Day 1: Knit & Crochet Blog Week

So, it's Knit and Crochet Blog Week (who knew?) :) meaning there will be a new post everyday regarding knitting/crocheting! I know, you all may get tired of reading about my knitting obsession, but I support my craft!!

Another blogger, Eskimi Knits, came up with this idea, to host a Knit & Crochet Blog Week, and also created the topics for each days bloggings:

Here's todays:

Starting Out

How and when did you begin knitting/crocheting? was it a skill passed down through generations of your family, or something you learned from Knitting For Dummies? What or who made you pick up the needles/hook for the first time? Was it the celebrity knitting ‘trend’ or your great aunt Hilda?

So...

I began knitting in the Summer of 2007. I had just started graduate school at SIUC earlier that year and had met a good friend, Susan, as she was one year ahead of me in my program. I found out that she was a knitter the year prior when I came for a departmental visit. At the visit, we met all of the current students, including Susan, and she was just knitting away on a couch in the department lounge. After my first year was over, I realized that I needed a de-stresser and something to take my mind off school/thesis/etc., even if just for an hour at a time. And Susan had been nudging me to take up knitting...and that she'd teach me. She did, and I became obsessed. While we were still in school together, we worked on a few projects together, which included fingerless mittens (so cute!) and we continue to share projects and talk knitting every once in awhile...even though we're states apart! Thanks Susan! You were such a great teacher and I'm so glad you started me on such a great hobby! :)

Here's us in action on our mittens: