It seems like a few years ago, everyone I knew belonged to a "book club". The premise of which was that a group of friends get together once a month to discuss a novel at someone's house over wine and food. I always figured it was just an excuse for a bunch of women to get together and chit-chat, and the thought of having to read a book that someone else chose for me didn't seem like that much of a good time. When I read a book, I like to choose it myself and not be under pressure to have it read by a certain date. Besides, the potential for a boring discussion over a potentially boring book that I may not even be able to get through was enough to steer me away from the "book club". Then this past summer I got a phone call from a friend asking me if I knew how to knit and amazingly enough I did! So one night this lady had about eight of us over to her house, we all brought some sort of knitting project, a bottle of wine, and some yummy treats to eat and suddenly our knitting club was born!
I first learned how to knit when I was pregnant with my second baby. A friend of mine was a fantastic knitter and got me started on a little baby sweater. I would knit at my house, and when I got stuck, or had a problem, I could take it to her and she would show me how to fix my error. After completing that first little sweater, I was hooked, and found myself not needing my friend's help every time I had a problem. Knitting is one of those things that looks difficult, but once you get going, and fix a few mistakes yourself, you realize how easy it is, and that you can knit just about anything!
Before the start of our knitting club, I hadn't knit anything in years, but now I'm addicted again, and everywhere I turn, I'm seeing that it's actually very "hip" to knit! Lots of big movie stars knit, Julia Roberts, Daryl Hannah, Juliana Margolis, some of them even came out with a book of their favorite scarf patterns! Poncho's are all the rage in fashion right now and there are many, many great patterns and yarn types to choose from to customize your own poncho and it's actually very easy. I think everyone in my knitting group is knitting a poncho right now.
If you're interested in knitting but don't know how to get started, the best thing to do is to walk into a knitting shop, and you'll be surprised how many there are! The shop will almost always offer a beginners class, and if you purchase a project from the store and get stuck with something, all you have to do is go back and ask for help. I've found that knitters are always happy to help a fellow knitter, and no matter how daunting a mistake in your knitting looks, it can always be fixed, and usually quite easily. Don't be intimidated by knitting, it's not just for grannies anymore! It's a very rewarding and relaxing thing to do in your spare time.
