Tuesday, December 4, 2012

Magic loop lives up to its name

Having now sent out the last of my 2012 swap packages, I can now focus on any quick holiday knits for friends and family.  And then perhaps I can knit something for myself, what a change that will make!

But anyway, in the course of determining a particular item for someone on my list (with deliberate vagueness to guarantee surprise), I choose a pattern, found some stash yarn and the appropriate needles, and began casting on.  It directed me to use Judy's Magic Cast On, and though I was a little trepedatious, I did as I was told.  I was mostly able to follow the directions from Knitty, but I found this YouTube video super-helpful when I got stuck turning to knit the second half of the first round:

Funnily enough, despite the mention of socks in the Knitty instructions, and the word 'Magic' in its name, it didn't fully strike me that I was magic looping until I was actually doing it.  And then suddenly,  as I was finishing up that first round, it was like I was struck with that magic wand.  Bippity-boppity-boo!  Ah-ha, so this is what people are always talking about, getting freakishly long circular needles to do, taking classes for, and arguing the pros and cons of!  And here I am doing it!  Whoa.

I suppose it's needless to say that I'm not making socks, and never have.  I don't particularly plan to make any either, but I do love learning a technique all by myself without bursting into tears.  And if I ever get around to starting hexipuffs for the Beekeeper's Quilt this technique will certainly come in handy.  For now, it's just something else a little bit fiddly to deal with while I'm also cabling.

Stay tuned for actual details about this project.  The day after Christmas is the time for post-holiday sales and post-gifting show-offs.

2 comments:

  1. I didn't think I would knit socks either , until I did. I like toe up (Judy's Magic cast on) and magic loop, sometimes doing 2 at a time. Magic loop is great for fingerless mitts or the top of hats. Once you start you will never turn back.

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    1. It is definitely intriguing, and it gets easier to manage as the project grows (like most cast-ons I think). I might have to try it for some mitts, but I'm not sure how I would do the top of a hat unless I was going top-down, because my mind boggles at the idea of transferring these stitches onto other needles and maintaining the magic.

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