Thursday, February 18, 2010

Just call me destructo

I used to think that invisibility (being able to walk in and out of rooms without anyone noticing) was my superpower, but now I'm thinking I have a knack for breaking knitting tools. Late last night, as I was completing the EZ sewn bind off for convertible Bella's Mittens (just found out that they aren't technically "glittens" because they don't have mitten-like fingers) I did this:

broken knitting instruments*

Broke a tapestry needle.

This is the third time in as many months that I broke a knitting instrument.

On Christmas day I broke my first 2.0 mm needle, but I was determined to continue knitting and succeeded in gluing it in such a way that it wouldn't catch on the yarn. Perhaps I was overly tense that day and knit tighter than normal, who knows. Last month though I broke my second 2.0 mm bamboo by accidentally leaning on it with my knuckle. I took the hint and bought another set of needles.

*I didn't actually realize until I took this picture that perhaps I don't have to save those broken needles.


Thankfully I have some metal tapestry needles, and was able to finish weaving in the ends. It's not completely done, I still need to add the buttons, which I'll probably do this weekend, but I'm glad to be moving on to my next ravelympics project, The Owl Cowl.

mitten

6 comments:

  1. Lovely mittens, Thea! I'm doing little charity projects for the Knitting Olympics. Regan and I are knitting little white baptismal stoles for stillborn infants at Children's Hospital, and then it's chemo caps. I'm going for quantity, not quality. It's nice to feel productive.

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  2. Thanks Suzanne!

    That's really wonderful of you and Regan. Makes me feel a little guilty that I'm just knitting for myself right now though...

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  3. Well, I have to admit I'm knitting for myself, too. I need projects that I can complete with reasonably little effort. The things I want to knit for myself and family take a lot more effort, and right now I just don't feel like working that hard. I can watch skating online while I'm making these mindless little stoles that somebody will actually appreciate (I'm really trying not to think too hard about why). And I'm using up my stash AND Regan's stash, which I believe is a useful endeavor. Because the more stash I use, the more space I have for new yarn!

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  4. So, I'm not the only one that is hard on tools, eh? I sit on & break bamboo needles, & I sit on & bend aluminum needles. Doh!

    Love those mitts!

    And, thanks for visiting/commenting on my blog the other day. Love having the 'drive by'!

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  5. Thea, there's a Ravelry group for something called Comfort Needles (I think). They have a website and make flexible polymer needles for folks whose knitting tends to hurt their tendons and hands. They make them in 0s, 1s, and 2s. You might think about getting these - I bet they're harder to break because they have some flexibility. Check the list of "new groups" on Ravelry - I think I saw them listed yesterday.

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  6. Anonymous2:29 PM

    Awesome mittens. Great color and style!

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