Knitting for Others

So earlier in the year, I decided that I would try to knit at least 50%of what I made for other people. So far this is going excellently, considering that I only have two scarves made for myself, and I am actually considering giving one of them away. I have currently finished four other scarves that are Christmas presents, four headbands that are birthday presents, the red scarf project, and four panels of a baby blanket.

This has been a very interesting process because with each new object that I knit for someone else, I try to

push my skill. The first picture on the left is where I learned how to increase and decrease, and the second was my first ribbing. The second picture on the left was a particularly challenging scarf because of the yarn. The pattern is a checkerboard, but the yarn has a foil strand which rubbed my fingers raw. I think this scarf really helped me realize that I was doing something for someone else,because a large part of me constantly wanted to quit, or make it short, but I continued, because I wanted it to be special. I also finished these three male or unisex scarves as Christmas presents. Recently, i have become a fan of the simple garter stitch used with earthy colors. However when I knit it, I found myself becoming very bored with the monotony of knitting the same stitch over and over again.

I think my favorite aspect of making presents for others is that I can match the object with the person. I am knitting with color, texture, and personality in mind, to make a finished object that is deeply personalized for the individual. Learning how to knit has shown me how I can craft in a way that is meaningful and stitched together with love. Therefore, giving away my knitted objects gives me great pleasure and joy.

Special thanks to Hughes residents for modeling my scarves.