I just stumbled across a free pattern for a gorgeous sweater that was published like two weeks ago. No projects yet, so I check the comments. 11 days ago, "if only it was size inclusive".

This is a free pattern that is graded for XS-XXL. Every size is written out with its own instructions and the sizes, measurements, and yarn requirements are clearly listed. This is also the designer's second first pattern.

Inclusivity is great, but what are designers supposed to do? Grade it for every size? That's a bigger range for a single item than I can find clothes shopping in most stores. And for a free pattern? I've had to make many a pattern larger before so I get it, but also I feel at some point it's just too much.

If the designer writes out the pattern for 6 sizes, I'm sure you can notice the pattern and figure out what numbers you have to tweak to make it bigger or smaller. Especially because the top half is a raglan with German short rows, and the bottom half is just ribbing.

I’ve recently seen so many posts of people tying knots and chopping their ends off (sometimes including burning the ends of acrylic yarn) rather than taking the time to properly weave in their ends. It’s always something like “when you’re an evil type B crafter 😈😈😈muahahahaaaaa”

You’re actually not quirky and cute and different when you do this, it’s pure laziness and bad craftsmanship. God forbid you’re selling any of these items. God forbid you get upset when the knots come undone and your project is ruined.

Securing your ends properly is not hard. Not at all. I often weave in my ends as I go to prevent the “I’ve finished this project but I’m still not done because now I have to finish my ends!” feeling. Why would you go through all the effort and spend all that time knitting or crocheting a project just to ruin it with knots?

Edit: Wow, I did not expect so many people to get upset at this post, especially in a sub meant for complaining… I promise I am not actually angry and yes you can in fact do whatever you want with your project. I’m not going to go to your house and yell at you. I was just being honest about how I feel seeing all these posts with people promoting knotting and burning and glueing their ends. I also do not think this is “the angriest post on this sub in a long time” when there are daily posts of people cursing and swearing and throwing insults and typing in all caps etc. I stand by the fact that knotting/burning/glueing is bad craftsmanship because it is. If it works for you, great!

So basically I saw a post from @theprairiemisfit on instagram advertising an incoming drop of 15 $1 quilted witch hats made from reclaimed quilts for members of her patreon. Her hats normally go for $130-160 each and there is no way that I could afford that, so I decided to sign up to be a patron on her website (not through patreon). I was like hey it’s $5/mo for three months minimum. That’s $15 for a chance at a hat heck yeah, and even if I don’t get one I’m happy to support this creator that I found.

Moving forward, I got the password and logged into the site the minute the drop went live. I clicked on a hat and went to purchase it and while I was attempting to pay, I saw the dreaded “sold out” message. I tried this with 4 different hats and they all sold before my apple pay could even calculate the payment amount. The hats were all sold out within 2 minutes of the drop.

I and multiple others went to comment on our instagram saying how quickly the hats went and two people shared the same sentiment that the hats dissapeared while they were trying to check out. I saw 10+ comments about the hats, and they were all nice and not dogging on the creator at all just saying that they weren’t able to get a hat in time because it happened so fast. She even responded to one comment “there are plenty of hats left in the shop!” and I responded “I unfortunately can’t afford a normally priced hat even though I love them! I think we were both taking about the $1 hats for members”. I noticed a few minutes later that she had deleted every comment mentioning the $1 hats except for one person who claimed they were able to get one.

I commented again asking why she deleted the comments about the hats, which was deleted within 20 seconds of it being posted.

The creator then blocked me on instagram!!! Without even a word or a DM to me! So now I’ve just given her $5 and am locked into two more months of payment cycles for a subscription she’ll likely blacklist me from (the patreon has a monthly draw for a witch hat).

TLDR: Subscribed to a creator’s patreon for a chance to get a discounted $1 handmade witch hat, and 2 draws for a witch hat in subsequent months. The hat dissapeared from my cart during my attempt to pay, and multiple others commented with the same experience. These comments were deleted, and the creator blocked me on Instagram. Creator likely has blacklisted me from their draw for a witch hat, and I am locked into two more months of payment cycles for her patreon.

I’m aware it was unlikely I would get a hat, however I was simply curious why she was deleting comments and I feel upset that I was blocked for simply stating that I was unable to get a hat and asking why comments were being deleted :/

Ok, I’m sure I’m the millionth person to think this, but people have got to stop posting “why is my crochet deformed when I did it entirely on vibes everything right” posts.

It’s math! It’s all math and engineering and if you don’t use the right number of stitches then your dimensions will change! You are obviously not experienced enough to tell where the stitches are and get away with not counting!

Posting here to help me resist commenting “you are bad at math” on all of these posts. Thank you for your support in this difficult time.

That’s it, like I hate wanting things

I lost my job so have been using crotchet thread instead of weaving yarn because it’s the cheapest (and from a creative reuse spot not new) and was gifted a loom from a friend who upgraded but my daughter has medical stuff going on so the tiny space I did have in my living room is now used for her in house visits

The loom is also in need of repairs but I don’t have the space to repair it which breaks my heart because I want to use it so bad

I found a small 8s loom I want but when i asked my guild about borrowing it/renting no one said anything other than to rent through the guild (im so limited in space that the looms they do have are too big 😭)

I wish I could afford it but is $1400 new and no one is selling them second hand

I’m so frustrated because it’s like this with all my crafts and I feel like I have nothing now (I parent alone 99% of the time, I have no friends, I have no job, I had to quit school to care for my baby, my family is no where near me, etc)

I hate being envious honestly, it just sucks and to top it off I feel I’m putting my friends gift to waste and taking it for granted (which I swear I’m extremely grateful for and I want to use it super bad but the timing is so terrible I want to cry)

That’s literally it, that’s my bitching for the day I feel like a terrible person

Quick BEC post

So I applied to be the costume maker of my college musical theater group. There is another costume maker, but to be honest, she is not really used to sewing (I think she'll be more useful customizing existing clothing)

So today, I went and met with the actors to discuss the costumes and take measurements. And oh god. Dear god. Holy shit. These actors REALLY want to get involved in the costume design process. They had been sending messages and messages trying to micromanage me and decides every single designs details. Or course, they disregard basic costume functionality (some of them need to be tear aways, which is a limit in itself) and the limited time and budget we have (No, we cannot afford a fabric that is 30€/meter)

I don't mind getting some input, but come on ! I am the one in charge of the costumes, I shouldn't have the actors trying to impose their personal styles on the characters I am trying to dress up. I am not their personal dress maker. I am here to make costume for a character. I wish they understood that. Whatever clothe I produce will fit them, but it won't be about them. If they want bespoke clothing perfectly fit to their taste, they can commission a seamstress

I am doing my best, overloading me with demands and unfeasible ideas is not going to help me at all.

Ps : We are not theater students (we are law students actually). Musical theater is something we are doing on the side for fun as an extra curricular. Hence why things are not handled with the professionalism expected in theater studies.

Don't get me wrong, theyve had some interesting products, and the staff on the lives and bingo always seemed lovely.

HOWEVER.

I was always baffled by the fact that 99% of their own brand yarn is acrylic, and not the nicest quality acrylic at that. The only draw is that they do fun quirky gradients and some sparkly yarns.

And before you all start bean souping me: YES some people need to use acrylic, yes for some its more affordable, etc. I personally have been working with primarily wool since about 2020 but I used ONLY acrylic for about 20 years prior, since I learned as a child, so I get it.

HOWEVER (again).

Its just.... not a good price? You could literally get good quality natural fibres for CHEAPER than their low-quality acrylic?? But theirs has a gRaDiEnT. And let's be real, the vocal majority of their online fans are NOT based near their headquarters in Europe, so dont tell me its cheaper to get yarn shipped all the way from Europe to the US, or theres simply no other way to get yarn online. There are SO many cheaper alternatives that are better quality or natural fibres. EDITED TO ADD: almost £30 for a 'wheel of alpaca' which is.... 80% acrylic.

And thats not even to mention:

- the deceptive practice of having sales 99% of the time, so the 'full price' is never truly the full price

- the scarcity marketing on livestreams etc

- allowing full blown uncomfortable parasocial relationships between viewers and their staff

But mainly I just never got the hype for what is overpriced, underperforming acrylic.

I don't mean all introverts. Everybody has varying social needs. Few people are full hermits or can't be alone for a single second. People can regulate that how ever they want. It loops back into knitting don't worry.

I mean *internet* introverts. The ones who have *merch* you've seen it all over the internet. AND MEMES the endless endless memes by people who thinks anyone who wants to so much as wave at other people is a bully. Forcing them to go out side and god forbid speak to anybody.

I never understood the memes that's fine but one day I noticed. There's no opposite meme. I've never see an extrovert tote bag, magnet or teacozy. I've never see an extrovert comic proclaiming the joys of...? I can't think of any extrovert activity that isn't just a human experience or being a car salesman(the worst extroverts) It's one thing to enjoy being alone it's another to write fan fic about how happy you were that you didn't see your friends or own an extrovert(everybody clapped)

It's the same for these slow ass knitters; who love a euphemism like mindful or fully experiencing the knitting. first of all ew don't say it like that. secondly that's cope and deep down you know it. It's so pretentious

I'll give my credentials. I knit fast as fuck. I would be lying if I said I didn't like it. It's convenient to get swatches done faster. I enjoy knitting as a technical skill. Reading and understanding how the knit forms is a major interest. I actively practice different styles. To me this is a fun time. I get migraines and blessedly I can knit during them. I knit like 8 hours a day(I'm being so serious I had to stop a little it was giving me carpal tunnel) OF COURSE I CAN KNIT FAST. I fucking practiced and gained experience. This can't be happening with other hobbies/skill. Imagine joggers talking like this. Yeah people brag sometimes but like it's fine to feel proud of a skill you have. I'm not mad at serena williams.

edit: I failed to mention the migraines are almost daily and have made me almost nonfunctional. I should have explained that this speed is a consolation prize for missing out on everything

Yeah some people are better at one aspect of this skill. So what. There are so many aspects to knitting that matter tension, charts, garment construction. If you are a slow knitter with great tension, keep it that way that's awesome. Why can't they just be happy with it. They can't just knit slowly and enjoy their hobby at what ever pace they want. They need to be validated and be superior to other people. again ew.

Finally it makes no sense. Why the fuck would that be the case. It's the same knitting! In fact I'm getting more KPH(knitting per hour). I could argue that I'm actually getting more proper knitting experience. I won't because that's stupid. As if anybody making art is doing it wrong. You can only do it wrong if it's not what you want to achieve.

When we are at the secret meeting for fast knitting extroverts we don't talk about about you at all. Mostly we complain about how long sweaters take and chafing. People say it really often in "unpopular opinion" posts who cares how fast anybody knits except the top 10 because that's really impressive.

If you post about this, get a job: you clearly have too much free time. it's slandering all the normal people who knit slowly. Why do you need to be better than somebody else?

These two groups are contributing to making our culture worse. Everybody's lonely! You win. Nobody goes out so you don't even have to worry about invited to come. The pandemic brought the extrovert economy to it's knees. I haven't seen it but if I see a fast knitter apologize for this I'll vom. Nothing could matter less, this discourse is poison. Even color of knitting needles ranks above this.

If you read this I love you and I hope at least one person finds it funny. I had a great time. just in case nice shy people read this: there is nothing wrong with being shy.

I wish I remembered to snag a picture irl but I am talking about the baby sweaters that have colorwork designs slapped on the front like the one in this screen shot. The colorwork tension is awful at the edges. Stitches are tightened or loosened to the max where the color changes. Also you can see the floats peek through the front irl. I was honestly shocked at how terrible the tension was. Is this a style? it just looks like a poor job. I dont understand what they were thinking when they decided to release sweaters made this way.

sorry for any grammar/spelling mistakes. I had a procedure yesterday so my brain fog is crazy. just wanted to complain about something and these ugly things have been on my mind for weeks

For those who don’t know, there’s this viral video of a girl wearing an earwarmer over a baseball cap (much like the picture) and people are treating it as some groundbreaking invention (yet another microtrend, yay!).

The band is made by the brand Cloimh and it costs 65 FUCKING EUROS ($73). 65 euros for a garment you cant easily make in one evening with whatever yarn you find in your stash. And I guess if you don’t knit then it’s not a bad price to pay at all, it’s a small brand and they use good quality materials. That’s not my problem at all.

Since it’s so simple and has been done a million times before people started reverse engineering the pattern, some creators are already selling patterns or at least sneakpeaking them. Hell, you can open ravelry and find a dozen of similar patterns released years ago.

And here come the weird ass comments under instagram posts accusing the pattern creators of STEALING. BITCH WHO THE FUCK IS STEALING, YOUR NEW FAVORITE SMALL BRAND DIDN’T INVENT EARWARMERS!!! Not even this particular model!! Can we please stop policing pattern creators and telling them what they can and cannot release argHHH. It’s so disrespectful and feels like those people lack the understanding of inherent characteristics of a CRAFT. Sharing knowledge instead of gatekeeping is what keeps our community going, for starters.

I ain’t paying 70€ for a band while I can make it myself. Even if I pay for a pattern to save myself the trouble of doing math it’ll cost me 15€ and a cozy evening at most.

Also the brand owner is under every single one of these pattern posts kinda passive-aggresively thanking the creators for taking inspiration from her product. Shut up, I’m waiting to hear which indigenous culture SHE „stole” it from because I have a feeling the allegations are cominggg

I know art is subjective but oh my god it is so ugly and a waste of time, money and materials. Everyone who knits tHe GaRmEnT thinks they are sooo quirky.
(It’s okay to downvote me I know I’m being a bitch idk why I hate it so much).

Let me report this! Let me report the pattern that couldn't be assed to make their own crochet phone-case, or the TEMU-tier ghost hairclips. I don't care that I haven't seen the pattern itself. If they haven't even made one of the project they're trying to make us test, how can I believe it's a real pattern at all??

No, actually, I've never accidentally felted my handwash-only sweater in the washing machine, because if I can spend dozens of hours knitting a sweater I can sure as hell spend a few minutes making sure I don't accidentally throw it in the washing machine.

Oh your cat peed on your WIP? You have a cat, they get into stuff, put your stuff where they can't get at it. Your dog chewed on your expensive yarn? My sympathy for the dog, they are relying on your dumb ass to make sure they can't eat anything that could kill them. Your idiot husband threw your delicate lace shawl in the washing machine? You're the one who married an inconsiderate manchild who has so little respect for things that are important to you that he'll destroy them "by accident" to get out of ever doing laundry again.

You're why you can't have nice things. No, I can't relate. I can have nice things, because I fucking take care of them like a fucking adult.

"Try knitting a scarf first!" isn't bad advice. It's code for "You have zero clue what you're doing, Please try to get an even and flat rectangle worked up before you spend $150 on yarn, get overwhelmed, and quit in 3 weeks."

It's easier to call it a scarf because it feels more real than "swatch," and it at least gives you something to work towards.

I do not care if your "scarf" is 3 inches across. I don't care if you quit at 8 inches long because you've got the hang of garter stitch (wooo!). I don't care if you make something that doesn't at all resemble a scarf because you were practicing color changes or increases or decreases! What I care about is that you take the time to get confident with the basics because it will:

1. make you happier working on more advanced projects
2. help you to make something you'll keep and use for years, instead of a tangled WIP, and
3. it will SPARE US from your r/knittinghelp post in which you are attempting a brioche cardigan and are somehow making 6 different errors simultaneously, which someone will then list off to you in an attempt to be helpful, which will then come across as mean and overwhelming, and you will quit forever.

to experienced knitters who scold others for recommending scarf-shaped objects as a first "project": CUT IT OUT! Just because YOUUUUU were smart enough to figure out a steeked fair isle cardigan on your own first time knitting doesn't mean that that rest of us want to spend our time on the internet cleaning up the mess from it.

Bro almost always NO. Your project is one giant piece if string folded in on itself THOUSANDS OF TIMES. That spot where you messed up is attached to your yarn on both ends. You HAVE to undo all your knots/stitches to get to it. Your options are literally undo it, ignore it, or MAYBE stitch surgery, but thats gonna be 1000x harder and more annoying than just frogging, especially if youre still at the "ask reddit everything" skill level. ​

Im so tired of seeing these posts. Theyre EVERYWHERE.

I make very detailed tapestry portraits , and recently I got two enquiries and what they said was it was out of their budget. And the most frustrating part was, a woman asked me to make her tapestry patterns, like 2 of them and when I said the price , she said "oh its too expensive " ,on other hand cousins , families expecting me to do for FREE AND NOT PAYING ME

do these people think I do some sort of magic!!!

I'm soo done....

Why in the crafting community, particularly sewing, do people always feel the need to 1-up??

“Oh you alter wedding gowns? Well I’ve made hundreds of king size quilts.” Okay??? Do you want an award??

Dealing with people’s fragile ego around their craft is something I hate having to do but always find myself encountering. I will diminish my accomplishments and skills just to appease people like this and get them to shut up.

It doesn’t matter if you aren’t as experienced as anyone else. Everyone’s practice is their own. Stop putting yourself in pissing contest with others cause truly, no one cares.

Just saw someone’s post saying they want to make amigurumi and are going to teach themselves to crochet and were looking for tutorials.

And OFC the second comment was “start with the basics, first…make a granny square”

I loathe that sort of discouragement.

I started with amigurumi.
My first technique I learned was a magic circle.
Did it take me three weeks to make a pair of legs? Yes!
Did those legs get re-made once I figured things out? YES!

If I was forced to do a granny square, I probably would not have picked up my hook at all.

Let people do what excites them! That encourages them to stick with it and overcome obstacles, and/or hone their skills.

At the very least the person should have answered the question (my teacher was Crochet Guru on YouTube; she goes straight to the stitch without a lot of talking. Easy to replay.)
But they didn’t even answer they just said, “don’t do that”. One of my biggest pet peeves. 😤

First, if you are paying money for the pattern, you are getting ripped off.

Second, sleeves are a separate pattern piece for a reason.

I understand that it is historic and low waste, which are both great things, but the fit looks awful on every person I have seen it on. If you are going to take the time/effort to make a garment, there are so many better options at all skill levels.

Knit/crochet versions get a pass because I do not have enough experience with either to have an opinion.

I went to check which size needles were in my hang with a gauge ruler and got 3.25... but my 3.25 needles are still in their place and I don't keep extra. Strange.

So I test my 3.25 needles and they measure as 3.0. Well, silly me must have put them in the wrong pocket! Only I keep measuring and everything is shifting by one place... But I still have two sets of needles measuring 3.25.

I am only missing my 2.5 needles.

What has happened.

I bet the gauge ruler is just wrong in which case what the fuck is the point in it. Why bother making a product that doesn't even function as intended. That's like making a ruler where the centimeters and inches are too small. Useless.

I'll have to guess which size I'm using from now on, don't trust that crap.

EDIT: Got my calipers back and measured them. My needles are perfectly fine. It's this shit ass needle gauge. Who'd've thunk.

not something that you feel is completely valid, something that pisses you off for absolutely no good reason.

mine is when people throw the yarn when they're crocheting. I know most people do this because they learned to knit first. I know it does not affect garment quality or time spent - it actually affects nothing at all, except my rage level when I'm watching your crochet vlog. it's a hook! the hook is there to hook things! please use it 🙏

a kinda more valid one I feel, is that 99% of crochet jumpers (and a goooood number of knit ones) I see people make, have the sleeves way too short. cuffing off just before the wrists. it peeves me to no end. please, why do you think this looks good? did you just get bored? is it not uncomfortable? are your wrists not cold? i fear my wrists start to shiver in protest whenever I see one

So, I’m a knitter-crocheter combo. And every time I get the chance to talk about my hobby, I’m immediately asked if I sell my stuff. Like what???

Just because I enjoy it, can do it fast and well doesn’t mean I have to fucking sell it. I make things for myself and others, no strings attached. I enjoy what I do and know that if I were to do this as a job, I’d absolutely start hating it.

Just the thought of having to hit deadlines, interact with people and constantly hear the saying “Oh, I can make that” would drive me nuts. Not to mention dealing with markets, numbers and the prep before them…

Yeah no. I’ll continue with my grandma habits of watching soap operas with a cup of tea while knitting at my own pace. Thank you very much.