There's An App For That

I got my first iPad in the summer of 2010. You may or may not know that I work in the publishing industry. I told myself it was research for my job because we'd be selling more ebooks and I wanted to know what the environment was like. That made for an awesome excuse. Now, I'm on the iPad 3 and I really just love it. I read on it almost every day I read a few magazines on it (Martha Stewart Living is actually one of my favorites!), play some games and knit with it. Yup. That's right. I knit with it. Since I knit with it so often, I thought I might let you in on the apps I've used and which ones I like best for knitting. All of these apps are available for iOS devices, but if you have an Android device, I think some of them are available for those as well. I know Dropbox is at least.


ibooks - Free! - I almost exclusively read books on my iPad now. I'll only really ever get a physical book if there is no ebook available. That means that often, my knitting books are pbooks instead of ebooks. I've found this is a great way to hide my book stash from my boyfriend. However, I've also found that when reading pbooks, I tend to try to highlight words I don't know to define them. That functionality really doesn't work as well in a pbook, by the way.
I actually haven't been using iBooks for pdfs of patterns at all. I will use it for pdf ebooks like Ysolda's Little Red in the City. I can highlight and add notes to things I find important and keep bookmarks of things, but for patterns, I find there are other apps that have better tools to help knitters.


Goodreader - 4.99 - You can get a free version of this app, but trust me, the $5 you spend on this app are WELL worth it! It's best for pdf files, I have had some trouble with using word files. Why is it awesome though? Do you knit shawls? You do? BAM! make a line and drag the line up the chart. You know exactly what row you're on and what to do on it. Add a note to let yourself know how many times you've done that repeat of the pattern. I'll bet that sweater you're working on has multiple sizes right? Highlight the instructions for the one size you want to knit. You can add arrows to point towards directions in written patterns to let you know where you left off. It's pretty sweet. You can transfer patterns onto Goodreader from your computer if your device is connected, or over wifi. You can synch Goodreader with your Ravelry queue (via the instructions here). Or you can import the files from a cloud service.


Dropbox - Free! - Dropbox is definitely my cloud service of choice. They start you off with a certain amount of space, but every time you refer a friend to their website and that friend joins up, you both get more space. I put music, photos, patterns and all sorts of stuff on there. If I want to share anything, I can send a link to someone so they can access just that one file. You can also use it to review patterns and things like that, but it doesn't have all that functionality of Goodreader, so it's good for reference, but not so great at keeping track of where you are in a pattern.

Knit-N-Count - $2.99 - I've used a few different counters. For a while, I was using the StitchMinder app to count rows. But when I started using two counters of the four counters StitchMinder provides to you for one project, I thought that might not work for the long haul. In Knit-N-Count, I can name projects, keep notes on them if I want (I've actually copied in a whole pattern for a simple sock before and used that instead of goodreader), all in addition to the counter. This counter is actually quite sophisticated for a counter. You can set alarm rows, repeat rows, pattern repeats and it'll keep track of your total row count as you're doing all of that. Make a mistake or accidentally press the row button one too many times? No problem, hit the frog button and the counter goes back a row AND makes a "ribbit" noise!

Those are the key apps I use to knit with on my iPad. I also read Vogue Knitting on my ipad (from the Newsstand) and if I want to grab an Interweave magazine, I'll nab it off their website so I can import it to Goodreader if there's a pattern I want to use. You can get IK from the Zinio Magazine app, but it's not a pdf, and oftentimes they're slow in adding things to Zinio.

I used to make a copy of a pattern from a book so I wouldn't have to lug the whole book around with me. I'd put it in a sheet protector, and when I was done with it, I'd stick it in a binder. Now, I scan the document into my computer, pull all the pdfs into one document and load it up into Goodreader. There are some books that doesn't quite work for. I bought Cookie A's Knit Sock Love and the size of the book made it quite difficult to scan the pattern in from my home scanner (with legal sized glass) as well as work's scanner (more like a tabloid sized glass). I ended up typing the pattern up in word and bringing it into Goodreader like that (which is how I know you can't really edit any word documents in Goodreader). I'm not sure what I would do if I needed to do something similar for any of her other patterns that are more complicated or included a chart. I'll cross that bridge when I get there.

Knitting On the Go: MacGyvering It

No matter what kind of trip, or what your destination, if you're knitting, you'll need more than just yarn and knitting needles. It's really easy to forget scissors, tape measurers and cable needles at home. It's even easier, sometimes, to drop a stitch marker. But don't stress! Dig in deep, pull out that mullet wig from your carry on bag and embrace your inner MacGyver.

Problem: You dropped that stitch marker under your seat and can't squirm enough to pick it up.
Solution: There are a number of items that can be used to mark where you are in a pattern or the beginning of a row. Twistie ties from some airplane snacks can be twisted at the ends to form a ring that can be used as a marker. A rubber band and another piece of yarn can also work. If you get into a really tight spot, try the tab rom a soda can. It's not ideal, since parts of the tab can be sharp and cut the yarn, but it'll work in a pinch.

Problem: I totally left that tape measurer at home and my pattern says to knit until piece measures 16" from cast on edge!
Solution: Pull out my card! No, really, standard business cards are 2 inches wide and 3.5 inches long. Crease the business card in half to find the center and then just keep flipping the card over itself to measure your piece. If you're knitting the instep of a sock and aren't sure if it's time to start the heel or toe, you should know that the length of your foot is the same as the distance between your elbow and your wrist.

Problem: I forgot a pair of scissors!
Solution: Try a pair of nail clippers, or ask for a can of soda and carefully try to use the mouth of the can to cut the yarn.

Problem: My cable needle is stuck in my checked luggage!
Solution: Unless you're doing a super complicated cable, I can cable without a cable needle! For a cable that crosses to the left (a front cable), insert your right needle through the back loops of the stitches you need to knit first. Then, slide all the stitches off the needle carefully, and place the stitches that will cross to the left or front onto the left needle. Slide the stitches from your right needle back to the left needle and knit according to the pattern. For a right crossing cable (a back cable), instead of sliding the right needle through the back loops of the stitches you need to knit first, slide the right needle through the front loop of the stitches you need to knit first and follow the same directions. A video for this technique can be found here.

Problem: I knit too far and my stitch holders are in my carry on in the overhead bin.
Solution: This is the perfect time to ask the hot dude next to you for some floss. If you find that too embarrassing, however, you can always use a bit of yarn. Ideally, you'd use a contrasting yarn, but if you're stuck in a window seat without any other yarn, sometimes you've just got to make do.

Problem: I forgot this was an intarsia pattern and now I need bobbins!
Solution: Well, you don't really need bobbins. Sometimes bobbins make things easier, but you can use the whole ball of yarn and just move them around each other. You could also use a twistie tie to wrap small hits of yarn around, or you could make mini 15 yard balls.

Problem: My traveling companion freaked out and threw out my darning needles when she saw them thinking they aren't allowed on our mode of transportation but I have to seam this sweater and weave in the end!
Solution: It took me a while to figure this one out. I think the only solution I could come up with was to use a twistie tie Fold it in half and twist the bottom part around itself leaving a hole at the halved side for an eye.

Problem: I need to use the rest room but I'm afraid my stitches will fall off the tips of the needles.
Solution: You can either use a rubber band or hair elastic to keep the stitches off the tips or, you can stick your needle through a piece of in-eaten gum (you should really only do this with an un-sticky kind of gum - Orbit would work ok, but Trident Layers might not be preffered)

Problem: My dog got anxious in the back seat and ate my row counter.
Solution: Count the "v" shapes on top of each orther to figure out what row you're on. There at some pretty great smartphone and iPad apps out there that hopefully will be less likely to munched by your pooch. You can use Any note taking app, even an email or text message to keep track of your rows once you've figured out where you are in the pattern. Also, while I've almost completely scorned pen and paper, that dynamic duo can also help you in this instance


When possible, it's probably less stressful to prepare for these kinds of situations in advance. I have a Knit Kit a friend gave me as a gift. I found a spot in my purse to keep it and always carry it with me. It's got a yarn cutter, a crochet hook, a counter, stitch markers, a tape measures and a set of scissors that are TSA compliant. I call it a Swiss army knit for knitters.

I've got a few trips coming up in the next couple of months, and writing thesse posts has actually been rather helpful for my own planning. I hope they've been helpful to you as well.

Safe travels wherever the summer might take you and knit well!

Is all knitting so touchy feely?

I was poking around Amazon this afternoon and found the book Knit in Comfort. I started thinking to myself: why do I see so many novels about women finding themselves through knitting? I thought, why don't I write the less dramatic book about a woman finding her friends through knitting. Then I realized what I was saying.

I'm that woman.

I moved to the city, started reading all the time and realized I was only living in my head. To get out of my head, I taught myself how to knit, and I started finding knitting groups to be social. I met friends, awesome friends that I've had for a while now. I had some awesome experiences (remember the yarn bus, the first Rhinebeck experience, and moving the stash to Stan's?).

Looks like knitting is a life changer after all. Even if it isn't as touchy feely as all those novels make it seem.

I wonder if a non-touchy feely knitting life changing book would sell. Probably not. I'll bet a book that describes the intersection of dating and knitting would be hilarious and sell quite well though. Call it "When to Flash Your Stash."