Kitchener Graft Demystified and Simplified

That gosh darn Kitchener again! Always confusing, but it looks so good, we all want to do it!

When I first started knitting, I picked up socks pretty much immediately. I love the idea of making something functional that eventually wears out. They also have so many changes throughout it keeps the knitting interesting and fast. So let’s get to the nuts and bolts. 

Here is a little trick that I've picked up over the years. It will make grafting a dream! You'll never fear the join again! This video also has a way to speed up your grafting process, and before you know it you will be grafting while watching shows, talking, having coffee or tea with friends, while traveling...anywhere and anytime!





Happy Knitting!

-That Bits N Bobs Girl

Syringomyelia Warrior

 I am a syringomyelia warrior. You may be asking, "what does that have to do with me?" A lot actually. This is a rare disease. It only affects 1 in 100,000 people. There is no cure for it, and not a whole lot of medicinal treatments either. It's a lot of lifestyle changes and pain management. Most people who have heard of it usually know about it due to dogs. Dogs get syringomyelia a lot.

So, to the question at hand...I am a knitwear designer. I may not have hundreds of patterns, and I don't have a published book (yet). I don't submit to magazines, festivals, and I don't offer to teach my craft to others. This does not make me any less, but it does make me a different kind of designer. A designer who values every one of my knitters.

I would love to do all of the above, but the reality of my condition means I have to accept certain large limitations. These limitations affect the people who follow and knit my work. I cannot teach large groups or even small groups, to knit. It takes so much energy to teach, and I always give my students everything I have. So I had to shelve teaching. I try to make YouTube videos to help address common issues, and I hope they are useful to some. I try to keep regular on updates and pattern development, but it really isn't in the cards for me. So, I do the best I can, and greatly value all of the support I receive from knitters. 

How does syringomyelia affect my ability to work at a normal pace? I work through a crushing rib pain daily. The pain has also been diagnosed as fibromyalgia. I have nerve misfiring throughout my body due to my spinal cyst. Pain can be very wearing. I also have autonomic dysfuntion and and autonomic neuropathy. That means my central nervous system is so not working with me. My blood pressure drops drastically, I struggle with heat and have raynauds symptoms. Sometimes I wake with unexplained hand tremors that make knitting and typing and pretty much anything very frustrating for the day or week it is happening. These are a small number of symptoms I encounter. I don't want to bore you with details. I just want to give you a glimpse into a rare condition that needs more visibility. I would like to weave this information throughout the Bits N Bob's blog, because it is so prevalent in how I run my Etsy and Ravelry shops.  

So, I want to invite you on my journey. We are all warriors for different life experiences. Let's be human together.

(The Bits N Bob's Girl)

Maria

 

A Little Minty

Oh my goodness!
I went live with my Corsican Mint Socks in August and it has been crickets ever since!
I have a few patterns in the works. They are actually all written up, and at the photographing stage. Photos can be so hard on me. I have to wait for a good day physically, and the weather has to cooperate. It takes every ounce of energy to get the photos fabulous, and then it takes at least another week for me to get the photos edited and the patterns published.
I'm having low blood pressure issues with some low estrogen to boot. I'm pretty much in sloth mode even on coffee. I don't want the sloth to be my spirit animal, but right now I think it's winning. I have two amazing patterns just waiting to be published. Until I have the energy to get them up and running I would like to welcome you all to try my Corsican Mint Socks. They really are a simple pattern, but the design layout and lacy top make them feel quite complex. They are shown as ankle socks, but they can easily be converted to full length socks.

I can smell the mint now!I sometimes go sit in my flower beds and run my hands through my corsican mint. I close my eyes and feel the delicate flowers, and the plush bed of soft tiny green leaves. The sweet aroma of mint fills my lungs and calms my spirit. It helps me reach for tomorrow, and enjoy the beauty of today. I know my neighbors probably think I'm crazy, and maybe I am a little, but I love growing things. I love making my world around me more beautiful. I may not be able to bring life to the world from inside me, but I can bring life to the world through the earth and the plants I help flourish. These socks are a representation of the life this plant brings out of me. They are soft and welcoming, and feel like summer green.

To sunshine and flowers

(The Bits N Bob's Girl)

Maria

Birthdays Are The Best Days

 Woohoo! It's my birthday!!!...tomorrow!

I'm so very excited to be here! Thank God my mom wanted babies. She's the best, and she did her best to shape me into the human being I am today.

I'm sharing my joy with all of you! On October 12th I will offer a 39% discount in all of my shops (knit patterns only). All you have to use is this coupon: CONFETTI

Bits N Bob's Boutique Ravelry

Bits N Bob's Boutique Etsy (here's the coupon: CONFETTI )

(for all you Lovecraft knitters out there I can't add coupons and sales. Boo!!!)

Now let's go eat some confetti cake!

(The Bits N Bob's Girl)

Maria

Fall Spinning

Fall is upon us. All summer I dream about spinning. I get excited and inspired. I run to my spinning wheel ready to make beautiful yarn. My hands sweat, and the fibers stick to me everywhere, and I remember why I don't spin in the summer. It sadly all gets put away again until the temperatures drop below 65. This is why I love Fall so much in the Pacific Northwest.
I am very much an outdoors kind of gal. If I can be outside when the sun is shining I feel like I am accomplishing life. Heck! If I can be outdoors when it is overcast, but not raining I feel happier. I stick to knitting small cotton things or socks over the summer. It's my season for sewing, and painting, and planting. I always feel like I'm missing something though. So when the temperatures drop and I start getting my itch to spin again, I remember the joy making yarn brings me.

This is my fall project. It's quiet and simple on my low energy body. This is a Yak/Merino blend. It has a catchy name: Red. I love it. It is the color I will knit my Midsummer Rose Shawl with. I have beads and thread waiting patiently. It's been 1 year in the making now since summer and my health put everything on hold. That's ok though. Slow and steady wins the race, and spinning is supposed to be fun right?

Midsummer Rose

What are you working on this winter?

 

- The Bits N Bob's Girl

Feeling So Thankful

Hello again our loyal followers! Our blog has been down for a few years now. My sister and I had to really dial things back after the 2016 Lousiana flood. I took on the business as a solo act, but my health started to decline, and Adriana went through some major family changes. I went through a major surgery in 2018. I helped my brother-in-law with hospice care for his grandpa in 2019, and we lost our last grandmother in 2019. There have been huge life events, and with adjoing disability I have had to come and go from Bits N' Bobs Boutique.
Through all of life's little bumps I have kept my love for creating knit designs though. Every time I think I'm done designing, and I just want to knit for myself, I get a huge burst of inspiration. I knit frantically and than the slow process of publishing begins. I love seeing fellow knitters creating the items I have designed. It's like little pieces of magic all over the world that we are all creating together. When a pattern is purchased I get so much joy out of it! Granted, they don't make enough to even buy me yarn, but they make me feel like a participant in the world. I know somewhere, a baby is snuggled in a hat and bunting looking like a caterpillar, that was designed by me, and knit with love by someone else. It makes me feel so connected.
I just want to say thank you for that. For all of the support throughout the years, even with our ups and downs. Thank you for creating from patterns I designed with love and determination. I often say I am a syringomelia warrior. I see the battle before me every morning, and I work through it. It doesn't always feel like I'm a warrior though. Some days I want to quit. Some days I cry because I don't understand how people with disabilities have the ability to work and be "normal". Some days I feel like I'm a huge complainer and need to suck it up. I have good days where I feel like I can take on the world and tackle as much as the next person, and they are followed by bad days where I can't even muster the energy to knit. It's these daily struggles that make every pattern I design a major labor of love. I know my output is minimal, but I know the quality is exceptional (it's the perfectionist in me).
These patterns will be my tiny legacy. Some day, when I slip off this mortal coil, the love and creativeness I carried through the struggles will still be here. They will still be created and bringing joy and love to the world for as long as knitting is around. I couldn't ask for anything more amazing.
Hugs and Love
Maria (that Bits N Bob's Girl)