Tools and Practice

Two sides of the same coin?

Tools

Any craft is made easier and more enjoyable by tools that fit the requirements of the craft. I get a special kind of satisfaction from finding just the right knitting implement for the job - and that happiness is multiplied if I can use the object across many projects, making it a mainstay of my practice.

Practice

Speaking of which . . . confidence in one’s practice is an appealing trait. I both admire and envy confident makers who can articulate their practice: “I choose yarn fiber first, then color” or “I typically set aside 30 minutes each morning for writing.”

These statements show the listener that the artisan / artist (I love both terms, by the way) has been committed to their medium long enough to have actually developed a practice. Only a confident maker can state what their standard techniques might be, and only experience begets confidence in one’s practice - unless one’s practice is that of learning the craft, in which case the learner is gaining experience in learning. And really, isn’t that all of us?

The tools and the practice are inseparable.

As a knitter, I prefer circular wooden needles, almost exclusively. I avoid straight needles because I can’t wrangle them well. I avoid plastic tools whenever I can - even stitch markers - because plastic takes me back to the unsuccessful and frustrating knitting attempts of my childhood. I suppose I could say that my practice drives my selection of tools - but it’s also accurate to say my tool preferences drive parts of my practice.

Tomato, tomahto.

My favorite “non-production” tools (not needles or stitch markers) are shown below:

Hand Crafted Swift

Here’s a tool-driven fact about my practice: I love to wind yarn, partly because this swift turns so smoothly and partly because I find that winding yarn is a soothing meditative activity.

I purchased this simple, reliable swift about fifteen years ago at the Michigan Fiber Festival, an annual festival held at the Allegan County Fairgrounds.

Pattern Easel

The open edges of this handy easel from Knit Picks are held together by a strap that has three snaps, so you can choose the slope of your pattern display. It came with, I think, two magnets and a magnetic strip and I have lost all of that except for the one magnet you see here. There’s a storage pocket on the other side.

I don’t get any kickbacks from Knit Picks for featuring their stuff; I’m nowhere near that influential. I just think it’s a great job aid. I’m not even sure if it’s actually called a Pattern Easel. You can find similar items online or in your local yarn shop.

Here’s a practice-driven fact about this tool: I prefer to keep my pattern pages neat and together, and I work better and more quickly if I can glance at the pattern without removing my hands from the needles. I prefer not to have my patterns lying flat. Hence this tool. Some people might be able to do the same with a digital pattern and a tablet but I’m not one of them.

I use both of these tools consistently, although the easel gets a lot more airplay than the swift. And I love that I have enough experience now to make that statement.

My final favorite tool is foundational to my writing practice - literally.

Writing Desk

The two special things about this desk are that I only use it for writing (well - and as an appetizer table for parties) and that I paid $14.99 for it at a thrift shop. It has a keyboard drawer but I don’t generally need it.

What’s your favorite knitting / crochet / embroidery / painting / writing / fill-in-the-blank tool?