Celtic Earth Handbag

Celebrate Summer.  Celebrate the Earth with a natural handbag.  Upcycle and bring new life to fibers. Made of strong, recycled fibers, this favorite handbag features Celtic symbols paired with knotted eyelet lace. 

Designed for everyday use, it is large enough to hold today’s gadgets with a handy strap for hands-free mobility. It opens easily and quickly, and shuts with I-Cord to tie for extra security. It features a sturdy Garter Stitch bottom for stability.

Instructions are charted & written out, for knitter’s preference.

This handbag is a favorite for those who avoid the use of leather.

For pattern info, please visit:  www.DonnaEstinDesigns.com

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Provisional Cast On

Anytime anyone goes to the trouble to make a GREAT technique seem super easy, I jump on the chance to promote them.  And this week I want to let you all in on a secret.  Christine shows just how easy you can do a Provisional Cast On.  This is used with scrap yarn when you want to keep live stitches that will be rejoined later in the project.  Use this when you want to knit in both directions, from CO edge upwards and from CO down.  Work the back of a sweater then go back and add a border.  Or when you're working a hem, you can fold at the foldline and use the decrease stitch to hem and knit at the same time. Or for socks.  Or for so many things.  So, here it is!

Techniques - Provisional Cast On

For more amazing instructional videos by the best of the best, visit www.DonnaEstinDesigns.com

Knitting More Than One Project at a Time

I've always been a focused knitter.  One project.  One self-inflicted deadline.  One timeframe.  Recently I stumbled across a conversation of knitters at my LSY, discussing their "projects."  Yes, they were working on more than one thing at a time.  Diane was knitting a sweater and hoped to finish it in a year.  A year!  This stressed me out greatly.  In the meantime, when she was bored with the sweater or needed a break she would work on a pair of socks, a scarf and was thinking of starting a baby blanket.  How can this be?  How can you hope to finish anything with all those projects in the works.  Then another knitter agreed.  She said she always has sock on a set of needles no matter what she's working on. 

This got me to thinking.  Is it possible that most knitters work on more than project at a time?  And why?  The more time you divert from your main project, the longer it will take to finish it and the greater the chance that you'll never finish it.  I found this whole concept stressful.  I've been knitting for ages and never considered starting something before finishing a project.  But so it is in my daily life.  I do one thing, completely, then move on.  I don't multi-task well (actually I don't multi-task).  It's not that I don't want to... I try, but I stall.  I just can't seem to switch gears like that.

If the personality trait of being "focused" versus "multi-tasking" is behind this pattern of knitting, then by evolution, most knitters today would have more than one project on their needles at a time.  I believe the two distinct groups of knitters could learn from each other.  I would love to learn to swatch a new project before the finishing on my current project was complete.  That way I'd have time to buy different yarn or needles, or make necessary changes before jumping full fledged into my next project.  Finishing something, starting a new, then realizing you don't have what you need is frustrating.  You're all ready to start your new project but these needles won't work at all and the yarn shop is closed.  Sigh. 

I believe the task for the focused knitter is to relinquish control, and just jump right in with the new project.  I believe you must not fixate over schedules and time, rather j
ust enjoy the feel of a different yarn in your fingers and go.  I believe.  I don't know for sure because I just can't work on two projects at a time.  I get into a rhythm of one type of yarn, the way it feels when it moves across the needles, the way it behaves on the needles, the tension my hands must maintain while knitting.  Switching mid-stream to different yarn, needles, patterns, can throw everything off.

Maybe one day one of you master, multi-taskers will shed some light on the subject and I'll find myself in the new majority of knitters who knit more than one project at a time.