Knitting cameraderie

One of the unexpected outcomes of taking up knitting again in the last four or five years has been the friendship networks that have developed. Sociable knitting is undemanding.  You can sit with a group of people who are knitting and chat. Or you can sit with a group of people who are knitting and just listen, if that's what you prefer. But if you meet up with the same people from time to time over a period of years you inevitably get to know and care about them - particularly if they are as open and sharing as the group of people with whom, in different combinations, and with variable degrees of regularity, I knit.

This is all a lead-up to displaying a most wonderful group knitting project.  A valued member of our informal knitting network is having  a much anticipated and welcomed baby, which is due in a couple of weeks.  Of course we had to knit a blanket to welcome the new baby.  But it had to be a special blanket. There was much planning and discussion - squares? a big mitred blanket? All a bit ho-hum. Lots of to-ing and fro-ing later (this group of people is capable of producing email discussion threads more than 40 posts long) and inspired by a gift to Kate Davies of Needled fame, it was decided we would each knit a  narrow strip - in a cable or gansey pattern - and, because our friend Jody has a passion for purple, and because she likes Wollmeise yarns, we agreed to knit it in shades of purple Wollmeise. This is one of those projects that shouldn't have worked; but did!

After masterly sewing up, blocking and edging by gifted members of the group, the outcome was wonderful.



[Thanks to 1funkyknitwit for the super-styled photos.]

Yesterday we had afternoon tea with more cake  and bubbles than anybody would have deemed possible and gave the blanket to Jody.  I think she liked it.



This is my small contribution:



I loved the camaraderie and exchange and fun that went into making and giving this gift. I hope it was a great gift for Jody, but I know that along the way it gave the gift of knitting pleasure to all of us who participated.