This is the pattern that inspired me to learn how to knit. It was sometime in mid-2007. I had learned to crochet in fall of 2006, but quickly discovered that the patterns I was most attracted to were for knitting. Crochet seemed so coarse and chunky compared to the soft drape of knitted fabric. So when I came across the Bunny Hop blanket pattern, I knew I just had to learn how to knit.
I went out and bought myself a Learn-To-Knit book and some needles, grabbed some yarn (probably a boucle or eyelash, knowing me at the time) from my then-meager stash, and set down to figure it out. How hard could this be? I thought.
While the book had plenty of pictures, it was incredibly limited in scope, showing only one cast-on and the English (throwing) style of holding the yarn. There was no mention of long-tail caston or cable caston or even that there were multiple methods of casting on, depending on your project. There was no mention of different styles of holding the yarn. Having come from a crochet background, I was used to holding yarn in my left hand. Now I was supposed to hold it in my right, juggle a pair of needles instead of one hook, and work these crazy stitches while sometimes holding the yarn in the front, sometimes in the back. It was a disaster. I’m pretty sure there were tears and many curses involved.
Then I got the brilliant idea to find a video of someone knitting. This led me to Knitting Help, without which I probably never would have knitted a single stitch. There I discovered something called “Continental” method, in which you hold the yarn in your [proper] left hand and pick it into your knit stitches, instead of throwing it around the needle. I learned that there were no fewer than five caston methods, and actually several more. Before I knew it, fabric was coming off of my needles. I was knitting!
Of course, I tried to make this pattern right away. And it was a disaster. The pattern tells you to “knit your knit stitches and purl the purl stitches” on the wrong side rows. Well, that was confusing. Did that mean I knitted into stitches that I had knit on the opposite side (effectively knitting the purl stitches and vice versa)? Or did that mean I knitted into stitches that looked like knit stitches? And what did a knit stitch look like, anyway? Then I accidentally pulled about 20 of the 125 stitches off the needle. Of course this was an unrecoverable error for a newbie knitter, but since I was only 5 rows in I dutifully ripped it out and cast on again. And then I dropped a stitch. And then I got a knot. It seemed like this pattern was just not in the cards. So I quit and went on to something else, a proper scarf – which is where you’re supposed to start with knitting, apparently.
Several scarves, dishcloths, cabled afghans, socks, felted projects (some intentionally, some not), a top, a few hats, two pairs of mittens, and some household knitting projects later, and I’ve come back to the Bunny Hop. A good friend and his wife are expecting, and this seemed like the perfect time to try knitting my inspiration again. And as they say, third time’s a charm.
Here’s the right side, where I’ve just started a third skein:
The yarn is actually a very dark shade of purple, but the lighting was a little wonky for these pictures and here it looks much lighter and redder than it really is. I’ve completed one and one-half repeats so far (a repeat is about 36 rows). At first the pattern didn’t look like anything at all, but now I see the reverse stockinette diamonds with moss stitch and stockinette diamonds inside/inbetween them.
The pattern is reverse on the back side:
This yarn was originally purchased for an afghan for my niece (post coming soon). I had six skeins left over, which is exactly enough yarn for this project. Isn’t it wonderful when a plan comes together?
Decidedly Pointed 