I have to admit that there is a little part of me that likes to knit mainly to be recognized for my talents. I can't sing very well (even though some of my friends would argue that I do), I damn sure can't draw, and I definitely cannot do complicated math. Lately, though, my knitting has been noticed more by non-knitters. Whenever I tell them that I made whatever the object they are admiring, their eyes get wide with amazement and then they are really impressed. Whenever non-knitters compliment my knitwear, they always ask if I could make it for them. In the past I would have told them that my time is more valuable and that I would rather teach them. Most would retreat and say, "Nah, I don't have the time." or "It looks hard!" in which I would say, "Well then, I guess you wouldn't be getting a handknit hat/scarf/wristwarmer/whatever any time soon!"
My paradigm has since changed and now I'm knitting for money. A coworker saw a lavender hat I made a year ago and liked it so much that she told me she wanted one for her grandaughter. Another coworker saw me working on some socks last week and immediately wanted me to knit him 2 sweaters for his 2 girls. I'll show them the goods when they show me the money!
Now, this isn't the start of some multi-million dollar company (seeing that even if I quit school and do this professionally, I can only knit so much). I do, however, enjoy the fact that people are willing to pay me for something that I love to do anyway.
The Answer
Justine (as you can tell, she JUST got this blog started) in the comments of the last post told me that a friend of hers was a fanatical knitter (like the rest of us) and will be traveling to Buenos Aires, Argentina this month. Remember in July when I talked about the knitting scene out there? Well I tried to contact you privately but that didn't work, so I will answer your question here. There are several yarn shops on this one street called Avenida Raul Scalabrini Ortiz. Here is the website of one of them.. I forget the cross street, however, on this website, if you click the word "Nosotros" you will see the address of this store, which is at the beginning of the yarn mecca. When your friend gets to Buenos Aires, I suggest she asks for directions to this store. If she finds that store, she will also find all the other yarn stores, which are packed close together. If she's a frugal traveler, the subway or bus is way cheap (about 80 centavos per ride) and pretty reliable (this is during the day, I don't know anything about the night schedule). In terms of language barriers, most of the people in Buenos Aires know some English but I would still suggest that your friend know some key knitting words (yarn-lana, cotton-algodon, needles-agujas) just so that she's not confused about what she's paying for and gets the best out of her experience.
Hopefully this information is helpful to your friend, Justine. To the rest of you, thank you for the advice on the future blocking of my CPH. I believe I will go with what Gray said. I'll iron the edges for sewing and then block the whole garment when it is finished.
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1 comment:
i have to share this! at my lys today, a non-knitter came into the store with a knitty-friend. i was helping a woman with her neckline, and the non-knitter said, "i can't believe you can make a sweater from the words on that paper!" (pattern)
i pretty much said, "well, why not? it's like making a cake from words printed on an index card!"
i understand your sentiment regarding the value of your knitting. why would someone think it's okay for you to do something hard or spend your time (but not their time) on making something.
i think elaine of seinfeld said it best ... "spongeworthy".
and, i'm knitting two christmas stockings for money. nevermind that i still haven't finished my own from last year, but i will finish these asap so i can collect the cash!
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