Knitting & Public Transportation: An Illustrated Guide

Once upon a time back in the days of commuting 45 minutes on the subway to and from work I was big into knitting. Here are the lessons I learned and tips I have to pass along. Hope you enjoy!

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1. Seating. You have to be prepared for impossibly tight, cramped situations. Of course, if you can tuck yourself into one of those lovely little two-sweaters against the window, that's fantastic and you can snug yourself in and get ready to knit. 

Also, the end of an open three-seater is also ideal, as if like me this morning a rather plump lady decides to squeeze herself into the open middle seat, you can simply scooch over and hang ever so slightly over the edge of the seat. 

If you have no other seating options, never fear. Following the next two points will help you no matter how cramped you are!

2. Form. Form is incredibly important when knitting on transit. And it's quite simple. Tuck your elbows in. That's it, that's all. So long as your elbows stay glued to your rib cage, you're all set. 

3. Needles. Forget about those long straight needles we're all used to. No matter how tightly you tuck your elbows in, if you're going to knit with straight needles, you're only going to drive yourself and everyone else around you crazy. 

Circular needles my friends. Circular needles. 

Before I became a regular transit knitter I saw this girl knitting a regular scarf with circular needles, and I just had to ask her why, because I couldn't figure it out. She told me it's so she doesn't bump the people beside her, and plus she can slide the scarf onto the wire when she puts it in her bag and no stitches will fall off. Genius! 

So yes, I am forever grateful to that lovely knitter for sharing her words of wisdom (as all knitters are likely to do if you take the time to ask us a simple question). 

3. Pattern. Now of course what you ultimately chose to knit is completely up to you (as is everything else I'm recommending here, really), but I would strongly suggest you keep it simple. 

Simple here meaning nothing that requires you to constantly read a pattern for every stitch. For example, I'm currently knitting a sweater that had a somewhat complicated colour pattern. It's a honeycomb pattern that alternates between two colours knit in the round, but it's pretty repetitive so I only have to consult the pattern at the beginning of every other row or so. 

But it ultimately depends on your comfort level with what you're working on. 

4. Be friendly. The chances of a fellow knitter sitting down across from you on a crowded subway are slim, so in the rare instances when this does happen, look up and smile. The simple acknowledgment of each other will ease any awkwardness that you or people around you may be feeling. 

Also, if you catch someone consumed with your work, don't be alarmed. I often glance up to find the man across from me staring intently at my hands, or the woman half a car down sideways-glancing at me, and when I catch their eye, I smile, because I want them to know that it's ok. 

I know that what I'm doing is unconventional transit behaviour, but I'm extremely proud of my talent, and so I don't mind if I can provide a little distraction for someone from the monotony of their morning commute. Also kids love to watch you knit. I once had a boy about 10 stop dead in front of me while I was working with double-pointed needles and ask how I was doing that. Turns out he is a knitter himself (cutest thing ever, btw), and so I slowed down my work and showed him how it's done. His mother thanked me for taking the time to show him, because she is not a knitter herself, and he said he would go home and give it a try. 

So just be friendly, because you never know, you might just brighten someone's day.

🤗💖✨

I used to be as obsessed with knitting as I am currently with drawing and painting, so that should tell you how much I was knitting back when I wrote this guide! (I think I was actually on the subway when I wrote it!)

Do you knit? Do you go from one obsession to another like I do? Do you know anyone who needs an illustrator?

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