Posted by Som
Fri, 10 Feb 2006 17:00:00 GMT
*headdesk*
*headdesk*
*headdesk*
I've been knitting this Lacy Serpentine Scarf for a week, and still I have nothing to show for it but the 1500 kinks in the frogged yarn. As I was finishing up Row 5 last night - the first truly patterned row - I came up short two stitches. I double-checked Row 4 and 5, and couldn't find where I'd dropped them - if they were ever cast on in the first place.
So, more frogging. I'm trying to be positive about it, but I'm close to getting discouraged enough to give up. The patterned rows are infuriatingly tricky on these bamboo needles, and stitching a p2tog is a Herculean effort (there are 36 p2togs in Row 5, plus two p3togs.) I think I'll cast on to the metal needles this time, in the hopes that my stitches will be a little looser and the points a little sharper. I'll have to sacrifice something to the Knitting Goddess to ensure that all those tiny stitches don't slip right off. But I've learned a valuable lesson: Never again will I buy a lace scarf pattern knitted along the length.
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Posted by Som
Tue, 07 Feb 2006 19:24:00 GMT
Well, I'm three rows (909) stitches into the pattern, and I just found out that I've been doing YOs wrong the whole time. *headdesk* Still, I'm thankful that I found out before I was even further into the pattern.
For future reference, and any of you who are getting into lace knitting: a YO in a pattern is not an actual, separate stitch. It simply means that you bring the yarn forward; the wrap is incorporated into the next stitch. Thus:
yo, k2tog
comes off as two stitches with no increase on the right-hand needle. And
yo, k1
comes off as two stitches with an increase of one. I did not know this. I thought that YO meant you bring the yarn forward and k1.
Now I have to frog all those lovely stitches. *sigh* At least I learned something...
ETA for posterity's sake: There's an excellent explanation of what a yarnover is here.
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Posted by Som
Sat, 04 Feb 2006 22:10:00 GMT
I've finally cast on for the Lacy Serpentine Scarf! But first, a look inside my knitting bag, which I've set up as a headquarters for this project:
Outside the knitting bag, with the pattern stashed conveniently in a side pocket.
A place for everything, and everything in its place!
Click on the image to view the Flickr notes. Most important in this picture are the notecards and the notebook. They're going to save my sanity with this pattern.
I've written each line of the pattern on a separate notecard and bound them all with a metal ring. Each time I set down my knitting, I'll make a note in the notebook as to which line and stitch I'm on, so I won't lose my place.
I'm using two other tricks for this scarf. First, this is "lace knitting," which means that the odd rows are pattern rows, and the even rows are purled across. After I finish each purl row, I'll run a length of dental floss through the stitches. That way, if I screw up royally on a pattern row, I can frog the row without worrying that I'll drop stitches on lower rows. Nifty, huh?
The second trick is to use stitch markers liberally. Like most lace patterns, this pattern uses repeats of groups of stitches. I'll put a marker in between each repeat, so I'll know how many repeats I've done and whether I'm messing up somehow. Instead of using the colored plastic markers, I'm using tiny metal rings from the jewelry aisle; they're far less bulky on these tiny needles, and far less expensive.
The cast-on! That's 303 stitches, for those who are keeping track. I doubled up with a US 4 dpn for the cast on, just to be sure that it's not too tight. I'll post pictures of my progress weekly (I'm hoping to finish at least a row a day.) Expect to see some pics soon using my new macro lens!
Posted in knitting | Tags lace, serpentine | no comments | no trackbacks
