Stitchboard Admin message #242
Re: Tunisian gauge
January 19, 2014 at 12:07:06 AM  (in response to BetwixtTheStitch message #1)
 
Sherry,

Hee hee, knew you were in as desperate "need" as I am for hooks! 

Oooh, they have them at Michael's?!  Is this something new?  Because remember, the only thing I could find was that H hook, at Michael's, not JoAnn's.    But if this is new, they may have gotten that in.

Just made a few calls...argh, JoAnn's doesn't carry them here...they said to go to the superstore, which isn't even close by. 

Michael's has them (out of stock on the Q hook), for $7.99, ouch.

They have P, Q and that L hook!  I would never have thought so!

You know, I initially had the same problem with knitting!  It was way too slow.    I finally gave up.

What changed it for me was an elderly woman I saw knitting on a commuter train.  She was knitting along soooooooooo fast...I watched her, trying to determine her secret, to memorize what she was doing, and as soon as I could get to my books, I realized the only thing that was different was she'd held the yarn in her left hand, not her right hand, the way I'd learned.  The lightbulb went on.  As soon as I switched hands, everything else fell into place.

Otherwise, I probably never would have picked up knitting.

The dropped stitch thing can be annoying, that's for sure!    Thankfully, I don't drop them often.  LOL, just often enough to cause cursing fun for the whole family. 

Thanks!  That's good to know about the hook...I'm going to have to wait until I get a P hook, then, to do any TKS with RH.  Oh, well, no biggie.  Plenty of other stuff to do, and I still have a mountain of dischloths left, sigh, plus the other two projects with which I consulted with you. 

Exactly...it's not supposed to be as cold...but it's supposed to hold on longer.    Thank you for the warm thoughts...greatly appreciated! 

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Stitchboard Admin message #244
Re: Tunisian gauge
January 19, 2014 at 6:02:39 PM  (in response to BetwixtTheStitch message #3)
 
Sherry,

Wow, maybe trying the English method would have helped!  That was what I couldn't handle.    I wonder if it would have worked for you.  

Are you right-handed?    Guessing you are...but if you're left-handed, that might explain why Continental knitting gave you problems.    Otherwise, it sounds like it was the wrong technique for you...everyone is different, of course! 

LOL, my stitches are looser...but I'm thinking I'll try the P hook first, if I can get one in the near future.  Also have some idea for which I need a particular shade of blue yarn.  Thinking of offering it for free as an "introductory" thing, then offering it for $5 later on.  Still "baking" it...only half-baked right now.    Of course, I first have to get out from under this mountain of frigging dishcloths before I do anything else!    Sigh.  Can you tell I'm so burned out on them?!  It will be such a relief to finish those stupid things and start with something - anything - else, like the other gifts that aren't dishcloths!

The Q hook sounds like an excellent idea for your hubby's Cowboy throw.    It should also "stretch" your yarn supplies out that much more, tiny difference though it will be, plus, the throw will be toasty warm and thick! 

I'm going to go with my gut and probably will get a P hook first...I do want to try a Q and also an L, though, and it's such a shame that I'd have to try them one at a time, rather than have all three sitting before me.  But then, there are good chances I'll have them all by the time I get to the fun stuff at this rate!    As much as I hate stopping to write things down, sigh, I do love designing! 

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Stitchboard Admin message #246
Re: Tunisian gauge
January 20, 2014 at 7:55:46 PM  (in response to BetwixtTheStitch message #5)
 
Sherry,

Wow, that's great how you can crochet with your left hand using an afghan hook!  I've tried with regular hooks (can't imagine the afghan hook would be at all different for me), and I can't do it.

I hold my yarn with my left hand no matter what...crochet...knitting.  Either way.  It's more comfortable for me that way.  I've tried with the right hand, but there's no way I can do it. 

I tend to agree...I think the P hook will work best for RH worsted.  The advantage of that, as well, is it will take less time, since the stitches will be larger and cover a bigger area with less of them, if that makes sense. 

Oh, yeah, at those prices, it's a lot harder to get more than one at a time.    I can't believe they're so expensive!

It's very hard to write things down, and like you said, going from written instructions to the computer is also difficult. 

I'm sorry you've got a cold and hope it goes away quickly!  Feel better soon!  Lots of healing thoughts and hugs to you. 

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Stitchboard Admin message #248
Re: Tunisian gauge
January 21, 2014 at 10:23:48 PM  (in response to BetwixtTheStitch message #7)
 
Sherry,

I bet the "loose knit" look is better...that stich is so thick, it doesn't really matter how it looks from the outside, as it would still have the same warmth.    And I'm sure the cables look wonderful now that the stitches aren't all smooshed together! 

Yeah, it's no use working when you can't think...when that happens, I generally mess up whatever it is, sigh, and in trying to fix it, usually make it worse. 

TKS swatches sound like the perfect project for a no-brainer, not-wanting-to-think-a-lot time! 

Yes, I agree...it is an important point, and one most people don't realize!

I definitely hope you're immune to the swine flu!  Do you get flu shots?  We always get them every year...learned the hard way, the year hubby got the flu and gave it to me on Christmas day.  Nothing was open, we were a few years away from getting our local 24 hour Walgreen's and I was cooking dinner when the symptoms started showing up.    I had to wait all the rest of that day and overnight until we could get out for some flu meds.  What a difference!  Ugh, it was nasty...yet probably not half as bad as the swine flu!

BTW, we happened to be out by that JoAnn superstore...they had a hanger for the hooks (marked LPQ, so apparently, they carry all three) and not one was in stock in any size! 

Sending more healing thoughts and hugs to you! 

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Stitchboard Admin message #250
Re: Tunisian gauge
January 22, 2014 at 11:49:53 PM  (in response to BetwixtTheStitch message #9)
 
Sherry,

As dull as they are, swatches really do serve a purpose!  It must be very satisfying to place them side by side and see those subtle differences. 

Glad you don't catch the flu, then!  I don't get sick often (knock wood), but I do remember what it was like to get that flu and have no OTC meds for them.    That was miserable enough to push me to get that flu shot every year now!

Ugh, strep...I had it twice...then I thought I had it a few more times thereafter.  The first two times it was, but it must have been pretty mild...I had a sort-of sore throat, enough to seek medical attention, yet not super bad.  (I was very fatigued, though.)  The rest of the time, I had bad, bad allergies. 

The guy at JoAnn's had said they were changing up their stock, so they were clearing some stuff out and making room for the new, where he felt these hooks were part of the "new."  I don't know.  I did go to Michael's today (coupon), and now...ta da...P hook!    So I'm ready for that sweatshirt bottom.  I'll see how loose it looks to know if I really want to go bigger or smaller.  Oh, and I met two lovely young women there...beginning crocheters...and I gave them a card with the site info to join!    I'm so excited for them...well, long ago though it was, I vividly remember the excitement of beginning crochet. 

Did you have your granddaughter get a Q hook for you?  I saw one...the package looked like it had been opened, though.    They didn't have any other Qs.  Oh, well, P is the first one I want to try, anyway, after I get out from under the mountain of dishcloths. 

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Stitchboard Admin message #252
Re: Tunisian gauge
January 23, 2014 at 9:43:23 PM  (in response to BetwixtTheStitch message #11)
 
Sherry,

I'm sure you're right about the tiny changes not making much difference.    Though I would guess the caveat there is one still has to watch gauge for fitted garments, since a fraction of an inch can throw off the entire thing.    Sigh, been there, done that.  When I was first starting, I guesstimated more than a few times because I was too lazy to make a swatch with more than one or two hooks.    I thought there would be so little difference, I'd simply go up or down one size and all would be fine...it wasn't. 

That sounds like the perfect size for a swatch.    Does the beginning row of TPS help stabilize it?

Wow, is there that much of a difference between K and L?  Truthfully, I don't think I'd heard of an L hook before.  And I thought P was a kind of unusual size!  Maybe it's simply that most places don't tend to carry the more unusual sizes.  I'd never seen an N until Walmart (kind of odd, since they discontinued so much to reinstate fabrics, sigh), and I don't think I knew there was an L until you mentioned it!

Oooh, how different are they on the weight?  That sounds interesting!    Can't say I've ever weighed swatches, but it would be very nice to know how much difference there is!

I think it's also a good idea to wash and shape.  I know acrylic doesn't technically have to be blocked, but it always makes me feel better to wash it first.

Isn't it wonderful meeting up with beginners and reflecting back on the earlier days of making beautiful things, when it was all brand new?!    And helping people is so much fun! 

The Q hook looked huge to me.  Matter of fact, it was misplaced in the spot for the P hook, so when I first pulled it off of the hanger, I actually thought that was the P hook!  I think Q will be better for bulky...and hopefully not too small for it!

Can't wait to hear how the Q swatch turned out! 

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Stitchboard Admin message #254
Re: Tunisian gauge
January 25, 2014 at 12:37:28 AM  (in response to BetwixtTheStitch message #13)
 
Sherry,

Sigh, which is why I don't really enjoy making swatches for garments...necessary evil, but such a chore! 

I agree...anything TKS made with a smaller hook would be very stiff.  Maybe a scarf would be okay, but that's about it!

I'm glad you did only the TKS and the worsted weight, because the results are invaluable!    WW seems to be the most commonly available size.

It's not surprising that SS worked the same...it is a worsted weight, after all, and though it may be softer and thinner, the stitch itself is so big, I'm sure it behaves exactly the same with all of that yarn bulk in each stitch.

K to L is a huge difference!  What are you measuring?  Is that the distance around the hook part?

L to N (and N to P) aren't quite so drastic, but wow, P to Q is enormous!

Q sounds like it's good for producing certain effects with worsted.    I'd really like to get one to try on bulky yarn, or perhaps two strands of worsted.  It sounds like a very interesting experiment! 

Oh, yeah, unraveling and measuring would be annoying!  Better off weighing it and then calculating, as you're doing. 

That curl is such a pain.  Glad it's not so noticeable from L on up.

Can't wait to hear your final results! 

Awww, hope you're having fun with your granddaughter.    The homemade hot pockets sound delish!    The false labor part doesn't, so I hope she's okay!  

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