably to be kind to myself when I experience something akin to knitting apathy. Closely followed, of course, by empathy for others going through the same or similar thing. It certainly doesn’t help to criticize anyone for not feeling like knitting. I mean really–it’s knitting.