Recently, I got my hands on a Silver Reed knitting machine. I’ve always been into knitting, but I wanted to see if a machine could make things faster and easier. So, I decided to give it a try and picked up one of these machines.
When the machine arrived, I cleared off a big table in my craft room. Setting it up was a little tricky at first. I mean, I had to clamp it down and make sure it was super steady. I spent a good chunk of the first day just getting used to how all the parts fit together.
The next day, I started to play around with some yarn. I chose a simple, soft yarn to start with. Threading the yarn was a bit of a pain, I won’t lie. It took a few tries to get it right, but once I did, it was pretty smooth sailing. I started with a basic stitch, just to see how the machine worked. It was amazing to watch it go back and forth, creating rows much faster than I could by hand.
After a couple of days, I felt brave enough to try a small project—a scarf. I picked a simple pattern and got to work. There were a few hiccups, like when the yarn got tangled or I accidentally dropped a stitch. But I learned how to fix those mistakes, and it got easier each time. The scarf came out pretty well, a bit uneven in places, but not bad for a first try.
Then, I tried making a hat. This was more challenging because I had to shape the top. I followed a pattern I found, and it involved some decreasing stitches. It took me a few attempts to get the hang of it, and the first hat was a bit wonky. But I kept at it, and the second hat turned out much better.
- Setting up the machine was challenging but doable.
- Threading the yarn took some practice.
- Starting with simple projects helped me get comfortable.
- Fixing mistakes was a big part of the learning process.
- More complex projects required a few tries but were rewarding.
Overall, getting this Silver Reed knitting machine was a great decision. It’s been fun learning how to use it, and it’s definitely sped up my knitting. I’m excited to keep practicing and trying out new patterns. There’s still a lot to learn, but I’m enjoying every step of the way.