Monday, September 15, 2014

A Knitter Is Born?

I had two of my sister's children staying with me this weekend, Nieceling being one of them.  She decided she wanted to do some knitting too, so I cast on a doll hat, and she did a few stitches here and there, while I did the rest.

You forget how many things there are to keep track of, when you do it a lot!  Watching her intense concentration brought back memories.  I used the rhyme to help her remember the steps to do the knit stitch:

In through the front door,
Once around the back.
Peek through the window...
And off jumps jack!

She could follow the sequence of making the knit stitch pretty good, but the little things like remembering to hold the stitches you don't want to jump off the needle, or to hold down the yarn tail tightly with the other hand were a bit frustrating for her.  LOL

She's five, so her current attention span is about 2-3 stitches at a time.  I don't know if she'll continue to show an interest, occasionally show interest, or decide that was enough knitting for her already... Small people are always an adventure!

....she was pretty pleased with that hat that "we" knit, though! ;)

8 comments:

  1. Muscle memory -- oh how we take it for granted! She may not remember much at 5 but believe it or not, her fingers might. Each time you knit together, it'll help later on and it's a pretty fantastic memory to have of an auntie too. Good for you two!
    My now 8 yr has been toying with knitting since she was 3 and there is the slightest bit of recall when she picks up the needles again -- which is not often, lol! When your mom (or Meme) knits, there's little incentive to make something yourself -- far easier to put in an order! I did this too at her age so I understand. She tells me what she really wants to learn is how to spin instead. Talk about a steep beginning learning curve! I'm actually worried more about my patience than her attempts.

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    1. It's good to know she might retain a little bit of muscle memory! I found it was pretty challenging to break it down to all the individual pieces, because as you say, my hands know how to do it more than my mind. LOL

      Spinning always looks very complicated but interesting to me - I've never learned, or seen anyone do it in real life! Still, that would be very convenient for you....she can make the yarn, you can knit it.....;)

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  2. It's great that your little niece has shown an interest in knitting! My son used to do a little bit of knitting with my mum when he was small, he's 27 now and says that he still remembers it a little bit! So hopefully your little nieceling will be the same!
    Hugs Sharon in Spain x

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    1. That's lovely that he remembers! You never know with small children; they like something one day and not the next! LOL

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  3. What a great rhyme and it's so neat that you are teaching her how to knit. I have to admit, I empathise with her frustration. I tried to learn knitting and it kind of went similar to your niece (and I'm a lot older!). The only things I manage to knit these days are those yarns that have the wide holes in them and you just have to go through the holes and drag them up to form those swirly scarves. I am still not sure how to cast off. I think I know how to cast on but casting off confuses me a little!

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    1. I found the rhyme in a book; I found it very hard to break down the steps myself, as it has been quite some time since I learned!

      Every beginner has the same problems, no matter what their age! I have some of the early items I made (doll scarves and shawls, mainly, amusingly enough), with many holes and knots. LOL

      Those swirly scarves are really pretty! :)

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  4. The things you learn at an early age you never forget do you :-). It was great to read about your little niece knitting. I learned knitting when I was about six or seven, in school, and I still like it! Lovely post :-)

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    1. It seems like a lot of people learned around that age! I think it's a pity we haven't kept more things like that part of the school curriculum...

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