Ravelry v Blogging

Today as I read the latest entry on Mog’s Blog and found myself nodding. She mentions how some of her friends have stopped blogging in favour of spending time on Ravelry. I had begun to wonder if I was just imagining there had been a general slow down in blogging recently. I’ve noticed bloggers who haven’t blogged in weeks posting on Ravelry forums and lots of stuff coming up under their name under ‘friends activity’, and doing that ‘oh good, they’re not dead or terribly ill or been arrested in some terrible case of mistaken identity, or something’ thing you do. (What? Don’t you?)

It was reassuring to read in the comments plenty of people saying they weren’t going to stop blogging. Ravelry is useful and interesting, but I find it a bit, well, dry. I like to watch someone work their way through a project, sympathising at mistakes, appreciating the cleverness or doggedness with which they rip and reknit or find a solution, learning from them if they make adjustments to a pattern, noting how the pieces come together and eventually seeing the project on the person or in use, and, best of all, reading their feelings about the result. And I like commenting along the way (though I don’t as often as I should), even if just to express a liking for the project.

In Ravelry… well, I have to admit I don’t visit peoples notebook page to look at their projects, queue, favourites or belongings. It feels a bit stalkery. And I also have to confess I don’t get a kick out of looking at other people’s stashes. I love yarn, but not that much!

On blogs, I like seeing what yarn, needles and books people have bought, because there’s a context. The story behind the yarn acquisition is often more interesting than the yarn itself. I like reading about their plans for the yarn – whether it will be a gift or a treat, what patterns they’re considering, their dreams for it. I like impromptu book reviews. And spontaneous expressions of glee.

The forums in Ravelry are fun but they suffer from the same old problems that all the forums I’ve visited in the past suffer from. Some quickly slow down to the point where there is no momentum any more – no conversations. Some are active, but get wound up in arguments all the time. Some never get going. Some seem to hit the right groove and thrive.

The Australian Knitters forum is the most lively of the groups I’ve joined, and has avoided sinking into flame wars so far. I’ve joined the Bag Lady swap and post now and then. Yet I still don’t find it as interesting as reading blogs. A forum is like a big conversation between lots of people. Some members talk more and some less. Some not at all. A lot of opinion is expressed, which can be good and bad, but then it is a great way to get advice, too.

Reading a blog is like sitting down and listening to someone you like over a cuppa. And then the next person, and the next. You get to hear the quiet person as well as the loud, confident one. I’ve always preferred the one-on-one chat with a good friend over the party with dozens – though I do love a good party, too!

Don’t get me wrong; I do love Ravelry. I enjoy participating in forums, and I pipe up and post now and then, but overall it isn’t how I most enjoy contributing to the big crafty internet world. Maybe that’s because I’m a writer. I enjoy the process of constructing blog entries. And when I read blog, it’s the stories behind the craft that I love.

So please don’t stop blogging. I’d miss you.

Beginnings and Endings

Not a lot of knitting was done last week, because a lot of socialising was done in the evenings, when I usually knit. This week I finished the mitring on the body of the Mitre Vest and sewed the shoulder seams together:

Once I had it all sewn up I looked at how much of the Knittery 4ply merino ‘cherry chocolate’ yarn I had left over (most of a ball) and considered the diamond of Patonyle in the back of the vest and how the colour just didn’t match as well as I’d expected.

So I knit this:

Which will replace the Patonyle diamond. I’m also going to knit the borders in the Knittery yarn, too. Unfortunately I don’t have a 2.75 circular needle, let lone a long enough 2.75 mm bamboo needle, so I decided to do the borders on straights in stages. I’ll start with the bottom edge, then do the fronts, then the collar. I’m not sure yet how I’ll do the sleeves. Maybe by then I’ll have found myself a 2.75 mm bamboo circ. Maybe I’ll do them with dpns.

Trouble is, knitting the bottom hem on straights is making my hands hurt, despite using bamboo needles. It’s the weight of the vest that’s doing it, reminding me why I love circs so much.

It’s March, which means two things. Firstly, Sockless Summer is over! It’s been surprising and fun. I’ve tried a whole lot of ideas for using sock yarns for projects other than socks. I’ve knit the beau socks, which he needs more than me. I’ve discovered how much fun mitre knitting is. I’ve made some projects I had been putting off for ages and learned some new methods in the process.

But I miss having a portable project, and I still have heaps of sock yarn. And socks are just so much fun to knit. So I cast on the Rainbow Socks:

Secondly, my 2nd blogiversary is coming up. I’m not sure yet what I’ll do. I’ve been too busy to blog at my old rate, let lone organise a comp or giveaway. Maybe I’ll just post a big “Wahoooo!” on the day.

A few days ago I dropped some things off at an op shop I used to haunt, and couldn’t resist having a quick look in the yarn bin. What did I find?

Some Bendy 5ply. I’m thinking stripey or fair isle hats, gloves…

There was also an old Toyota knitting machine, with a lace attachment. I didn’t buy it, but I thought I’d mention it here in case anyone wanted one. It’s at the Angliss Hospital op shop in Ferntree Gully (the little corner shop in the car park area).

Yarn Shopping at Last!

I finally made it the KLYS (kinda local yarn store) today, The Wool Shop in Surrey Hills. What did I buy? Well, I finally bought a contrast colour for the collar of the Jo Sharp Ribbed Wrap Jacket.

Just as a reminder, it looks like this:

And these were the colours I had to choose from. I liked the suggestions in the comments of either white, blue or raspberry. But in person I found the white was a bit disappointing because, being white on white, the lovely silk fleck characteristic was lost. The raspberry was nice, but a bit ‘lolly’ next to the grey. Putting the blue next to the grey made it obvious they grey tended to the warm side, and the blue just looked wrong with it.

But, to my surprise, there was another, slightly lighter grey on the shelves. Not a different lot number, but a new colour.

The difference was subtle (and hard to photograph) but enough to work.

I also picked up the Cleckheaton Bamboo pattern book. I have ten balls of white, and want to make the little white jacket third from the end of those shown on the link page.

But the weather has been so cool here lately that I’ll probably save it until next spring.