Wham Bam Mom is Knitting

My mom is an amazing crafter.  She sews, embroiders, quilts, and is just generally crafty.  As her daughter I have always had the will to do crafty things, but not always the skill.  When I started knitting it became something special to me.  Something different from my mom. 

Last Thanksgiving mom decided she wanted to make these knitted, ruffly scarves.  The yarn for these scarves comes with the loops already to knit with on the edge.  It truly was just a matter of teaching her to pull the yarn through the loops.  She liked making these scarves so much to date she has knitted 32. 

After all these scarves I knew she had the muscle memory to start knitting with regular yarn.  All I had to do was teach her to make her own loops.  Enter the Wham Bam Thank You Lamb Neckwarmer (http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/wham-bam-thank-you-lamb-neckwarmer).  The pattern is so easy and does not require the patience to knit a long scarf, or the shaping of a hat.  I would have to teach her a cast on, a bind off, and a full (loop and all) knit stitch.  I thought we were both up to the task.

I bought her some a soft, bulky, alpaca yarn and size 13 needles, I printed an extra pattern, and I was ready to go.  Saturday night with patience and attention I taught my mother to knit.  Yes, I actually taught my mother something.  She had trouble with the cast on at first, but with a few extra tries she mastered everything, but the that first stitch.  I kept saying, "Make a pretzel and put in the needle."  For some reason she never did see the little yarn pretzel.  However, everything else seemed to go well.  She caught on to tension and gauge very quickly.  And the cast-off was a breeze.
 

Mom in Her New Neckwarmer Knitting

I think she did great.  All in all it was a good experience for both of us.  I even sent her home with more yarn and a plan to make 2 more neckwarmers.  I am a little worried she will have problems.  Or maybe she will end up making 32 of these neckwarmers.  But mostly, I am worried she will get better at knitting than I am.