Crafting On :: Knitting with a Lucet and Making your Own Needles

 As part of his first grade handwork, Roan received a knitting fork, or lucet, last week. I did finger crochet and finger "knitting" with Willow, but I thought something different was in order for Roan.  Having had a couple years to reflect, I think something like a lucet is a little easier to do.  The lucet holds the stitches more easily than jointed fingers, and they can be stored on it in between uses.  That, for me, makes it superior to finger knitting.  Roan mastered it quickly, with a simple demonstration, and he has, as the Enki people said, made "miles" of knitted cords.

You can also see his new knitting needles here.  I knew that it would suit him more to make his own, so we purchased a dowel at the hardware store and brought it home.  I cut it to size and we used a pencil sharpener to form the points on the ends.  He did the sanding and I polished them according to the instructions from Toymaking with Children--a touch of turpentine mixed with beeswax rubbed on over a heating element.  It's definitely an adult job, but it makes for a nice thin coating of polish.  I am thinking that we'll introduce knitting using Sparkle Stories, though I'm still considering it.  Enki's story with gnomes and a dragon might be right up his alley.

For a small pleasure, I made some ankle bells from All Year Round for the children.  I was running short on bells, but they are still fun enough.  I recommend bigger and more bells.  You could embellish the bracelets in a myriad of ways and use them for everyday fun and for festivals--make up your own Morris dancing!

As for me, well, I am not doing much crafting outside of this, but I am doing a lot of reading my spare time.  I've been reading the Miss Read books about a little town in the English countryside where not much happens.  They're not so sentimental as the Lark Rise books (which I do love) and I enjoy a good book with blustery days and lemon curds.  I need to make some, I believe.

I've been creating a tidier, better organized home for the coming school year, trying to use my remaining time carefully.  I've got some sewing in mind: some warmer night gowns and dresses.  I may try to squeeze that in between the apple butter and tomato sauce.  I'm hoping I don't "roast" the next batch like I did the last one!

For more crafting, visit Frontier Dreams.