BUT! I did finish the Fingerless Mitts I started with the Debbie Bliss Cashmerino Aran I started in between LR squares ages ago. (better pictures in the daytime tomorrow)
They're self-designed, and I like them. The yarn is quite warm, but that will be nice in winter/my dorm room. If I could do it again, I'd do a thumb gusset instead of the Fetching-esque thumb, because that one skews the cables. I'd also look at doing a braided cable, and use a smaller gauge for that maybe.Overall, I'm quite satisfied.
My mom really likes them, and she's been after me to make her a pair of fingerless for a while, but these ones are a little small for her.
The thing is.... she can knit. Could make herself a pair, but she's too wary of trying new techniques. It's not that she even uses the perfectly valid 'I don't have enough time' excuse. She just doesn't seem to be comfortable with new techniques. For me, this is what knitting is about. I love taking a project and learning how to do things in the pattern. It's part of the fun. And I like to teach myself, asking for help only when I've tried already.
I'm like this with pretty much everything. For instance, I just got a book I plan on using to re-teach myself how to swim. (my lessons were stalled, and thus I don't breathe or move right). I've taught myself about many historical periods and how to hypnotize, do magic tricks, and best of all, knit.
So, because I know she can do it but won't I'm hesitant to knit for her. Is this weird? Or is it the whole "give a man a fish, he eats once; teach a man to fish, he eats for the rest of his life" thing?
That's about it, knit-wise. Lizard Ridge is nearly done! Still not on Ravelry, which probably means I'll get the invite, like, the day I leave for Europe, but with my pictures on Flickr and my mom taking her laptop I can probably get set-up then anyway. :)
I reckon you should make your mom the mitts. I understand your attitude, but my thinking is: knitting is supposed to be fun, and the way it is fun is very individual. I think especially for some really busy people, they need knitting to be pretty mindless, restful, rather than challenging. (I like a bit of both kinds - a lot depends on my mood and general stress levels.) For whatever reason, if your mom doesn't really want to learn this new thing, she shouldn't have to, especially if she is - as you suggest - pretty busy. (Not that you are obliged to make them for her either, of course, but don't let your reason be that you think she should feel differently about knitting to the way she does.)
ReplyDeleteOn the other hand, if you have a sneaky suspicion that she really *would* like to learn, and is just a little bit nervous... then maybe try a little gentle persuasion!