Social Knitting

Nona had a post today about knitting in public. I knit in public everywhere--the zoo, the mall, the playground, the grocery store--you name it. But I also knit socially. I have a bit of an insane social knitting schedule.

On Monday nights I go to Queen Anne and knit with the Purlygirls. This is a pretty lively group. And it can be pretty big sometimes. On average there are about 15 knitters each week but sometimes we get up to 25. Lately it's been a little smaller, which is nice, because you get a chance to talk to different people.

One Tuesday night a month I have a group that I started. This group is mainly moms that I know through my sons' schools, babysitting coop and friends of friends. This group is intimate and quiet.

On Wednesday nights I go to Seattle Stitch 'n Bitch. I found this group when I went to Debbie Stoller's book signing for the first Stitch 'n Bitch. It used to meet twice a month and now meets weekly. There are over 350 people on the mailing list. But there is only a very small core group of knitters who come pretty regularly then lots of people who come very occasionally. It's a pretty mellow group. We knit, chat and eat really good food.

On Thursday, after work, I knit with a small group of friends I met mainly through the other groups. We have bonded into a very tight little group. We usually get together on the weekends too. We really let our hair down in this group. We bitch and laugh. It's really like therapy for me.

It sounds crazy, doesn't it? But this is not just about knitting. This is the only time I have all day to sit and talk to adults. I spend 12 hours a day with my kids (mostly with my now 5 year old) and a mom needs some grown ups to hang out with. And it helps that the grown ups share my passion for knitting. I have made some very good friends from my knitting groups. And that's saying something. It's hard to make new friends when you're a grown up. So go find yourself some knitters.