I'm very, very frustrated with my knitting right now. And this is not a good thing, because this is supposed to be a fun, relaxing hobby.
The lace is screwed up, again. I've ripped back to the second life-line twice already (never making it more than 1 1/2 rows past it). Last night I discovered a mistake, again - a stitch short on the first repeat. I truly don't get it. I mean, I'm being extremely careful, concentrating hard, double-checking my work as I go, and I still can't get it right. (And just in case I'm over-thinking it, I've also tried not concentrating so hard, and just casually knitting along with the attitude that it'll all work out; that didn't work either).
I'm wondering if it's time to throw in the towel on this one. I hate to give up, but this obviously isn't working. I'm spending an enormous amount of time just frustrated and annoyed that it keeps getting screwed up. Instead of being fun it's just a source of frustration. I'd say that's when it's time to give up, at least for awhile. Maybe I'll try it again some other time. Or maybe I'll try an easier project to hone my skills on.
Meanwhile, I made another momentous 'giving up' decision. It's Celtic Icon, of which I have the entire back and half a front panel done. I put off and put off working on this, and it's constantly kind of hovering around in the back of my mind, especially when I don't have another current project to work on (like right now, with the lace buggered up) and I think, "I could be working on Celtic Icon" ... and then I realize I don't want to.
Yesterday I put some thought into why I don't want to. I really like the pattern, so I wondered why I avoid it so much that it's going on two years and I have no more done than I do.
I've attempted two sweaters in the past for myself, and neither of them fit. On one of them I used the yarn called for, but as it was not long after I'd learned to knit, I don't even think I did a gauge swatch, just used the needle size stated - so it was miles too big. For the second one, I couldn't find the suggested yarn, so I substituted, and did swatch, but the finished sweater still didn't fit, at all.
For Celtic Icon I invested in the exact yarn the pattern called for, thinking I'd have better luck with gauge. But to get the stated gauge I had to drop 2 or 3 needles sizes. That would normally be fine, except this is a DK to sport weight wool, and a stiff yarn at that, and I'm knitting it on a size 4 needle. It's doable, and I have consistently kept the right stitch gauge. For the stockinette sections it's not so bad, but this sweater is heavily cabled, and making the cables with this stiff yarn on these small needles is a major pain. It's uncomfortable to work, it's very tight, and even though this is wool, it seems to have little to no stretch to help with making the cables with such tiny stitches on small needles.
If that were the only problem, I'd probably muscle on. But there's another major issue I've been avoiding thinking about. I did get stitch gauge, but I did not get row gauge by dropping so many needle sizes, and failed to realize it until I was starting the raglan shaping near the top of the back. The back of the sweater from the bottom to the raglan shaping is measured in inches, as in "knit until piece measures 15 inches." That's easy, no matter what your row gauge, you can do that. But then when the raglan shaping starts, all the decreases are done by rows (as in, "decrease one stitch each end of every other row for 25 rows"), and I realized that my measurement on the top half of the sweater was going to be all off if I did that - because my 25 rows and the designer's 25 rows were going to measure two entirely different lengths.
I tried doing the math to recalculate the decreases according to my row gauge, and adjusted the back of the pattern accordingly. But I know it didn't work, because when I measured that section of my finished back, it's about 4" longer than the schematic says it should be. Ergo, it's probably not going to fit.
Second, I didn't take very good notes, not realizing I'd be putting the thing down for a year and a half before I started the front, and now I'm not sure I can remember how to replicate my pattern changes so the front matches the back, even if I could still make it fit.
All this combined is making me less and less interested in finishing this project, too. And since I'm not even half-way done with it, it's hard to be enthusiastic about investing so much more time in something I think very well may not fit.
I've decided to scrap that project too, at least in it's present form.
I don't know if this makes me a fair-weather knitter who balks at trouble, or if it means I'm getting smarter. I mean, after all, and as I've said, knitting is supposed to be fun and relaxing. If I've got projects that are just annoying and frustrating me, and I already know probably aren't going to fit, it doesn't seem too smart to continue tormenting myself with them.
Second, I want to get better, and learn how to make things that actually fit. I've been knitting for about 6 years and have nothing to show for it but socks and scarves. There's nothing wrong with that, but I really want to be able to make other things. And to do that, I'm going to have to learn what works. (I think I've got what doesn't work down pat).
Obviously I have problems with published patterns, since whatever my quirky knitting syle is, I can't ever seem to get an exact stitch and row gauge match, even with the exact yarn called for. And I'm not good enough yet to modify existing patterns to fit.
But there are other things I could do, that I think would work. I mentioned this briefly in a recent post, but one of my ideas is to use Ann Budd's Handy Book of Sweater Patterns. You establish your own stitch gauge and follow a recipe based on that. Any length measurements are set up by inches, not number of rows, so row gauge doesn't enter into it at all. I think with all of that, I could construct something that fits. (If I can't, then I'll just stick with socks and scarves, and be done with it).
Yesterday I ordered three balls of different cotton blend yarns, to experiment with. I'm going to do major large swatches in each (because it seems to take me a major large chunk o' knitting to establish my gauge), then choose one and try designing a sweater using the book. I want to make a cotton, 3/4 length sleeve cardigan for warm weather.
Because those patterns are purposely simplistic, I can even add my own stitch patterns or embellishments, as long as I make sure to do a large gauge swatch in the pattern stitch, too, as well as in stockinette. And I should have enough yarn to do all that. (But I plan to keep it simple - the whole point is to do something enjoyable that works, not frustrate myself further).
I'm thinking of a scheme to make a version of Celtic Icon this way, too. I was thinking that I could design a sweater using the Ann Budd book, but incorporate the cable pattern from Celtic Icon into it. It might not be exact, but there wasn't anything special about the particular design of the sweater itself, it was the cables that I liked. So I may still make a version of that sweater, using the cable pattern but nothing else from the written instructions.
So that's where I'm at. Scrapping everything I've currently got going, and starting over, hopefully learning new skills (such as how sweaters actually fit together) that will enable me to make the things I want to make, and then actually be able to wear them.
There are a lot of other books about how to design garments that fit, without a pattern, by using measurements. I think considering my past problems, I might benefit from those skills - if I learned that kind of thing, maybe I could even learn to modify existing patterns when I can't match their stitch and row gauge. But, one step at a time.
So ... a new adventure. I don't mind the challenge, but I hope I can avoid the endless frustration this time. I'll keep you posted.
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