Knitting with a Plan

There is a common misconception that creative people don't plan--they just let things happen. The fact is, creativity can be hard work. Novels don't write themselves and patterns don't design themselves. Neither do great paintings or sculptures just happen with no planning.

Planning and creativity are not mutually exclusive. In fact, just a little planning can make knitting even more fun than it already is. What are the advantages of planning your knitting time? Here are just a few:

• Save money. A plan means you can watch for sales on the yarn you need or choose projects that use yarn from your stash.
• Save aggravation. Your plan includes a list of all the needles, buttons, and other items you may need. Eliminate unscheduled trips to the store for a cable needle or more stitch markers.
• Learn more. You can plan to learn new skills by including those skills in your project plans and practicing in advance of the project.
• Have fun! Planning is one of my favorite things: gathering library books and internet pattern links, looking at yarn displays, and picking my favorites to include in the plan.

Through my decades of knitting, I have loosely planned for a "year of shawls" or "year of socks." Such plans mean I will get to practice the same skills over and over, having ample opportunity for improvement along the way. Choose a knitting skill you'd like to learn, then plan several projects of increasing difficulty in order to develop those skills.

This is my "Year of Design" in which I try to knit mostly new designs created by me. It is also a year to learn how to write patterns others can follow, create knitting charts using Excel and Gimp, and publish the completed patterns. So far I'm having a blast! You can find some of my original designs on Ravelry, the social network and pattern database for knitters and crocheters. I highly recommend joining Ravelry, as there are groups for all sorts of knitters and the pattern database is full of downloads, many of them free. If you need help solving a knitting problem, somebody in the community is bound to be able to help.

I understand you free spirits--I am one of you! However, a plan is not a rigid "to-do" list. It is a proposed structure that gives you an opportunity to be creative as you work within boundaries to achieve a certain goal. Think of it as the frame of a house, enabling and supporting everything you choose to build on top of it. Your goal might be to make unique hats for all your uncles and brothers or to learn to work cables with skill. Create a plan to harness and focus the power of your creativity.

A plan is not a box meant to contain and stifle you. Rather, it is a way to give structure to your creative impulses so you can create more and better projects. For a business application of this concept, read Thinking Inside the Box. As the author of that book points out, a plan is like a box that keeps all your ideas from spilling all over the floor and making a mess. The plan is liberating, not enslaving. You are in control and can change or just tweak the plan as your needs or goals change.

Please have fun with your knitting and let me know your plans by leaving a comment below. I love to know what others are working on. Happy stitching!