Congrats on teaching yourself! I learned to knit when I was 13 from my aunt. She had us(me and my cousin) start with mittens. You learn ribbing, increasing, decreasing and putting things on a holder to work with something else, then go back to stitches on the holder. We did two-needle mittens which also require sewing up a seam. Later I did mittens on double pointed needles. Was your scarf in garter stitch(knit every row)? With the mittens you would also have to do the purl stitch. Good practice and because they are small you get a finished project quickly. One thing you want to do is check your gauge before you begin(sometimes mitten patterns don't have gauge). I have never checked my gauge(lazy). Sometimes not a problem, but mostly it is a problem not to check. Sweaters, hats, anything with a fit issue could come out wrong if done in the wrong gauge. I'm doing a project now where I checked the gauge, I thought, only to find after doing the back of a sweater, I was off still. So, I pulled out and started over with different needles. We'll see how it comes out. I'm taking a knitting class next month where hopefully she can teach me how to do the gauge check properly among other things. I need to learn how to crochet. I can only do a chain. Hope you enjoy knitting. Sally

I have been borrowing my sister's copies of her books since Christmas. I heard of her only recently from DS. Go ahead and start the sweater from your copy of her pattern. You do have THE pattern in the book. She laments she is not a very good pattern writer, and I have to agree. Lots of online information, however, is available on her pattern too. One lists how to vary the size by using other weights of yarn and needle sizes. I am using worsted weight and size 6 circular needles for DGS who is 15 months old now. But ask here if you get stuck. Once you have made one, you will be addicted. And it is a great way to use up yarns you have not known what to do with as well as scraps too. I had a couple of varigated yarns that just did not look right in other patterns I tried, but they look great in the BSJ. And then stripes look great in this pattern, especially with a solid main color, so the scraps are disappearing too.

I started using the knifty knitter a few years ago and loved it but I only had the rectangular looms. Recently I started looking for more versatility, something where I could make tighter stitches, etc. and realized most patterns and instructions (many on youtube.com btw) for these things require (or are demonstrated on) a round loom, which I just don't have. I also want to learn to use 1 side of the rake, which has proven difficult to understand - however - I just purchased an "Authentic Knitting Board" (http://www.knittingboard.com) and with it came a DVD. The website itself has a few pretty good, simple to understand videos on how to do casting on/off, as well as how to do a few different stitches. Im very new to knitting and found these little videos (which are free on the site, and some on youtube) to be very helpful. I knitted a cabled scarf 10 minutes after watching them and it came out incredibly well! While I'd love to know how to get that e stitch down on the board, it can wait. The only real question I have right now is in making a Cravat (short neck wrap scarf with a button closure) How would you go about adding the button and the button hole best? I really want to make a bunch of these for christmas and could knock out several per day if i just knew the dynamics of adding the button/hole. Im sure you could just pry the button thru some of the stitches in the other end but wonder if that will just mess up the stitches. Getting the button on - well I can't even pretend to imagine unless you add it by sewing it on to the end of the scarf after it's cast off and completed. Anyone with any advice, who has made these before, feel free - I'd like to be less of a knitting noob by the end of the day somehow ;) Now, I can't translate any of these patterns from regular knitting to the board but this page has an extreme overabundance of free patterns. There are so many you'll be looking at them for days. Perhaps if you find one you love, you could find someone to translate it to board instructions for you. http://www.knittingpatterncentral.com/directory/scarves.php

I do all my socks Magic Loop! I am constantly dropping the double points down the chair or in the car between the seats. Also, I find it faster than using dbl pnts because you don't change needles as often which saves time. I also don't have to worry about all those needles falling/or getting pulled out when I take it everywhere with me, as socks are something that I stuff in a purse or tote bag to take everywhere I go, so when I have to wait for a train, in a dr. office, ect. I have time to work on a sock. I have not yet figured out how to do two socks on one set of needles, whether magic loop or on two shorter circulars, which I have also used before learning magic loop. I have also tried making socks on 12" circulars and find that my fingers cramp more, but it takes up less room when traveling. As for getting two socks finished at the same time, I have 2 sets of 40" circulars and start both socks at the same time so that they get started at the same point in the yarn pattern with the new self-striping yarns. If I am using a 100 gm ball, I re-wind the yarn on my yarn winder, using a digital kitchen scale to evenly divide the yarn. And if you work on each sock a few inches at a time, both are finished almost similtainiously. I also find that if I do one sock at a time, I get bored by the time I have to start the second sock, the "I'm not done YET!" sindrome! If I do them both at the same time, even tho it still takes me the same amount of time to make them, it doesn't SEEM like it! If you learn well from a book, spend the $5 for the book and figure it out on your own, it's really easy. And that comes from one who does not learn well from a book. I usually need to be shown. If you learn better by seeing, spend the $40 for the class if it's something you really want to try. It is a technique that you can use for hats and sleeves, also, not just socks. Tami