Methods

When I posted about colourwork, Gyda mentioned that she holds both strands in one hand. Here is a link of the way I imagine she does it.

I said I was knitting both continental and English styles simultaneously, holding yarn in both the left and right hand. You will find a good video here.

See, what I think is so cool is that even though I've been knitting since I was 4 years old, I basically knew what my mother knew and that's it. What I have learned in the last 6 months has increased my knowledge base exponentially. It just blows my mind. Now I get excited when I find a new term in a pattern. Within moments I can search for knitting tutorials and find all I need and more. No sweat. If for some reason I didn't quite grasp what I was seeing, I can walk down to my LYS and one of the girls will sort me out in 2 seconds (for example, I needed to do an applied I-cord on the Tulip cardi, and Marilyn showed me exactly how easy it was).

My current knitting goal is to learn a method to purl quickly. I'll never be a Miriam Tegels, but I know that I'll pick up speed.

This same learning concept holds true for spinning. I might tell you that I am self taught (well, regarding spinning on a wheel; Amy taught me how to use a drop spindle), but in truth, I learned almost everything by watching online video tutorials. I started from ground zero, with a broken wheel and a really strong desire. If you have that and a computer, you're really in good hands. In case of an emergency, there's always help just down the street.

Now, the 2-colour brioche stitch, knitted in the round. Onward and upward. I know I can do it.