I'd like to knit a skinny, long scarf, but all the patterns I find are for crochet. Any help?

I'm in desperate need of a sewing machine lesson. I just got a new Singer, and I'm lost. Any advice/help?

My boyfriend's sister had a baby about 5 months ago, and I'd like to knit her (the baby) a present. It's a little late to knit newborn-type gifts, as she will be about 6 months by the time I finish and ship the package. Any ideas for a gift? (Oh, and patterns would be much appreciated!)

Worth buying? I browsed through it and it looked pretty darn neat.

My boyfriend just got me a Singer sewing machine for my birthday (which was in January, he's a little late)! I've always wanted to learn to sew (I can do very basic sewing and some embroidery by hand). Problem is, I have no idea how to even begin. The machine itself is intimidating...so many buttons/levers/dohickeys.

Any tips?? I'd love to start messing around with it this weekend.

a new place to chat about current and future projects, share ideas, offer advice, and plan to meet up for crafty events and get-togethers!

anyone interested?!

join! http://community.livejournal.com/phillycraft/

[easy]

Hello!
Tonight I am going to venture into the realm of knitting in the round. Do you have any easy patterns on hand for circular needles that I could try out? I would appreciate it! Thank you...

<3

I hope this isn't a dopey question. 

I will see a pattern I love (and think I can attempt to knit) but it will call for a yarn that I can't immediately get my hands on. A lot of the time, the yarns are expensive too (and as a beginner knitter, I don't want to spend lots of money on something I could likely screw up). Are there any rules of thumb for substituting? Until I get better at knitting and allow myself to invest in special yarn, I buy most of my supplies at generic craft stores like A.C. Moore and Michaels. The selection is very limited.

Any suggestions? Tips?  Thanks!!

[exactly]

I've tried to felt a couple of times now, and I'm not sure what I'm doing wrong. The first time I think I used the wrong yarn (a wool/acrylic blend). The second time I used a 100% wool, and still nothing happened. I put the piece in a pillowcase, in the washer on HOT (cold rinse), with other articles of clothing and it came out looking exactly the same (and had that lovely wet wool smell!). 

Help?

PS - what yarns DO felt?

I’m getting better at having a uniform tightness of my stitches and I’m sure with practice it will improve. However, the edges/sides of my pieces always look a little funky.  When I come to the end of a row, the last stitch is always super loose, and then my edges look messy.  Any suggestions, or is this just one of those things that gets better with practice?

Also- is there a way to make a nice border around the whole piece?  Like if I was making something simple like a scarf or potholder, etc.  To make it look a little more finished?  I dunno, I’m VERY new and teaching myself, so please excuse any silly questions