You Might Be a Knitter ...

It must be love. 

When the godkids expressed an interest in learning how to knit, I was delighted. When they “oohed” and “aahed” over their small knitted Christmas gifts and repeated their desire to learn, I was thrilled.

Thinking about the challenge of teaching fundamentals to a brand new crop of potential knitters has motivated me to take a fresh look at this fascination with fiber. 

I made a few discoveries, and while I can’t say they will help with the knitting lessons, they’re certainly giving me some insights into my own obvious obsessions. (Yep, plural.)

I’ve come to the conclusion you might be a knitter if you  …       

1. Knit shawls but do not wear them.
2. Knit [fill in the blank] but do not wear or use [fill in the blank].
3. Have more UFOs than Area 51.
4. Have made an afghan for everyone you know.
5. Made an afghan for each room in the house … including your home office.
6. Realize yarn, WIPs and knitting paraphernalia are the source of your clutter problem.
7. View yarn and knitting time as far more valuable than professional therapy.
8. Invest way too many hours (and dollars) to make someone you love a hand knit item.
9. Display yarn as décor.
10. Conceal yarn in cupboards to disguise your addiction.
11. Organize yarn by color, weight, fiber composition or all three.
12. Organize yarn by future intended project (socks, sweaters, shawls, hats, household, etc.).
13. Hear the word “needle” and think “knitting.”
14. Have family or friends who hear the word “needle” and they think “knitting.”
15. Have a chair you refer to as your knitting chair.
16. Have a space you refer to as your knitting zone.
17. Have a knitting room, stash room, craft room or studio.
18. Have shelves, drawers, cabinets and/or tubs devoted exclusively to yarn storage.
19. Take portable projects to appointments, kids’ events and the grocery, bank, drug store …
20. Pack and take projects, needles and yarn on vacations and business trips.
21. Own duplicate sets of needles made from different types of material.
22. Have every needle size in DPNs, short straights, long straights and circulars.
23. See the letters EZ and you immediately think “Elizabeth Zimmerman.”
24. Struggled through foreign language classes, but you see “Ktbl, yo, p3, sl1 pwise wyif” and think, “Well, that makes sense.”
25. Realize knitting is the only foreign language you can actually read and speak.
26. Read patterns and stitch combos, but instead of swatching, you imagi-knit them in your head.  
27. Find the Perfect Pattern, then make a list of modifications so it’s even more perfect.
28. Post pictures of your WIPs, UFOs and FOs.
29. Post pictures of your freshly reorganized yarn (needles, books, patterns, knitting space).
30. Bought a decent camera so you could take even better pictures of your knitting (yarn, project bags, stash, etc.).
31. Bought a dress form to model knit items … and then gave your dress form a name.
32. Refer to “Edwina,” and everyone knows you mean your dress form.
33. Have yarn or UFOs older than your oldest child.
34. Have yarn you inherited from your mother, aunt, grandmother or friend.
35. Have a jar, vase or bowl filled with tiny balls of yarn from each project.

Yikes! I don't do all these things, but let's just say many of them strike very close to home ... and this list barely scratches the surface of the wacky and wondrous ways we reveal our passion for knitting.

I have knitting sessions to plan, but clearly I got side-tracked. It's time for me to stop playing around and start figuring out a strategy.

Meanwhile, feel free to share whatever quirky things you do that indicate you might be a knitter, too.