[Nfb-krafters-korner] Rag Rug - Cord

[NCBootman]

Hi Linda,

I'm glad you found us. Feel free to write me offlist about some of this 
how-to stuff that isn't craft related. I've been doing it for a long time 
and can help. ncbootman at gmail.com I'm at a point in my own life with crafts 
where if I think or someone tells me I can't, my response is WHY. You said 
you only have knitting and crochet left. Well, if I had to depend on 
knitting for my supper, I'd go hungry lol. I do macrame. As a kid, I painted 
a picture since all the other kids were. Well, someone saw mine and they saw 
bunny rabbits and flowers and all this stuff. So, if you take a notion to 
grab a paintbrush, do what your hand and brain tell you and just let it 
happen. I used to do a lot of macrame. As a blind person, I don't want to 
refinish furniture. But, I can sand like nobody's business since seeing folk 
miss huge issues that we feel. So, you are at the right place to use all 
those items you wonder why you still have them. What do you want to do next? 
Welcome.

Greg in NC
--------------------------------------------------
From: "linda" <the_ninn at tx.rr.com>
Sent: Saturday, September 25, 2010 10:32 PM
To: <nfb-krafters-korner at nfbnet.org>
Subject: [Nfb-krafters-korner] Rag Rug - Cord

> Hello, hello everyone!
>
>
>
> I  am so excited to have found you all!  I feel like I've been Stranded on 
> a
> desert island for years now, searching for ways to use items on the island
> to perform tasks I used to do, only  without the usual accoutrements! I 
> have
> searched for resources  near and far to help me in my quest -  others who
> have gone before me and figured all this out already.  I mean, why 
> reinvent
> the wheel, right!  I have been managing, but with limited results.
> Sometimes I feel like I am going around my elbow to get to my mouth - 
> there
> has to be an easier way - I just haven't found it yet!
>
>
>
> I have a million questions to ask you all on how you manage with limited 
> or
> no sight, but we'll get to that later!
>
>
>
> My name is Linda Flanagan and I live in a suburb of Dallas, Texas.  I am
> divorced and have 3 lovely grown daughters and 8 grandkids ranging in age
> from 18 to 5 year-old twins!  I love all things craft!  I have done
> everything from all kinds of needle work to painting to macramé to
> refinishing furniture.
>
>
>
> I also have a passion for a variety of sports and miss being able to
> participate.  Knitting and crocheting are about the only things from my 
> past
> that I have been able to  get back.  However, if you put a golf club in my
> hands and point me in the right direction, I just might surprise you!
>
>
>
> I learned to crochet and knit in my early twenties, but gave it up due to
> the time constraints of being a single mom raising 3 kids on my own.
> Meanwhile, I was losing my eyesight.  Thirty years later, I decided to try
> to pickup my knitting again in 2006, reasoning that if totally blind 
> people
> could knit, then so could I.  I checked at church and found that there had
> been a knitting group in the past, and set about getting it started up
> again.  All of the ladies I knit with have been wonderfully supportive and
> helpful, but cannot really relate to my special needs.  I knit and 
> crochet,
> however, I find that knitting is easier for me as I can feel the stitches 
> on
> the needle easier than I can feel crochet stitches.  That being said, I 
> love
> a challenge and am constantly pushing myself to master new stitches and
> techniques in both disciplines.
>
>
>
> Now, about that "I" cord.
>
>
>
> An "I" cord is made on double-pointed needles- DPN's using only knit
> stitches, and rather than turning your work at the end of each row, you
> slide your work to the opposite end of the needle and knit from that end.
>
>
>
> Thinking about a rag rug, I made a sample using a heavier weight yarn
> (probably a5 or6) and size 10 DPN's.
>
>
>
> Cast on 5 stitches.
>
> Now, slide those stitches back across the needle to the other end.
>
> Your tail and the working yarn are now on the left side of your stitches.
>
> Insert your right needle into the first stitch knit wise.
>
> Take the working yarn in your right hand and pull it snuggly across the 
> back
> of your work.
>
> Yarn over your right needle and knit the stitch off the needle. (See note
> below)
>
> Pull the working yarn to tighten this stitch.
>
> Knit the remaining stitches, being careful to keep your stitches snug. 
> The
> tighter your stitches the more compact your cord.
>
> Now slide your work to the opposite end of your needle and repeat.
>
>
>
> (Note:  This will feel awkward as your working yarn normally comes from 
> the
> right side of your stitch, only now it is coming from the left.  Don't let
> this throw you.  Just pull the working yarn across the needle and complete
> the knit stitch.)
>
>
>
> With this weight yarn and size needles, you can actually feel the hollow
> space  inside your cord.  For a draw string, you would use fewer stitches,
> maybe only 3 stitches and your cord would be denser and you would not be
> able to tell it was actually a tube.
>
>
>
> I think you will find this a useful technique to add to your stitching
> repertoire.  If you have questions, just let me know and I'll try to 
> explain
> it better.
>
>
>
> Thanks, Joyce,  for inviting me to share.  I am looking forward to getting
> to know everyone in the future.!  For those of you who are just getting
> started, welcome to the Knit Side!  Stitch on!
>
>
>
>
>
> Blessings,
>
> Ninn
>
>
>
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