I love bargain bins!

I took a wander into town today, and popped into the local branch of Shaw's the Drapers. I tend to buy most of my everyday yarns from there, and was delighted to discover a bargain bin, containing 1oo gram balls of DK yarn for 50p each. I managed to grab sufficient balls of black wool, all from the same dye lot, to make a sweater and a few accessories - all for just £3. Okay, so it's not premium yarn, but it'll do for a few everyday garments. I also bought a lovely light grey marl yarn, which I hope to make a jacket from, with a really pretty blackberry stitch edging.

At the moment, I'm working on a very simple, garter stitch cardigan. I just need to finish the right front, before putting it all together and knitting the edging. I hope to be wearing it by Monday! As soon as it's done, I'll hunt down my camera lead, and post pics. Now, where did I put those buttons ...

Grab some free knitting patterns

Do you have a favourite site for free knitting patterns? One of my favourites is the Lion Brand pattern finder. It has a huge database of free patterns, many of which can be downloaded as PDF files. It has everything from baby wear to bathroom accessories, with hundreds of sweaters, cardigans, bags, hats, gloves, scarves, toys and soft furnishings in between. I've knitted several garments from this site and thoroughly recommend it.

Why bother with knitting?

I've often met with derision when I've revealed my dastardly secret - that I am, in fact, a closet knitter. The shame of it! People often ask me: "why knit, when you can buy sweaters, cardigans, etc, in any clothing store?" To that, I say, "why the heck not?"

Far from being naff or old-fashioned, knitting is actually very cool and funky. There's something magical about starting off with nothing except a pair of knitting needles, some yarn, and a pattern, and ending up with a finished garment within a few hours or days. The craft of knitting may be ancient, but with today's huge variety of yarns, patterns and tools, you can create garments that wouldn't look out of place at the latest fashion shows.

Knitting is not just a pleasurable and relaxing pastime, but a very useful skill to have. There's something very special about creating, giving and receiving a well-crafted, hand-knitted gift. Knitwear is expensive to buy, and let's just face it - most shop-bought knitwear looks the same. With a little practice, patterns can be adapted to create original garments - even if you just try it out in a different yarn or turn a single-colour garment into a striped one. If knitwear's not your thing, you can create beautiful, handcrafted soft furnishings for your home: cushions, bedspreads, throws, afghans, rugs - the list is endless.

So what are you knitting today?

Welcome to Woolly's Knitting Blog

Welcome to my brand new knitting blog. The blog is still in its planning stage at the moment, but over the coming weeks and months, I hope it will become a valuable resource to knitters of all ages and abilities. Although I have been a knitter for many years, I still consider myself to be a learner, simply because there is so much to learn about the craft of knitting, and no one individual can know it all. I hope to bring you tutorials, how-to's, news on the latest patterns and yarns, as well as providing links to some of the best free knitting patterns on the world wide web. Above all, I want to show that knitting can be cool and funky. It's not all about bed socks and tea cosies. Not that there is anything wrong with bed socks and tea cosies! Welcome, one and all. Please return soon, and watch this blog grow.