Last month I came across the cutest knitter’s comic strip.  No, it’s not Lion Brand’s Lola.  It’s Knit Princess by Dye-namics Yarn featuring writer Allison Sarnoff and artist Melody Moore.  Allison writes about her knitting adventures with her roommate and cat, while Melody illustrates the strip.  Here’s the knitty concept:

Knit Princess is the adventure of a knitting obsessed, movie loving, unemployed girl.  Come see how she deals with unemployment, power outages, cat drama, and her long suffering roommate.

And, who can resist the tagline: The power of yarn compels you.  Go check it out for yourself.  It’s a nice break in the day.

This site was discovered when I did a search in Google Reader for knitting RSS feeds.  I wanted inspiration.  I wanted motivation.  Ok, I wanted free patterns.  But, who doesn’t?  I mean I know you do, even if you don’t want to admit it in public.  Any who, during the search I came across The Knitspot Pattern Shop.  I know, why would I go to a pattern shop if I’m looking for free patterns.  Well, the answer is simple.  I didn’t.  At least, not yet. 

Knitspot is filled with intricate projects by Anne Hanson a knitting pattern designer.  The projects on her needles are always so beautiful and creative.  I mean the autumn leaves, ocean waves and other stitches that mimic natural, are absolutely beautiful.  And, intimidating.  I’m not sure when I’ll reach a level of confidence that will allow me to try one of these patterns, but I know it will come.

One of the other things I love about her blog, is being introduced to so many different yarns and fibers.  Hand spun yarns, hand dyed yarns, classic merino, superwash merino roving, protein/seacell/wool roving.  I mean, what is all this stuff?  I don’t know, but it makes me want to find it and touch it.  The colorways she selects for her projects are also amazing.  The colors appear so vibrant and different.  Passion flower, twinkle toes and bronze.   These are definitely not colorways you will find at Michaels, A.C. Moore or Wal-Mart.

I do notice Anne is partial to socks and lacey patterns.  You know what that says to me?  Tiny needles.  Do I have the patience for tiny needles?  After knitting a size 35 needles, I have a feeling it may be difficult to drop down to a size 3.  I am, however, going to give it a try.  Eventually.  Someday.  Maybe.  There is something to be said about expanding your craft. 

Besides socks and lace, Anne has patterns for wraps, kids, bags and clothing, just to name a few.  They are (here’s that word again) beautifully knit and does inspire you to have a go at it.

When I started knitting again last year, it was as if I was doing for the first time.  Literally.  I mean, I could barely wrap my head around it the first time, and then I had the nerve to stop for a year.  Can you imagine the trouble I had trying to get that piece of string around those two sticks?  And, to top it off, I wasn’t that great when I stopped the first time!

Well, while trying to learn a technique I found in one of my pattern books, I came across the Knitting Help website.  From the word go, this became my go-to website.  It features lots of videos that show you various techniques and fixes.  Need to learn how to increase?  It’s there.  How about a way to pick up a dropped stitch ten rows back?  Yup, it’s there.  They even have videos showing you the basics, which may come in handy if you stop knitting for a year and then decide to give it another try.

This site also has a photo gallery for you to post your creations and a lively forum that discusses more than just knitting.  Admittedly, I have only done a drive-by with the forum, but it seems to be popular and has new discussion threads popping up daily (or maybe even hourly).

So, check it out and see if you can find the answer to your knitting conundrum. 

Do you know of another site that is great for knitters?  Let us know about it in the comments!

There are so many websites out there geared to helping the beginner, aspiring and serious writer.  I wanted to show a little Hump Day Link Love to shine a light on some I think are must see.  These are great sites run by great people.  Stop by and tell them I said, "Hi!".

This week’s links for Writers.

• http://groups.yahoo.com/group/2009MuseConference/ – 2009 Free Online MUSE Conference
• http://thewritingjungle.blogspot.com/ – Blog of author/editor Lea Shizas
• http://museitupclub.tripod.com/ – Community for writer serious about their craft
• http://shonbacon.com – Blog of author/editor Shon Bacon
• http://alltheblogsapage.blogspot.com – Writers and readers talk about writing and its relation to various topics
• http://readersrooms.com/?cat=220 – Tips from editor Shon Bacon
• http://chicklitgurrl.blogspot.com – Join Shon Bacon, The Original ChickLitGurrl™, as she talks with women writers about stories, inspiration, life, and more!
• http://writetodone.com/ – Unmissable articles on writing
• http://www.absolutewrite.com – One-stop web home for professional and beginning writers

The next Hump Day Link Love links will be for Bloggers.  If you have a link you would like to share or include, let me know and I’ll add it to the list.

Enjoy and happy writing!