I knit. There, I’ve admitted it. 

It all started with an earflap cap I wanted from Banana Republic when I lived in L.A. However, when I saw the price tag, I balked. There was no way I was paying $40, so I promptly went and bought some yarn, knitting needles and crochet hooks and made my own. Trial and error. No patterns - which of course results in a lot of unravelling, but I did it. 

And a slightly seasonal obsession was born. Come the first signs of winter and the stash of wool comes out.  Some people seem to take offence at the fact that I can have a conversation and knit/crochet at the same time. Hello, multi-tasking! There's also an out-dated perception that only grannies knit. Obviously people have not encountered the legions of crafty vixen and self-proclaimed stitchin' bitches who've co-opted knitting as a hobby for the young, hip 20-something crowd. So don’t expect socks.

Instead you’ll find funky Mohawk hats, chunky scarves, stylish and crafty items that don't look out of place on your street-styling fashionistas.  

Till just recently, I steadfastly followed my routine of making things up as I go along. This does not, ahem…always work out well, but I’ve gotten by. Then I spotted a cable-knit scarf I really wanted online and decided to go in search of a pattern. I don’t know why I’d be surprised, but there is an abundance of places to find help online, even if you’ve never knitted a stitch before. 

Click click knit

A surprisingly good site I found for novices was www.dummies.com, which has an extensive “knitting-for-dummies” section. It’s well laid-out and easy to understand and similarly has a section on crocheting.

Another amazing site is Knitting Help. This site has free videos which are easy to understand and follow and even though I've been knitting for a long time, I learnt some new ways of casting on as well as different styles of knitting.

This site also has an iPhone app which at $4.99 seems steep compared to most, but when I did the dollar/rand conversion, R35 seemed very little to pay for an app which has all the advice a novice knitter might need.

The videos are all integrated in the app, so nothing is streamed, which means you can access any of the videos without an online connection, wherever you are. This however also means that it has a download size of over ½ a gig, but I think it’s worth it.

Another app I’ve been checking out is StitchMinder and the best thing is, it’s absolutely free. It’s very simple, but really useful (if you remember to tap the counter at the end of each row!) and does exactly what it says: it minds your stitches (i.e., keeps track of the number of rows knitted), while you carry on with your conversation. I soon discovered with my new cable pattern that keeping track of which row I was on, was not that simple, seeing that most people knit while carrying on a conversation, watching TV, etc. This app works fantastically - you simply tap the screen to add a row, the phone does not go to sleep while you’re using it and is easy to reset. 

Another app worth checking out is Vogue Knitting - great for digital organising, tracking and planning if you're already an active knitter. It keeps all of your project notes, multiple row counters, needle and crochet hook inventories, yarn stash and swatch info with you when you're out knitting or buying supplies.

Cyber supplies

There is an abundance of pattern sites online, one of which is Lion Brand Yarn. A quick Google search should find you endless links to get you started.

There is also a great Facebook page for Stitchin’ Bitches and one of the many knitting forums can be found here. 

If you’re in Gauteng, you can get your knitting supplies (offline) at the following shops: 

• Arthur Bales: (has an amazing collection of yarn, though not cheap) >> 64 4th Avenue, Linden, Johannesburg. Tel: 011-888-2401
• Wool Centre: (is a wholesaler, cheaper than Arthur Bales, but be aware they close between 11:45 and 14:00 on Fridays)>> 176 Central Avenue Mayfair, Johannesburg. Tel:  082 558 5504
• Woolmart: 85 Retief Street, Pretoria west. Tel: 012 327 7662
• Wool: 28 Trichardt North, Boksburg. Tel: 011 8924165

Yearning for yarn?

So, whether you’ve been knitting since you were knee-high, or whether yarn to you seems closer to yawn, don’t be scared of entanglement. You need go no further than the Internet (or iTunes Store) to find any instruction or pattern you need. 

Here in the southern hemisphere, winter is just beginning so grab a pair of needles and some yarn, invest in a good Internet connection and get to it!

Follow my advice and soon you’ll be pulling that très chic wool-hat over your ears.