Grumble

I attempted my Traveling Woman again last night.  I even pulled out my chart keeper and its fancy magnets to keep everything straight.  I very, very carefully knit Row 5.  Things seemed fine.  Back across Row 6--things were still matching up.  I looked at the clock and thought, "I have plenty of time to do rows 7 and 8!" and started Row 7.

Immediately things seemed amiss.  I carefully counted my stitches, double-checked the pattern...but my purls weren't lining up.  Instead of trusting my knitter's instincts and checking the chart (I've been following the written instructions--its easier on my brain), I plowed ahead, assuming it was just how the pattern was.  Got to the end, where I was supposed to have 8 stitches left...and only had 7.  Panic.  Anger!  Then I realized what I'd done:  I'd forgotten to do a yarn over before the last two stitches of Row 6.  That's why I was a stitch off and a stitch short.  ARGH.

So now I'm in the process of tinking back Row 7.

For the record, the entire stockinette portion of this shawl has you use stitch markers at either end, to keep that yo k2 (or k2 yo depending on the end) straight, but when you start the lace section there is NO MENTION of the markers!  The stockinette instructions had always had instructions to slip the marker, but there wasn't any sign of it in the lace instructions, so I assumed I was to remove them. 

I am totally putting them back so that I don't have another airhead moment and forget to yarn over!

Re-do!

Ugh.  Nothing infuriates me more than when I make a mistake and have to backtrack.  It will come as no surprise after that opening sentence that, of course, on Row 5 of Chart A of the Traveling Woman shawl, I managed to goof up.  I thought I figured it out my issue, but when I went back across the wrong side (Row 6) things were NOT RIGHT.  So I had to frog all the way back to my lifeline (the START of Chart A), and spent my weekend knitting time re-doing something I'd already done once.  Grumble.  I'm actually waiting to start Row 5 as we speak.

I would have gotten farther along but my DVD player died.  That likely sounds strange (and is a poor excuse!) but I really like having a movie I've seen before playing in the background when I knit (it can't be new, because then I don't pay attention).  America's Next Top Model reruns are equally good, but alas, the weekend seemed to be devoid of ANTM episodes. I considered listening to a podcast, but really, I was dreading going through Row 5 again.  Hopefully I can suck it up and get something done this week.

Anyone else have any habits that help them getting knitting done?  Do you like to have noise in the background or complete silence?  Is there a certain spot you like to sit?  Please share! :)

The calm before the storm

My progress on the Traveling Woman shawl has been steady the last couple of days, but I'm still only in the stockinette increase section.  I guess it makes sense that production seems to be slowing a bit, because each row takes me longer and longer to do.

Sorry for the cell phone picture.

I have about 10 repeats of the stockinette left before I start the part I'm a little nervous about: the actual lace bits.  I've read through the pattern several times, and it seems like something I can handle, but I can't help but wonder if I'll be totally confused when I get there. 

Charts don't help, because my brain doesn't work that way (apparently).  Words I get, I understand, but symbols on a chart intimidate me and all those little boxes can be confusing.  I did alright when I tried colorwork, but those weren't really symbols--the boxes were just colored in (or not).  I should probably practice at the chart-reading thing, though.

I'm running out of adjectives

So, in typical Jackie-fashion, I only managed to squeeze in about 15 minutes of knitting my entire trip.  Boo!  So the shawl is still in its very, very beginning stages.  Hopefully I can squeeze in some knitting time this weekend, but things are already filling up--I can sense summer coming to an end, and I'm trying to get as much outdoor time as possible before its cold and miserable.  Ugh, I hate the cold--but it does give me an excuse to wear my knits.

On my adventure, I did manage to go to a few yarn shops (shocker).  My favorite was in Salt Lake City, called Blazing Needles.  The name is awesome, and the shop itself is super cute!  The staff was very friendly and helpful as well, so if you're ever out that way, I recommend making a stop.  I also made attempts to visit a couple shops in Colorado, near the Denver area: Showers of Flowers and The Recycled Lamb (hee!).  Sadly, Shower of Flowers was closed the day I tried to go there (computer problems), but I peeked in the windows and it is HUGE.  Really wish I could have checked it out.  Recycled Lamb was nice, and again, the staff was super friendly and helpful--they had a decent selection of yarns and quite possibly EVERY COLOR of Brown Sheep yarn possible.  Seriously.  I should have taken a picture (what kind of blogger am I?!)

So, even though I didn't manage to get any knitting in I did manage to satisfy my fiber freak ;)

Away we go...

I've settled on the Traveling Woman shawl as my next project.  I just started it yesterday, and already had a hiccup.  The start of the shawl uses what is apparently called a "garter tab," which is not uncommon to shawl starts (so I read, anyway), but very new to me.  It took me a couple of tries before I felt mostly comfortable with what I had, and I'm still unsure of it--mine didn't turn out rectangular like it did in the video I watched...more like a softly curved half-circle.  I'm going to plow ahead and hope for the best.

This week I'll be off on a semi-vacation (for a friend's wedding), and I'm hoping to get some knitting time in. Alas, I'm driving, so there won't be any travel time knitting, but I don't have very many pressing plans so I expect at various junctures I'll be able to chill out and knit.  Cross your fingers for me!

Choices are hard

Now that I've finally finished the Wingspan, I'm trying to decide what to work on next.  This is proving more difficult than usual, because I've been bitten by the knitting bug (must be that time of year).

First, I've been dying to try knitting a huge version of the Traveling Woman shawl by Liz Abinante out of Mushishi yarn.  My friend Sam has done two of these now, and its gorgeous.  Lace is not usually something that always appeals to me (I think its beautiful and am amazed at the talent it takes, but its not something I typically wear), but something about the Mushishi makes the whole thing more causal.

I'm also itching to try my hand at knitting some monsters for a friend's children for Christmas presents.  I've been wanting to experiment with toy knitting for quite awhile (mainly due to all the lovelies I always see on the Little Cotton Rabbits blog).

Then, of course, I've been wanting to knit a sweater.  I've found a couple of patterns I like, but I'm currently leaning towards the Julissa (scoop neck version).  It, however, calls for fancier yarn than I have the funds for at the moment.  Must save up!

I've also been dying to try colorwork again, and really want a pair of big, comfy mittens (I particularly like Bella's Mittens).

And there's always the amigurumi I've been meaning to teach myself to do.

TOO MANY THINGS!  I'm not very good at doing multiple projects at once, but I keep trying.  Does anyone have any tips for multiple project management?

(In totally random news, I am in love with the "scheduling" option on Blogger--I can write up a bunch of posts while I have the ideas in my brain, and just schedule them to post at any time I want!  Yay technology!)

Hail the conquering hero!

 

The wingspan is done and happily blocking as I type (actually, I started blocking it last night, it's probably close to being dry).

I'm very proud of it--I love the colors in the Chroma and it was lovely and easy to knit without being too tedious (since it was just all knit stitch).

I only did seven triangles (the pattern calls for eight) because I wasn't sure if I'd have enough yarn or not...after completing it, though, I think I could have done the eighth.  Next time (because I'd totally make more of these).  I also slipped all my stitches knit-wise, with the yarn in back, and quite like how the edges came out.  I didn't do anything to deal with the holes (which result from the short rows), but as I mentioned previously, I actually like them; you can hardly seem them anyway.

I think if I did this again, I would definitely try the "Angel" version, where the holes are more obvious and there on purpose.  I like the airy look that gives the whole thing.