Lately I've noticed when I knit two-handed I knit much faster Continental, maybe twice as fast. I knit English/American (aka, throwing the yarn) when I knit plain stockinette or lace or textured stuff. I am planning to do a plain sock project Continental to see if I notice a speed difference.



The other thing I'm noticing is HOW I knit with 2 colors. I know there are people who knit with 2 colors by looking at the stitches on the needle and determining what colors to knit by where they are in the row. I go by the numbers pure and simple. I'll look at the chart once, determine I should be knitting 3 black, 2 white, 4 black, 1 white, etc., and then just count 3,2,4,1, on and on throughout the row. I'll occasionally look down at the row to make sure I haven't screwed up but too much looking at the knitting slows me down. Once I get in the rhythm I'm not doing as much mental counting - I think at some point the fingers take over and remember how many to knit of each color on a row. Things get even faster when I memorize a chart pattern and no longer have to consult the chart.



I was asked by Kathryn in the comments about how I manage to finish so many projects. I am definitely a production knitter. I really love looking at piles of items I've finished and I usually only do small projects which helps. Knowing I need to show a picture of something on this blog also helps me knit faster.



I have the luxury to knit A LOT, maybe 4-6 hours a day during the week (weekends much less). Knitting with 2 colors is fastest for me because I find it so much more interesting than other types of knitting.



I knit while playing Scrabble or Jeopardy with DH. I knit while watching tv - in fact I feel weird if I'm watching tv and not knitting. I knit while surfing the web. My best knitting time is while listening to tapes by the Teaching Company. DH and I sit on the floor next to Peaches the rabbit and the cats come in with us and we all hang out together. Listening to the tapes is perfect knitting time actually.



Here's some of the stuff that went to the Albuquerque Rescue Mission this week. I included my Level II and III sweaters and was incredibly happy to get rid of them. I considered including Ringblomst (Dale of Norway sweater) since I never wear it but I changed my mind. I hope to fill another box full of goodies for them by the end of the year.