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Some people, most people actually, who knit and crochet are pretty casual about it. They take up knitting, make a few things, and move on. They only crochet when there is a baby on the way. They play with yarn because a few of their friends play with yarn and its the thing do to when they all hang out together. Or their knitting/crocheting must share time with quilting and cross-stitch and scrap booking.
But some of us are hard core. Some of us take this making things with yarn seriously, maybe too seriously. Are you one of them? Here are a few signs that you may be HARD CORE.
1) You have expressed your dedication to knitting/crochet by tattooing it onto your body.
Maybe you went with the classic “Knit Fast, Die Warm” tattoo.
Maybe you choose a veiled threat to all those non-crafters out there.
Maybe you immortalized a work in progress on your back.
Or maybe you just got tired of looking up the instructions for Kitchener Stitch again and again and decided to tattoo them on your arm.
In any case, inking your love of the yarn onto your skin with a thousand tiny needle jabs is a sure sign of commitment to the craft. (No I don’t have any yarn-related tattoos. Or any other kind, thank-you.)
2) You’ve invested in aggressively phrased knitting/crochet swag.
The “I knit so I don’t kill people” motto, another classic.
Or the “I don’t need a licence to carry my 9 mm”.
Or maybe you just walk around with your WIP in your hands and a warning on your chest.
If you’ve invested in the mean-crafter/grumpy-crafter/crafter-with-ninja skills image then you’re serious about it. You’re letting people know that (A) working on your project is more important than whatever they want from you, and (B) you’ll inflict bodily harm if they interfere with your crafting time. (No I don’t own any of this but that mug just went on my amazon wish list.)
3) You are making things in June. And July. And August. And on any day that get over 90 degrees (that would be 32 deg C for all you using a sensible temperature system). You keep on stitching those warm wooly things even though the air conditioning is running full blast.
Okay this I do!
I finished off this mitt just this week. Except… I don’t get the HARD CORE credit for this either. I’m cold, even in June. Now, I’m not cold outside and I’m not cold in my own home, but I am freaking freezing everywhere else. Its those blasting air conditioners you see. They just chill me right to the bone and have me reaching for a hot cup of coffee and something warm to wear. In fact, as soon as I finished off this mitt, I pulled it on and wore it the rest of the evening, dangling ends and all. (I was already wearing a crochet shawl and a knit hat at the time and was still cold.) So I’m never dying of the heat and still stitching away, but if you are the you get the HARD CORE credit.
Me? I’ll be working on the second mitt so my other arm can stay warm too. (Free pattern for this one will be up here… just as soon as I get it finished.)
4) You write ramble-y posts about yarn 5 days a week and post it to the internet.
Okay. This one is mine. I’m all over this. I get my HARD CORE credit.
5) You read ramble-y posts about yarn 5 days a week on the internet.
Guess you get your HARD CORE credit too.
"There is no failure. Only feedback." - Robert Allen
35 Comments on "Signs that you are HARD CORE"
Knitting bag with at least 2 projects in process plus one knitting magazine, mindless knitting project in purse…. I never leave home with my knitting.
Oops…. that should have read, ‘I never leave home WITHOUT my knitting.’
I got ya. Who ever leaves home without their knitting??!!
Yes you are certainly HARD CORE. And deeply addicted and I know plenty of people who would love to be included in your will.
How ’bout if you find yourself using these gorgeous summer days to scour fleece and set it out to dry. Then you can card/comb it. Then you can spin it. Then you can knit it. Talk about getting a lot of bang for your fiber buck!
Jeez that is a lot of work. Scouring fleece in the summer? What a hot sweaty job!
Yes you get HARD CORE credit. And then some.
Best time to scour is summer, it dries quicker! But then I have to use tank water (collected from the roof) so there;s more water in winter. So I scour all the year round, it’s winter here now and I have a rack full drying in the garage.
All you are in the Southern Hemi. Gotcha.
So… we all know that NZ produces some of the best wool in the world. And you just outed yourself as a cottage supply source of said wool. Maybe you should be ready for a few dozen friend request from spinners all over the world, lol.
Happy to oblige!, I have New Zealand Romney sheep with fine fleeces but not superfine from my own sheep.
Sounds just lovely! It also sounds like a soooo much work, lol.
Except for the tattoo (which I did plan on getting, it just hasn’t happened yet), I get hard core credits! Wheeee!
lol
Congrats! Which tattoo were you planning on getting?