Learning How to Knit or Crochet

I am proud to say that I taught my daughters how to knit, and the best thing is that they have and are still showing a keen interest in this craft, which was passed on to me by my mother, and her mother-in-law to her - for some reason, she didn't pick it up when her own own mother tried to teach her, so I'm glad my paternal grandmother was an excellent knitter.

The method I've always used is English knitting, where you hold the yarn with the right hand (I am left handed, but this comes from being taught by a rightie).

A few weeks ago I discovered that my eldest daughter seems to be using the Continental style, in which you use the left hand to hold the yarn, so when I asked her how she learned this, she told me her school teacher showed her. I felt slightly betrayed, but I'm over it now (I think;)

For the last part of the school year, the teacher has been inviting the local knitting group once a week to teach the class how to knit, which was a good thing, since this may result in some of the pupils teaching their parents how to knit!

I have never been into crochet and my own attempts resulted in miserable failures (I can barely manage a chain), but my daughter's best friend taught her a bit of crochet, which my daughter passed on to her younger sister, and from what I'm hearing (they are both staying at my parents' house for a few weeks), my youngest daughter has been teaching my mother the little bit of crochet she knows.

I just find it great that it's not always the auld ones that can teach young people new skills, and that it can work both ways.


What about you? I am interested in knowing how you learned, and if you haven't, what is stopping you? Please your comments below!

P.S. If you want to learn skills like knitting, I have included a tutorials page in this blog, which I am planning on adding to, and there are lots of free video tutorials on YouTube if you want some more.

Girlie Hand Knitted Bag

I knitted this bag out of some lilac and white cotton "Colorado" knitting yarn.

I used the I-cord technique to make the string used to tighten and close the bag, and also for the over-the shoulder strap.