Finger Knitting to Giant Nancy

Dear Meredith,

Just a quickie to show you I have finished adjusting my Giant Knitting Nancy.

It took a little while to find all the parts. Finally, in a pile of rubble, I found the best giant cable spool I could have hoped for. I am tempted to write to Doncaster Cables to thank them for creating a thing of beauty.

Then came the red doorknobs from my favourite hardware store. They make it very easy to use, as they hold the yarn in place well and are nice and smooth, so it slips over easily. If I was on a super recycling kick, I'd use some of the cupboard door handles I've salvaged (aka, unscrewed off things in skips), but the red ones just clicked.

Lift it over...

And drop...

I love changing colours...

I enlarged the hole in the centre of the spool with a jigsaw, to give the knitting more space to pass through. I also cut a hole in the side for ease of use (tugging at before it's long enough to reach out the bottom and generally easier access) and a good view...

A light sanding helps it all flow smoothly, without snagging. There it is emerging from the bottom...

I was initially using legs that just slotted in (to the pre-existing holes), from a Giant Nancy my mum made a good few years ago. Though quick and easy to put together and great for transporting, they were a little wibbly-wobbly for my needs, so I screwed in a sturdier trio. They make the whole contraption stand at a comfortable height to use when standing up.

Unfortunately, I missed seeing Superblue's fun Giant Knitting Nancy project last year. I like that they use 16 pegs, making it more of a knitting loom.

Superblue Giant Knitting Nancy from Superblue on Vimeo.

Using that synthetic rope is a good solution, but since I'm all about spreading the fun of Finger Knitting at the moment, that's what I'm using. It's a nice way to tie the concepts together, as both systems (fingers and dolls) produce the same structure.

Here I am Finger Knitting and then French Knitting it straight in to the Giant Knitting Nancy.

The time ratio isn't great - the Finger Knitting takes a good deal longer than the French Knitting and you need a lot of it! And you want lots, because the French Knitting part is really fun to do. I'm experimenting with some other materials too.

xoxAnna

PS. I have since added a video of how to finger knit.