What's this all about, anyway?

Why, all of a sudden, did I decide to start this blog? I guess I have lot to say and not many people or animals around who will listen with enthusiasm. (If you're reading this blog, you probably want to listen. If not, tune in tomorrow and see if there's something fresh posted.)

I've been knitting for a long time and I love to invent new ways of doing things. One of the neatest things about knitting is that it's fluid, and most knitters I know appreciate new ideas. I improvise and invent to increase efficiency. Some knitting techniques are tedious--I try to figure out methods that makes them easier to perform.

Aside: I saw someone describe how to knit two together with a left slant using a cable needle. This was supposed to be an "improvement" over the admittedly mediocre Sl1, K1, PSSO. That's totally a crazy and clumsy disimprovement, and anyone who has knitted a single row of lace will agree. I have a better way and I will post on it at a later date.

I was stirring my stash around yesterday and noticed that I have almost zero yarn from big commercial companies. I've never purchased a single skein of Rowan, Jo Sharp, Debbie Bliss, Berrocco, or Cascade. I love to buy yarn from small, personal places. Etsy Shops, for example, are wonderful places to browse. I fully intend to use this blog to generate traffic for micro-stores. Or not, if the stuff turns out to be better used for stuffing pillows.

I also intend to provide a tiny window on Japanese knitting. I spend a considerable part of the year in Japan and their knitting books are quite different. The pattern books are especially interesting and are not easy to experience from a chair outside Japan.

I want to keep this blog about knitting, which means, with the rare exception, you won't find pictures of my summer vacation, cat, family, parties, or food unless they have some useful relevance to needles and yarn. I will also try to refrain from uploading pictures of totally unenhanced khaki socks, wire knitting, and knitted dishcloths. There are plenty of other places you can go for that sort of thing.

Useful is the operative word here. I want this site to become a repository of interesting ideas, patterns, methods, and yarn reviews. If it's weird and useful, I'll post it. Maybe I'll post it if it's just weird.

At some point, I am going to run out of steam. In the meantime, there's lots of interesting topics lined up, so please come back!