Nothing could be finer.

 Over the weekend our friend George was in town and with him came his girlfriend, Kerri.  George had texted me prior to their visit that Kerri wanted to learn to knit, I thought he was teasing me. To my delight, Kerri did want to learn and she was really excited about the idea. So was I.

Since I never knit with straights, I couldn't find a pair of straight needles to teach her with.  Not to be thwarted, I popped point protectors on double pointed needles and we were underway.

 I really enjoy teaching and sharing my passion for knitting.  What a pleasure to start the day, at home, teaching a new friend. (Side comment - I look at the picture and think, 'sit up straight and stop making that strange expression'.) Neither of us knew he was taking the picture. Sneaky, Sneaky, Sneaky.

She was hooked. :) I encouraged her to knit on regardless of mistakes because each one was a good learning opportunity.  On the bottom left, she went back the way she came.  (Probably after being distracted by my dogs who knew a kindred spirit when they met one.)  She has one or two holes from knitting into the ladder between stitches.  What's the expression? “You can't make an omelet without breaking a few eggs.” ― Maximilien Robespierre. On the whole, she was doing great.

She came by Westport Yarns while I was working and was entranced by all the color and texture.  After learning she couldn't tolerate animal fibers, I showed her what her options were. I even tried to fool her by handing her soft merinos!

Kerri chose wisely.  The yarn on the top is Shibui Knits Heichi (Worsted: 100% Silk, 105 yards).  It's a raw, tweedy silk.  The yarn on the bottom is one of my favorites, Prism Manhattan (Worsted: 46% Nylon, 30% Cotton, 24% Rayon, 130 yards).  The needles are Knitter's Pride Dreamz.  I like the points on these better than regular bamboos, plus they are pretty.

She practiced with the Shibui for a while and then switched to the Manhattan.  She remember the long-tail cast on I taught her and kept at it until her cast on was perfect.

I was delighted to see her post a picture of her sitting and knitting as they continue their vacation. For me this has all been a win-win.  I made a new friend in Kerri and got to teach her to knit!  Welcome to the fold.

Yes, this is actually the same dog.  Tucker got groomed short for the summer.  It's just embarrassing.  He looks ridiculous.  He's freakishly skinny.  Good thing he's sweet and fur grows back.