[Nfb-krafters-korner] Knitting book

[Dixie]

Yes, this is the book.

And, Lynda is right, there are no pictures.  Being totally blind, pictures
are of no value to me, so I do not find that a negative to the book.


He still sells his book, but, no longer sells it through Lion Brand.   You
can contact him through the email address in that post, which is:  
davey at brailleplus.net





 Dixie
~  @-> ~ <-@  ~


-----Original Message-----
From: Nfb-krafters-korner [mailto:nfb-krafters-korner-bounces at nfbnet.org] On
Behalf Of Cathy
Sent: Wednesday, January 09, 2013 8:27 PM
To: 'List for blind crafters and artists'
Subject: Re: [Nfb-krafters-korner] Knitting book

Hi all,

I ggoogled the book "A Touch of Yarn,"  that Dixie has mentioned and found a
message on a blog that it is available as a download on the Lion Brand site,
but I could not locate it there.

But,this is really interesting, google also brought up a post from our own
Krafter's Korner from August 2010.

Here it is.
Cathy

-----Original Message-----
From: 
nfb-krafters-korner-bounces at nfbnet.org
 [mailto:
nfb-krafters-korner-bounces at nfbnet.org]
On Behalf Of AUDREY WELLNER
Sent: Tuesday, August 10, 2010 4:07 AM
To: List for blind crafters and artists
Subject: Re: [Nfb-krafters-korner] Last Monday 8/2 Night Special Chat
Interview Davey Hulse, author, A Touch of Yarn
 
Davey Hulse, Guest Speaker, author of "The Touch of Yarn"  discussion 
 
  On last Monday night, August 2nd, our special telephone chat was attended
by approximately 20 people to hear our special guest, Davey Hulse, author of
a great book called "The Touch of Yarn" discuss this great primer for all
knitters. His book teaches his personal techniques and viewpoints on how to
master
the art of knitting blind.
   Mr. Hulse started his knitting obsession approximately three years ago to
help keep his hands busy and out of the potato chip bag while listening to
his many downloaded books on Jaws. As he noticed the expansion of his girth
getting out of "hand" he decided to curtail his wandering hands by taking up
a hobby. 
    He started exploring his new hobby quest by doing latch hook work, but
he needed the assistance of his wife to read the grid patterns for him. This
curtailed his wife's activities also, and he desired to work a bit more
independently on his own hobbies. Ten years prior to this he had accompanied
his
mom on a trip to the yarn shop where they purchased long needles for him to
practice with. Their length seemed to frustrate the learning process even
further. 
Along with this frustration came the lack of printed Braille instructions
not clearly defining the pattern information to follow or precise
instructions
for the intricate hand positions and stitches to be taken.  He had more
split yarns, holes and dropped stitches than he wanted to deal with.  So out
of
this frustration grew an idea that there need to be a better manual written
to help with step by step instructions written in succinct detail. 
   His other business as CEO of "Braille Plus" in the state of Washington
was doing well at the time so he toyed with the opportunity to bring his
book
to life. Finally while sorting through a sack of unfinished forgotten
masterpieces of hope (uneven pieces of slippery acrylic yarn projects with
holes
everywhere), he felt sorry the person they belonged to never had the
opportunity to find a proper coach to assist them with finishing their
precious garments
to pass on to the loved ones. Out of this inspiration sprang his 130-140
printed page instruction manual with 16 or 17 chapters explaining in detail
such
things as, how to tell the difference between a skein and ball of yarn, how
to fix dropped stitches and how to properly label your Goodwill sack of
yarn.
    Mr. Hulse also changes standard stock patterns so they challenge his
interest by incorporating new stitches into mundane standard patterns to
hold his
interest while working. 
    Joyce Kane our president asked a question for a member (Terrence) that
could not be at our chat. 
"How are you as a male knitter perceived?"  Mr. Hulse answered that he hoped
that people seen him more as a blind knitter than a guy who knits. They seem
to be more amazed by the "blind" than the "guy". He gave an analogy of the
difference between how a woman shops for yarn than a man.  A woman needs to
touch and feel the yarn, then they just have to purchase that "feel good"
yarn for a project in the future, but then come back the following day to
scarf
up the rest "just in case" or perhaps find another "feel good" skein to
match that future project. When a guy goes to the yarn shop he purchases a
huge
quantity of yarn, takes it home never to resurface again until his stash is
completely depleted. A guy is not a stash saver, nor does he pet or fondle
the yarn. He only keeps enough on hand to complete one or two projects at a
time.
    Next question asked was - What method does he use to label his yarn,
Braille?  He used to use Braille labels on zip lock bags but now uses his
"I" phone
with an audio labeling system. You can hear more about this system on,
www.digit-eyes.com. This system was compared as a Pen friend on steroids.
Mr. Hulse
stated that the Digiteyes works with Avery labels and they are developing
"washable and reusable" labels soon.  The new ID summit (his competition)
scans
bar code labels that tell exactly what the item is, whereas Smart Phone is
used with Digiteyes. With his Smart Phone and Digiteyes he now puts on his
own
audio label indicating, color, fabric content, etc., that can be recited
back to him. 
     The next question asked - When do you give up on a project?  Mr. Hulse
answers that the learning curve is agonizingly slow. It took him a long time
to get comfortable with the feel of his knitting. This depends on how
stubborn an individual is. There are drawbacks with physical problems like
diabetic
neuropathy making it harder to feel your mistakes, but switch to thicker
larger needles and yarn and just "Go Big". He also enlightened his audience
to
the use of squared needles that are the same gauge as the round needles to
compensate for this lack of nerve ending feeling and be more comfortable in
your hands.
       Eileen asked - Were you self taught or did you have help?  He said he
was self taught. 
      Joyce asked - You talked about establishing a website in the near
future, please explain. 
He said that it should be ready next month, but in the meantime he could be
reached at:  
davey at brailleplus.net
 
      He will be developing a series of smaller pamphlets like "How to
Modify a Pattern to keep yourself entertained" costing only $3-$10.00.  He
wanted
to have something to breakaway from the massive size of his 200-300 page
Braille manual that would be more convenient to carry. 
      Jewel asked - How do you weave in two different colors when
knitting.   His response - very carefully! Along the edge of a seam, and in
a situation
of narrow strips - carry the yarn to the next corresponding row and knit it
into the next row of the same corresponding color.
      Eileen explains a different technique of knitting in a
counterclockwise manner over the next twelve or thirteen stitches then tails
track back with
a tapestry needle. Mr. Hulse refers to this method as the "candy cane"
method. 
      The next question asked - Does he use a gauge swatch?  He claims he
uses larger than 4x4 swatches. He gave us a helpful hint of carrying a 4 x 6
index
card in your pocket for instant measuring. It can be folded several ways to
obtain proper measurement without having to carry a ruler.  By making larger
samples you can see the drag of your yarn swatch when it's knitted. And
always measure repeatedly to keep a check on your tension gage problems. 
     You can purchase Mr. Hulse's book, "A Touch of Yarn", from the Lion
Brand website in a down loadable large print or Braille format for $19.95.
    Respectfully submitted,
    Audrey Wellner, Secretary
     NFB Krafters Korner division




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