Top Tips for Knitting on the Go

Does anyone else look forward to 7 hour car trips as 7 hours of knitting time? If I'm flying, I don't mind getting to the airport early or long layovers. It is just more time to knit. It is a thrill to dig into a project, watching it grow before your eyes, knowing that nothing will interrupt your flow.

Sometimes, though, it doesn't go according to plan. Sometimes I start to think that something might not be quite right, but I soldier on anyway. Because when I have the choice of knitting the wrong thing or not knitting at all, I usually choose knitting the wrong thing. And then I rip.

Here is how to avoid that folly.

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The start of Hipster in Handspun Hope Cotton

One: Start your project before your trip

Not everyone agrees with me, but I ALWAYS start my travel projects before I leave town. In the first rows of the project I am

• learning the stitch pattern
• evaluating my needle choice (both size and type)
• deciding if I'm going to like this project

I want to do those things at home, so I can easily correct mistakes or change my mind. When I settle into my seat at the airport, I want to be able to take advantage of my dedicated knitting time. As we pull out of the driveway for a long car ride, I'm ready to dig in. I don't want to realize after 15 minutes that this isn't going to work as planned. I want the thrill of uninterrupted knitting time and the inches that go along with it.

Two: Print Your Pattern

Digital patterns are convenient and easy on the environment, but for travel I want a paper copy that doesn't depend on whether my phone is charged or not. I often think I remember what I'm supposed to do. I often don't actually remember.

Three: Bring extra circular needles in the same size

Circular needles are best for travel because they are harder to lose. Nevertheless, I'd bring an extra. Trust me.

I now ALWAYS use circular needles on a plane. You can imagine..... I had 3 rows of passengers and a flight attendant on their knees looking for my grey, metal needle!!! 

Make sure you confirm the size before you stick it in your bag. I've knit whole sections of a project with the wrong size needle and I know I'm not the only one.