Know when to hold 'em, know when to fold 'em

My soon-to-be-ex knitting stash.

I'm here to tell you that giving up is OK. Surrender is an option.

I've tried to get into knitting — honest! I have some dear friends who are accomplished knitters, people who can talk and knit at the same time. I can only frown and knit at the same time.

I can see how it's relaxing: the repetition, the tiny details, the rhythm of clicking needles.

But I lack the discipline to practice and, consequently, I will not get good at knitting. I cop to that.

Plus, the work-in-progress aspect of knitting freaks me out. I mean, you don't really know how a knitted garment is going to fit until you're done with it — hours and hours and hours later.

The fruits of sewing are, to me, more immediate. You can make test garments of subpar fabric and slash, spread, and rip out stitches to hone the perfect fit.

I suppose you could knit test garments, but the weight of the yarn is key to a finished product, and using janky yarn to develop the fit of a test garment would be a waste of time.

I do like that knitting is highly portable. That's pretty cool.

But the bottom line is I'm lukewarm on knitting, and I have other hobbies I'd rather spend time on.

I bring up my breakup with knitting because I've decided to give away my meager knitting supply stash — a few skeins of yarn and five pairs of needles. I am moving, and I'm trying to pare down my possessions.

As I eyed my crafting supplies, the knitting stash brought me a tinge of anxiety and disappointment.

Why would I want to continue with a hobby that makes me crabby? Off to Goodwill with ye, knitting tools! I hope you bring someone else joy.

Have you given up on a craft? Please share. It will make you feel better.

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