THE TIDES OF MARCH

Hmm. Been a while since I blogged. Do I have a good excuse? No. Do I even have a bad excuse? No. Have I come down with that dreaded disease, Blog Block? Did Norma infect me with Ennui? Am I afflicted with with Dry Mind, along with my Dry Eyes? I don’t know. I started this particular entry a week ago. I’ve since erased most of it and started over. There is a small flow of words emerging  though, so it looks like today just might be posting day.

However all is not forlorn and doldrummy here in the Knitknackery.  I do have some waking hours that are productive. For example, I have.....

...finished a pair of baby socks to match the baby hat in U of M colors

... finished the five panels of luscious Malabrigo that will become an afghan as soon as I crochet them together (as I did in the Faith Jacket)

.... held a workshop on Creating Keepsake Knitting Journals at Threadbear (and I have a new class starting on 3/24....call TB to reserve your spot) Here's Fay contemplating how she wants to arrange a page.

....met up with Susie and her daughter Katy, who were in visiting from waaaay up north in Michigan. Susie brought this skein (scroll down past the sheep poop) from her gorgeous hand-dyed repertoire for Laurie. It’s entitled Mrs. Peacock in the Conservatory with a Highlighter.

Ms. Susie in the Yarn Shop with a Spindle

.....started the Scallop Purse from Oat Couture, with my Interlacements Seeds and a solid navy blue cotton.

However, I’ve frogged it for several reasons.
Reason #1: I made a classic mistake on the second scallop. In one of the short rows I lost track of which direction I was going. Consequently I ended up going the wrong way and my scallops are opposites instead being nicely snuggled together. I had a feeling that was happening even before I finished the second scallop, but you all know that knitters live in the Land of Denial, and I kept hoping maybe I was wrong. I wasn’t.

Reason #2: Perhaps I’m totally out of line being critical here, but I do believe this is poor pattern writing. In the first scallop, I’ve cast on 28 stitches. In row 1, I knit. In row 2, I cast on 2 stitches, giving me 30 stitches. The directions go on to say this:

Rows 4, 5: Cast on 2 stitches, k29, SFB, turn, knit to end of row.

I took this to mean that I cast on 2 stitches in Row 4, AND 2 stitches in Row 5, giving me a total of 34 stitches. However when I reached Row 14, the directions say to knit across all stitches. (32 stitches)

Huh?

So of course from that point on, I was off by 2 stitches. During the second scallop, I decided to space out a few decreases to get me back to the pattern. I wouldn’t have frogged for that reason alone, but since I had already messed it up so badly, at least I get to fix this. But I still think it’s poorly written at best, and blatantly in error at worst.

Reason #3: As long as I’m starting over, I think I’ll pick up some aqua-colored cotton to replace the darker navy blue. The Seeds has a lovely variegation of blues, and picking up the brighter shade will give the bag a much lighter, brighter appearance, I think. Since this bag is for my Secret Bag Exchange person in our guild, I hope she’ll agree with my decision.

I’m going to stop now because I’ve just....run....out.....of.....w....o.....r....d.......s.

Comments

[Norma]

Oh, I hope I did not spread a disease, that ennui disease. ;-)

Spring is right around the corner -- light at the end of the tunnel!

[Vera]

You've been busy, and it's good to take a break from blogging now and again.

I would have read rows 4 and 5 of that pattern the same way.

[blogdog]

So what does SFB mean? Is it an abbreviation for what you say when you realize your count is off? :-)

[Kristi]

Good to see you back in blogland and I look forward to getting to know you more at Rae's on Friday!

[monica]

I'm glad you're still posting! I've missed reading you.

[rebecca]

you've been quite busy! i've had a bit of blog block myself lately.. maybe it is catchy