Kay's Korner - A Knitters Notes

Yes, I am both an avid and prolific knitter. Even before I began teaching at Rare Purls, I always had several projects on my needles and this has been going on for many, many years. Even with all of my experience, I spend a fair amount of time ripping out my work. Ripping, frogging, whatever you want to call it, is when you take your working yarn end and unravel stitches to remove an error. Anyone who knits or crochets long enough will experience the aggravation of pulling out hours (and sometimes hours and hours) of work, to make our knitting the best it can be. It helps to maintain a good humor if ripping is considered a part of the process. Personally, I think that "rip" is an acronym for "rectifying imperfect pieces." Of course, no one enjoys watching row after row of stitching go up in string, so my New Year's resolution is to rip less in 2010. Perhaps you, too, think this is a worthy goal and if so, perhaps these tips will help both of us on the road to happier knitting.

Even though I always implore knitters at the shop to read through their entire pattern before casting on, this step is often skipped. The urge to knit can be strong and little details like pattern instructions can seem tedious. Please, do not let enthusiasm trump good practices. I once had to eventually reknit nearly an entire sweater and half of the problem was not reading ahead in the pattern. That the other half of the problem was the dear designer's notion that I could read her mind is a story for another day. Had I not been so enamored with both the yarn and design, the project would have been scrapped. Please do not be ambushed by the words "at the same time" or "see designer's notes." The dear designer is trying to lead you to success and she is giving some words to the wise. For example, knit pattern pieces in the order given. There is a reason why sleeves are knitted first in a striped pullover (so the stripes will match across the shoulders) and seaming is accomplished in a particular progression. Trusting your designer and following her lead can save hours of reknitting and perhaps, on occasion, your sanity.

Another habit that leads to ripping is an improper gauge swatch or completely skipping the gauge swatch. Only a couple of weeks ago, one of our loyal customers, a lovely woman, had knit her sweater back only to find it nearly double the size she had intended to knit. Yes, she had knit a gauge swatch, but she had overlooked that the swatch was to be knit in garter stitch, rather than the usual stockinette. This error had made her heftier yarn seem a good substitute and the outcome was a torrential Rip! She did not know that designers usually instruct that the swatch be knit up in the predominate stitch pattern, which can be anything from stockinette to cables, lace, or ribbing. Another swatch that can lead you down the road to disaster is one too small. Gauge swatches should be a minimum of 4 inches by 4 inches. When only an inch or two are measured, it is difficult to be accurate. Those fractions of stitches can really add up when knitting, especially in a large garment. For example, if one knits a 2" X 2" gauge and gets 8¼ stitches per 2 inches, if that ¼ stitch is overlooked in a sweater with a chest that measures 48 inches, that fraction of a stitch can reap a 6 inch difference in the finished garment. In a 4" X 4" swatch, most probably the gauge will be seen as 16 ½ stitches to 4 inches. Half stitches usually receive notice, especially since now you know they should. In the 2" x 2" swatch, the smaller fraction will most probably be overlooked, leaving the recipient swimming in extra wool and your pocketbook a bit slimmer. Remember, the bigger the yarn, the bigger an error in gauge will be.

By far, the practices that cause the most ripping are knitting when tired, stressed, or distracted. I cannot count the number of times when I have knit feverishly into the wee hours of the morning in an effort to complete a project and woke up to the horror of terrible knitting. Rip! Or when I try to multitask by watching a movie and knitting a lace project with shaping. Rip! Or the awful outcome of tipsy knitting. Rip, rip! Save projects with rows and rows of garter or stockinette to keep your hands happy during these times. You just cannot come out ahead in a project when the next day, most of your progress must be ripped.

As far as those times when we do the best we can and still our project leaves us most unhappy, please do not stuff it in a bag and stash it away, never again to see the light of day. Rip! Salvage the yarn for use in a more worthy project. One friend knit an entire sweater and on finishing, knew it would fit no one she knew. It was a gorgeous hand knit, perfect in every way, except that it was really very large. The finished bust measurement in her pattern had been more than generous for the stated size. Although not an outlandish investment, why waste all that yummy cotton/alpaca blend? I truly admired her courage as she Ripped! out her many rows of work. We are practicing an art, not a science, and there are so many variables. Though ripping is certainly something we want to avoid, isn't it wonderful that our work is not etched in stone?

Happy Knitting!

Kay Mather
Copyright 2010

On Kay's Needles
Oh yes, I have been snared by the late Christmas present snafu. I was so sure that I could finish my sister's mittens and hubby's vest by C-day. Thankfully, the mittens were delivered timely and I have a wonderful husband, so all the consternation over his late gift is mine alone. Now, let me get back to my knitting, so the vest is sure to be finished by Bill's birthday, January 5.