This month’s member spotlight focuses on Kim Hume, who many of you may have seen as our official photographer at in-person meetings, but probably don’t know much about. Read on to get to know her better.
How long have you been a member of the Toronto Knitters Guild? What prompted you to join? What is it that the Guild satisfies for you?
I’ve been a member for at least 15 years. I’ve been involved regularly since at least since 2009, as that’s the year I went on the TTC Knitalong and met Yun Kang, and we’ve been knitting pals and TKG folks since then.
I joined the Guild to hear and learn from the speakers each month, but it quickly became about the friendships and community. Before the pandemic, a group of us met for dinner before the meetings, and then once we had to be at home, we began meeting weekly over Zoom, and that has continued to this day.
The Guild is great for sharing and inspiring – from the speakers to the other Guild members, there’s always something new I want to make or learn more about
Tell us about when and how you came to be a knitter. Do you have ancestors or relatives who introduced you to knitting?
I don’t remember the order of things, but I learned to knit in what used to be Brownies, the precursor to Girl Guides. I also learned from my aunt and my mother. My aunt was always knitting scratchy socks and she gave me a Patons booklet on how to knit that I still have, and following along with that, I learned increases, decreases and new stitches.
A neighbour’s grandmother from Newfoundland showed me how to cable when I was still in grade school, and from there, I figured things out.
Do you feel you have an aptitude for knitting? If so, what skills/abilities come naturally to you—mathematical computation, spatial abilities, hand-eye coordination, ambidexterity…? Is there anything you struggle with? If so, how do you deal with that challenge?
I think I am a process knitter – I see things that look complicated, and I want to know how they are done. That is definitely what led me to crochet – I came across a knitting pattern I wanted to make that stumped me from the start: “begin with a crochet start.” I didn’t know how to do that, so I had to learn.
I’ve made many garments that didn’t fit, that I’ve ripped all the way out to start over – sometimes multiple times. So I’m not afraid to work on things and figure things out.
I love learning about colour and texture and combining things.
I used to teach crochet at the Knit Café and at our own Knitters’ Frolic. I’m currently teaching knitting to colleagues at work. We’re on our fourth session of once-a-week lunch lessons, and we have new beginners joining us every week. Now that a few of them are comfortable knitting, they can help each other, which is so lovely to witness.
Do you knit English or Continental or some other way?
I am a thrower, but I can knit continental, especially because crochet uses continental where the yarn is held in the opposite hand from the crochet hook, and the hook swivels around to catch the yarn. I use Continental when I’m doing colour work because it’s so much neater and the different yarns don’t get twisted.
Do you accept the proposition that knitting is about “mindfulness”?
Absolutely knitting is mindful. We just had Sally Melville come and speak to us about creativity, and how the repetitive aspect is good for the brain while also reducing stress.
What is the biggest improvement you have seen in your knitting over the last 5 years? How did that improvement come about?
I am now comfortable transposing patterns to my own gauge. It means I don’t have to find a pattern that works exactly with whatever yarn I’ve decided to knit with. It’s very freeing. The improvement came through trial and error and recognizing when the joy is there and when it’s not.
If you are producing a fabric that gives you joy – with the colour, fibre and texture that’s working – it makes all the difference.
Tell us how you go about establishing gauge when you knit? Or is gauge something you even care about?
I do gauge swatches because I like to make garments that fit. I’ve learned a lot about gauge recently by re-knitting garments I wasn’t happy with, either because the gauge was wrong for the project, or I didn’t like the structure of the fabric I got when I adjusted the needle size to get gauge.
I try to find the needle size that works with the yarn first. I want the fabric to hold together well. If the knitting is too loose, the garment will stretch. So I go down in needle size until I have what works with the yarn. Then I do a swatch and measure out my gauge, and I adjust that to work with the stitches in the pattern that works for my size.
Which weights and fibres do you most like to knit with? What kinds of things do you knit, i.e. hats, scarves, garments, toys…?
I work with all weights – from lace to bulky. I think I like fingering best, but I will work with anything.
I’ve been making a lot of blankets with yarn I’ve inherited, and those I like to crochet because it goes faster and the fabric is thicker and reversible.
I also make tops and sweaters, but most of my stash is not a sweater quantity so I have to combine yarns.
I’m also making baby socks for friends and colleagues who are expecting little ones.
What knitted item are you most proud of? What did you learn while working on it?
That will be whatever project I haven’t started yet and what I learned making mistakes while making it!
What is your day job? How, if all, does knitting fit with that?
I work for a union in communications. Knitting fits with it because I’ve discovered there are many other crafters where I work. I’ve also finally started teaching knitting at work once a week during lunch.
Have you ever injured yourself knitting?
When I’m knitting with really fine yarn and sharp needles, my left index finger gets sore from pushing the tip back through. I don’t mind, though.
Do you consider yourself to be a process knitter or a product knitter?
I am both, but more a process knitter. I don’t have any trouble taking something out and knitting it again if it didn’t turn out the way I wanted, because it’s all time spent knitting. People ask me “how long did that take you?” and I answer that first of all, I don’t know; and secondly, that it doesn’t matter, because I enjoy doing it, and it takes as long as it takes.
Do you have a favourite stitch pattern? If so, what do you like about it?
I like to try new stitch patterns all the time. I use a spiked crochet stitch in my favourite linen dishcloth pattern. I discovered this by knitting and crocheting a whole bunch of the free Knit Picks dishcloths. Crochet dishcloths hold together much better than knitted dishcloths. And making them with linen makes them antibacterial. See this free pattern. I add a border to it. https://www.knitpicks.com/sloped-lines-dishcloth/p/55553
