When I was nineteen I had a small accident with a power tool and lost the end of my right thumb. It's about a half inch shorter than my left thumb. Thinking it through, this difference could be the source of my knitting pain. I've been scouring forums about knitting pain, and my pain isn't typical. The locus of my pain is at the base knuckle of my right thumb. I suppose it could be arthritis, but I think it is a stress injury.
Tony Iommi, the legendary guitarist for Black Sabbath, lost the tips of his fingers in an accident in a sheet metal factory when he was young. He made thimbles to extend the tips of his fingers so he could keep playing guitar. It worked. I'm going to try making a thimble that will extend the length of my right thumb for knitting. I think this might take the stress off the joint.
What didn't work for me was Portuguese style knitting. The way I usually knit (Continental, with the working yarn held in my left hand and picked-off with the right needle) offers the greatest economy of movement. After a week of trying Portuguese knitting, my left hand feels tired and muscle-sore.
What I'm going to try next is Norwegian purling. My right thumb/hand hurts the most when I purl. (Elizabeth Zimmermann, who was one of the most creative and influential knitters of all time, disliked the purl stitch to the point of avoiding it whenever possible. She was also a Continental style knitter). I taught myself the Norwegian purl stitch last night, which is formed with the yarn held to the back of the work, rather than the front. Now, it's a matter of practice and assessing how it affects my hands.
Tony Iommi, the legendary guitarist for Black Sabbath, lost the tips of his fingers in an accident in a sheet metal factory when he was young. He made thimbles to extend the tips of his fingers so he could keep playing guitar. It worked. I'm going to try making a thimble that will extend the length of my right thumb for knitting. I think this might take the stress off the joint.
What didn't work for me was Portuguese style knitting. The way I usually knit (Continental, with the working yarn held in my left hand and picked-off with the right needle) offers the greatest economy of movement. After a week of trying Portuguese knitting, my left hand feels tired and muscle-sore.
What I'm going to try next is Norwegian purling. My right thumb/hand hurts the most when I purl. (Elizabeth Zimmermann, who was one of the most creative and influential knitters of all time, disliked the purl stitch to the point of avoiding it whenever possible. She was also a Continental style knitter). I taught myself the Norwegian purl stitch last night, which is formed with the yarn held to the back of the work, rather than the front. Now, it's a matter of practice and assessing how it affects my hands.
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On another note, it's sunny today :- ) And, all four of the hens gave us an egg this morning.
I hope your thimble idea works! Seems odd though that you would have a stress injury now, after all the years you have knitted. In any case, I hope you are right, as a solution seems possible.
ReplyDeleteYay for egg-laying hens! Remembering how little they were when they arrived at your house, its funny to think of them laying eggs now. But I say the same about children. Not that they lay eggs, but that they grow up and change and do things.
I do hope the thimble works, I am sure it could not hurt. I think if you keep trying different things you will eventually find your technique/cure!
ReplyDeleteThank you for your kind thoughts, ladies :-)
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