Is there anything worse than struggling on through densely knitted cable work… twisting cables by mistake twice… correcting them by dropping down 5 rows and picking up and re-tiwsting the stitches with a tiny 2.5mm crochet hook…. forging ahead until the first ball ran out…. and discovering that it is too small!
Firstly, let us admire my freshly-corrected cables.
Now, let us admire said cables with a measuring tape that reveals the truth: a 13″ width.
I know this top, due to the ribbing and cabled bodice, is meant to have a little stretch. But even a LOT of stretch only just makes it cover the width of my back. Hmmm. Where’s the lesson to be learned? Where did I go wrong? The obvious answer is gauge. The magazine (IK) doesn’t specify over what type of stitch the gauge is to be measured. After some consideration, I knitted my swatch in stockinette stitch. I suppose it would have made sense to swatch in rib and a cable in the middle, but I have knit lacey and cabled items where the gauge was given in st st. I should have taken two things into account. I had to drop from 3.5mm to a 3mm needle to get my “gauge”… and I didn’t realise that since it is a ribbed bodice, it will have more give, and a slightly bigger, more relaxed, body is preferable to a very stretched body.
Oh well. I’ll just have to start again. To make it up, I ploughed on ahead with Pomatomus #2! I have just finished the leg tube.
Today wasn’t so great for the ole practice. I am dog tired after yesterday. I probably would have gotten most of my work covered except I had to go to registration at DCU. What a fiasco! We just don’t exist to them. Last year, I paid my fees and didn’t even get my student card. It’s caused me a lot of bother over the year so today, I was not leaving without my card. This involved running all over the campus in the rain. I did get to show off my queue-jumping skills and probably even jumped my biggest queue yet of over 100 students waiting to pay their registration fees. This was completely unintentional (though on some subconscious level, probably not) as I came through the wrong door and was mistaken as the person next in line 😀
Ah knitting, why do you punish me so? Sometimes knitting takes on the punitive air of sewing and I don’t like it one bit. Down with sewing machines!
Ah hey, pluck up. Guess it could be worse. (Trying to rate high on the trite-o-meter!) I knit an entire rucksack to felt and didn’t realise that the 100% wool was yes, you got it…superwash, and wasn’t going to shrink a bit! Hated having to unravel the whooooole thing. Arg. By the way….I live just past DCU, about 10 minute walk. Hey neighbour!
I’m scowling at the Gatsby for you.
Pomatomus is another thing I want to knit for myself. *makes notes*
That’s too bad! I know how that feels, alas. But I just wanted to say that the red colour is gorgeous!
Silver lining – at least you spotted it early-ish in the knitting process. My sympathy is still with you though.
I second the gorgeous red colour – it’s really rich and scrumptious 🙂
And I have to stop ooh-ing and aah-ing over your Pomatom-i (?) and get some on the needles. They’re just fabulous!
OK, I’m not a knitter so this may be inaccurate, but are you knitting a lot of bits of things? I see some beautiful patterns and wool. Are some of these bits going to be my bday present?