Confidence

When I was trying to come up with something worth writing about today, my first thought was about socks. Blame the Shur’tugal socks I’ve been working on since January. Specifically, I was going to write about another reason why socks are great for travel knitting besides from the portability and enjoyment in progress socks provide. Then I changed my mind. 

My toe-up Shur’tugal socks have been growing one row at a time and gusset is not far off. Before the socks got any longer, I wanted to figure out where the gusset would start. Of course, I can’t remember to work the math at home with paper, pencil, and a flat table. I was sitting in a car and doing the calculations on the back of a napkin. The math wasn’t hard and I knew what I was doing because I done the same calculations for most of the 20+ other pairs of socks that I’ve knit. Number crunching finished, the gussets needed to start at 6.5”. The socks are currently 5” long so I’ve got a few more rows before I have to keep track of increases. 

I thought about writing a tutorial about gusset and heel flap placement but realized I was missing the larger point. 

Sock - hat/fingerless mitts/sleeves/hexipuff/whatever you please - knitting is prime travel knitting because of confidence and practice. I finished my first pair in front a computer with a video about kitchener stitch going on repeat. At the time, socks were not travel knitting. It was only after finishing several pairs and liking how they fit that my confidence grew. Took even longer for me to start hauling them around in my purse during errands because I could fix any problem that came up. The fix might be ripping out most of the sock but I knew I could do it. 

Confidence. In knitting and everything else that we do, confidence in our skills and in ourselves is important and absolutely necessary. It is the first step towards reaching any goal and finishing every project. Why bother doing anything if you’re sure you’ll fail?

If you’re starting or learning something new, it’s probably going to be hard work. It’s probably going to take time. You might make mistakes but, know this, you’ll get there. I’m rooting for you.