The good news is that I am knitting again! I had a two-month hiatus from knitting brought on by pain and swelling in my wrist and thumb – a flare-up of DeQuervaine’s tenosynovitis after many years. I finally decided to start knitting again even though these issues aren’t entirely resolved. I am being extra careful – not knitting for more than 30-40 minutes a day, skipping days, using ice, paying attention to how I hold my needles, etc. (Reader, please beware of deceptive photos – it is unseasonably warm in the UK at the moment; this photo of me knitting in the snow is several years old. However, it looks rather seasonal and jolly, so I’m going with it.)
The bad news is that I can’t tell you about anything I am knitting. I had some rather glorious (and far-fetched) plans to knit some lovely Christmas gifts this year. I had in fact started one when the wrist intervened. I am now hopefully on track to finish it in time; we shall see. It is a completely beautiful project and one that I have wanted to knit for many years. Unfortunately, it must remain a secret (as it is a gift intended for someone who most definitely reads these posts), which gives me very little to report to you here. This is a fairly common dilemma for knit bloggers – December is frequently a high-intensity-knitting month, but it also entails some degree of cloak-and-dagger.
Despite the fact that I have needles in hand once again, I can see that I will need to make some adjustments over the next few months. I am primarily a sweater knitter; I tend to make big projects that take a long time. (This is due not only to the types of projects I choose, but also to being a fairly slow knitter.) I don’t make many smaller projects, not because I don’t like them but rather because I am so enamoured of sweaters that they tend to take over my queue. I have decided, however, that until my hands get better, I will switch to smaller projects. Otherwise I will never finish anything. So prepare to see mitts, hats, and cowls. (But probably not socks! I think it will take more than a little hand pain to get me knitting socks!)
So glad you are knitting again! I am on a trend of fingerless mittens as my hands are often cold. I would love to see you show us some wonderful options in that category.
Knitting small things are better than no knitting at all. Do to fibromyalgia I don’t knit any thing big (almost nothing) but it’s nice too be able to make something with yarn 😊
I agree with the dilemma you describe of large projects overshadowing the smaller, fun projects, this happens to me. What I’ve done is create a folder of all the small items I never get round to and I’m prioritising them, as these ones have been kicking around for a few years. Every time I finish a big thing, I’m going to make a few small things!
Glad you can do some knitting again. I agree secret knitting is very frustrating when it comes to blogging. Hope your hands continue to improve.
Painful hands/wrists is the THE WORST. I am so glad you are feeling better! Knit carefully!