Another In The Series of Combo Videos
... with running commentary by - guess who? I'm still just playing around with these to figure out how best to present them
A little explaination on the video: This is exactly how I knit - I didn't change things for photography. I don't wrap the yarn around my fingers for tension, cat-cradle like, because I find that just doesn't work for me.
I encourage folks to try this, but I also firmly believe that you should hold the yarn whichever way feels best for you because your hands have their own intelligence!
The way I set my tension is that after I insert the needle into the next stitch, as I grasp the yarn to form the stitch I give the slightest tug and that sets the tension on the previous stitch. This works for me - but I do understand that this may not work for everyone! If you want to try knitting with wire, though, this is a very good method to use so you keep the wire as un-kinked as possible.
I'm in Minneapolis, I drove to Red Wing, Cannon Falls & Northfield today to take a peek at houses (only got to go into one of them) I've heard from a few of you that Red Wing and Northfield are more charming - ? - than Cannon Falls. Maybe it was that I drove through right in a beautiful sunset, but Cannon Falls seemed really nice to me.
What am I missing? If you don't want to post a comment about them, just email me - I'm very happy to hear comments about either of these three towns - or any others you think I should know about. I'm keeping an open mind on EVERY front (and later this week I'll drive out to Stillwater!)
Tomorrow I'll post some more lovely images from the airplane and the car. A nice, but tiring, day. I'm reknitting the Man's Rasta Hat from Men Who Knit for the Knitty Gritty appearance. Have I mentioned how excited I am to be MEETING Drew - finally - in person!
This means that I really have to knit the hat 5 or 6 times, each time stopping at a different point so we can do the step outs and give the impression that I'm completing the project on set. And repeat that with the doggie sweater. UH HUH!
A little explaination on the video: This is exactly how I knit - I didn't change things for photography. I don't wrap the yarn around my fingers for tension, cat-cradle like, because I find that just doesn't work for me.
I encourage folks to try this, but I also firmly believe that you should hold the yarn whichever way feels best for you because your hands have their own intelligence!
The way I set my tension is that after I insert the needle into the next stitch, as I grasp the yarn to form the stitch I give the slightest tug and that sets the tension on the previous stitch. This works for me - but I do understand that this may not work for everyone! If you want to try knitting with wire, though, this is a very good method to use so you keep the wire as un-kinked as possible.
I'm in Minneapolis, I drove to Red Wing, Cannon Falls & Northfield today to take a peek at houses (only got to go into one of them) I've heard from a few of you that Red Wing and Northfield are more charming - ? - than Cannon Falls. Maybe it was that I drove through right in a beautiful sunset, but Cannon Falls seemed really nice to me. 
What am I missing? If you don't want to post a comment about them, just email me - I'm very happy to hear comments about either of these three towns - or any others you think I should know about. I'm keeping an open mind on EVERY front (and later this week I'll drive out to Stillwater!)
Tomorrow I'll post some more lovely images from the airplane and the car. A nice, but tiring, day. I'm reknitting the Man's Rasta Hat from Men Who Knit for the Knitty Gritty appearance. Have I mentioned how excited I am to be MEETING Drew - finally - in person!This means that I really have to knit the hat 5 or 6 times, each time stopping at a different point so we can do the step outs and give the impression that I'm completing the project on set. And repeat that with the doggie sweater. UH HUH!
13 Comments:
The videos of you knitting are very interesting. On this one I had trouble at first seeing that you were switching from purl to knit, but I still liked watching it.
Annie, I like the videos, too. Do you normally not hold the yarn wrapped around your left fingers to manage the tension? I've seen a few other knitters have success without managing the tension, and wondered if you just changed this up for illustration purposes. Btw, I'm just asking. I will continue to winding the yarn through my fingers; just curious about your techique. Thanks, again for the enlightenment!
Lisa
I love the Tim Gunn doing the "commentary" I didn't get it until the last phrase and then it totally clicked And now that I watch it again I see that you said right up front that it was his voice, missed that at first. My vision of your knitting was slightly different but I'm going to give the wrap a go and see what I think. Love your blog and your work.
Daisy
Annie, I live in Rochester but have had relatives in the Minneapolis suburbs for years. Cannon Falls is approx half way between Rochester and the Twin Cities. Here are my thoughts:
Northfield is a college town (Carleton and St. Olaf colleges) and also has shops/eateries that appeal to visitors. Red Wing and Stillwater has the advantage of being on the river, have boating opportunities and antique shops that appeal to visitors.
What appeals to a visitor may not matter to a resident. So unless someone lives in Red Wing, Stillwater or Norhtfield I would take their advice with a grain of salt.
Cannon Falls doesn't have any of the visitor appeal listed above but that may not matter to someone who is looking for a town to live in, not visit. Cannon Falls has the advantage of being on Highway 52 which is a four-lane highway that goes straight into St. Paul or turn off to I-494 to the Mpls airport, and southern suburbs of Mpls. You may want to consider the ease and time of commuting into the Mpls/St. Paul area for access to the airport/yarn shops and job opportunities for your DH. But when looking at any house in Cannon Falls be very aware of Hwy 52 noise. Don't look at a house on Sunday afternoon when Hwy 52 traffic is light.
You will be on two-lane county roads and two-lane highways to get anywhere from Northfield or even Red Wing.
Don't fall in love with a house that is in the wrong town. Look at school systems, commute time and ease of commute to jobs. Icy, windy, snowy weather can happen anytime from November through March. With the exception of Stillwater living in any of those towns will involve driving through some country-side to commute to the Twin Cities or to Rochester. In bad winter weather that may matter a lot. A snow storm that slows traffic in the Twin Cities can cause drifting and white-out conditions on some of the roads out in the country.
I guess what I'm trying to point out is if you choose a house in Northfield, for example, and both you and your DH can work in Northfield you may love that location. But if your DH gets a job in the Twin Cities then Northfield may not be the right place at all.
I hope this helps, Good Luck
yup, thanks again. beautiful work and thanks for counting on my intelligence.
i'm getting up from here now to go try that.
Annie, THANK YOU for that video! I liked the other one, but it was just ONE stitch. I use the combo style on my flat knitting and was just wondering how you could NOT wrap the yarn. I'll try it.
Wow, interesting.
I really liked the video because I could never quite picture in my head how you did it (although I've read about it in your blog and other articles about you.) I would actually love to see a lot of different styles. I'm sure there are no two alike!
When I crochet, I don't wrap the yarn over and under my fingers either. It slows me down. I put it over my pointer finger to keep the yarn that's flowing into the work out of the way. I set my tension by grasping the yarn that falls in the palm of my hand with my three remaining fingers. For me, there's never a right or wrong way to gain tension. I think you should always do what works best for YOU.
That looks very interesting (and Tim Gunn was a great touch!). I'm going to have to try that.
I knit continental too, but my technique is quite different. I had to develop my own method of purling because I was only shown it once, and found it really tough. When I'm doing a whole row, I purl with my thumb. It kind of goes up and down like a switch. When I have to go back and forth for ribbing or pattern, then I adapt with my forefinger. Thanks for the video. I've learnt more again.
Gillian
Hi Annie,
Have you ever thought about making a video of your knitting techniques? I for one would love to have one especially since you are putting up these little teasers. Your book on combination knitting is great, but it's not the same as seeing your hands in motion. I would especially love to hear you talk through how to cable without a needle.
Can you knit any other way? The way I knit is the way my mother taught me, and I honestly cannot knit any other way with the same success. I can certainly try, but I am much slower and the task is more laborious, and the result is less than perfect. I loved watching your video... keep it up.
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