Summer Knitting

"I don't knit in the summer."

"Knitting is a winter activity for when it's snowing outside."

"It's too hot to knit."

Well fellow yarnies, let me tell you, that knitting is for the summer.

Okay, you don't want to be knitting a woolen afghan on a hot day, nor would we ever suggest it. The last thing we want is people dropping from heat stroke. How would you then buy more yarn?

However, there are lots of things great for summer knitting.

Unlike other crafts, knitting is portable. You don't have to drag out the sewing machine to the garden and then find a table and electricity. You don't need special light. If something gets sandy you can easily clean it (after all you're making wearables). And there's no risk of a wet kid or dog knocking your beads and sending them flying everywhere.

Granted, you may not want to knit while water skiing, but you can still take the knitting to the lake. Although that is an interesting visual. Okay, I admit it. I went looking for people knitting while water skiing. Turns out no one does it. It might make a really challenging Olympic sport.

Aerobic Knitting

I did find this.

That's right. Knitting while doing aerobics. So if they can do it, you can knit in the summer.

Now, merino wool may not be your friend in the heat, - imagine being a sheep -  but cotton, linen, and other plant fibers are. They are cool and have great stitch definition.

And the projects you can make are endless.

Think small and or lacy. This is the time to pull out those finer yarns. Lace weight, sock and fingering, and sport yarns are great for hot weather knitting. You don't have a time crunch on your hands anyway. Or you shouldn't. Now if you've over scheduled yourself in the summer then you have bigger problems then finding time to knit.

This is the time to make that lace shawl you've been drooling over. Or how about those funky socks?

It's also a great time to get a head start on Christmas knitting. Toques and mitts are small and you can handle the wool for short amounts of time.

And you can easily do pieced afghans when it's only a square at a time. No big blanket heating you up.

Dishcloths and place mats are great summer knits too especially when you're working in cotton and linen.

So settle down in your garden with a glass of ice tea or lemonade and your ears plugged into your favorite music, knitting podcast, or audio book and enjoy. Hey you can tell yourself that it's time you read War and Peace.

Just one other thing. Road trips are a great time for knitting - as long as you're not the driver. Yeah, don't do that, even if you are driving through Saskatchewan.

Posted by Anna Maria Junus (happy employee that doesn't let the seasons dictate when she knits).