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4/12/2005 2:57:46 PM
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Patricia
Posts 1802
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I`ve lost count on how many times I have started this darn thing, there was one time in pink, one time in green, and a nice mauve Taj oh yes and how could I forget the beautiful sky Cashmina and a few colors that I`ve forgot. I did just fine until the second repeat of the pattern. I am use to putting markers on my needles to let me know when the repeat starts and after each repeat. It worked just fine until the second pattern row of the second repeat, in the first repeat I was short a stitch and on the last repeat I had one too many. I tink and I tink and I tink, but that second row just would not come out right. I counted the stitches and I had enough and then I would try again! Same problem! So I would frog it. Then I would start again with a new color! Same thing! Well I really am a very slow learner apparently, when the light finally went on I though OMG no one at Elann will beleive this. It was the darn markers, sure I had enough stitches they just didn`t fall between the markers properly. Yeah! I figured it out all by myself, no help from Betsy and I know that she is very proud of me! I`ve been moving right along now without the makers and doing just fine, every row working out perfectly, no missed YO`s no missed PSSO PERFECT! I was on repeat number 5, notice the "was on". I have a puppy, remember him, his name is Fred. Fred is sassy and I know that he is sassy, in fact he is very very sassy! Fred got my knitting out of the bowl that is out of his reach, or was yesterday! The stinker grew overnight and reached into the bowl and got my FB shawl. I managed to rescue it and was very happy to see that only one half of the shawl had been pulled off of the needles. Fred`s life was spared and I sat down to lovingly tackle putting the stitches back on the needle. HAH! The count was right, the stitches matched up with the other side perfectly, at least I thought that they did, but alas I was very wrong. After doing 3 more pattern rows I realized that one half looked beautiful and one half looked like Fred had taken the stitches off of the needles. So once again it is off to the frog pond and I am taking this as a sign that I should not make this shawl. What say you? Should I give it one more try, with yet another color?
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4/12/2005 3:30:41 PM
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bets
Posts 18976
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Pat-
You MASTERED IT. Git down with your bad self! I think you should go kick @55 on 400 yards of yarn, because you are SOOOOO close!
I struggled with this thing in at least 4 different yarns myself, and got stalled on repeat SEVEN!!!!! I finally finished mine, and should reblock, and do as E did, stretching the BEJESUS out of it (she said it!).
I personally think you should tink it down to the end of the previous good repeat, and pick it up again.
Rah rah, you are pretty close to done!
B
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4/12/2005 3:37:41 PM
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Calamintha
Posts 563
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Oh no, I really feel your pain. Fred will never know what a close call he had! One of my cats once barfed all over one of my shawls but at least it was finished. If I were you I might take a little time and work some small soothing project and then go back to the FB Shawl. I haven`t made that particular pattern but I have done several shawls. I always count all the stitches on a row rather than just the ones in the pattern stitch. It`s tedious but saves me a lot of frogging/tinking.
Also, I read an article by Meg Swansen where she commented that it is perfectly acceptable to fix a missed YO by making 1 in the next row where it should have been or taking out an extra YO by K2tog. I have had occasion to resort to this a few times and believe me no one else will notice.
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4/12/2005 4:06:59 PM
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benne
Posts 19258
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Patricia,
Fred is following in the footsteps of those late sweet boys who preceded him. I guess it`s good he`s growing, it`s good you didn`t put him out of the house permanently (or worse), and it`s good he didn`t CHEW the yarn (that`s a miracle!) Run a lifeline yarn one row below Fred`s knitting and rip it back to your lifeline. That way you won`t have to tink the whole thing and you can vent a few frustrations, which makes life safer for Fred. I had read that stitch markers were a real pain and not advised for this shawl. I`ve noticed that with some other lace patterns too.
The BEST news is that you get it!!! You`re on a roll, you`ve got it down, you`re cookin`, you`ve got the fever, you`re hot, you CANNOT be stopped! Rock on, girlfriend!
Benne, who understands goldens are not always at their best when they think no one is looking
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4/12/2005 5:50:04 PM
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birdlady
Posts 1442
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Pat,
Congrats on mastering it. I think that you should do the life line too. It`s just that Fred is a Golden, they have a "Nose" for good wool. My 13 month old Golden also enjoys good wool and has a stash of her own somewhere....one ball of Peruvian Cuzco. She doesn`t hesitate to steal my wool/knitting every chance she gets. Fred now know how wonderful your knitting is and WILL go looking for it. Now, you know you can`t be made at that sweet face!
Denise
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4/12/2005 11:03:15 PM
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Sandra D
Posts 4496
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Oh, Patricia, I sympathize with you! I have to admit this is one project that gets more tedious as you go on since you keep adding more 10-st repetitions with each repeat; it gets so you can`t even finish a row in one sitting, especially if you include the time for obssessive counting of stitches! I nearly had a fit when my Boye needle cable flipped up and a bunch of stitches came off--nothing faster than YO`s under slight tension to unravel! Maybe do another project and then come back to FB refreshed...
Sandra
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4/13/2005 6:13:35 AM
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Daryl
Posts 3078
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I agree, the trick is that you GOT IT!!! This time when you reknit from the life line you will be AMAZED at how it flys. I reknit the orlando poncho a zillion times and only once I went to block it could I tell how clearly the pattern changed once I truly got it. I had to frog one entire panel and re do it, but it was worth it, and that was a simple stitch. Daryl
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4/13/2005 9:54:15 AM
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MacChick
Posts 3589
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Hey, Fred was just helping... he saw the FB and thought, "Oh that`s the shawl she always has to frog... I think I`ll start frogging it FOR her to help her out!"
I would frog the whole thing and start over, very high on the notion that NOW YOU HAVE IT! I would choose a light color, not a black or dark, easier to see light stitches and go fast. I would also get a box to keep it in... tupperware or something with a snap-shut lid, and I would keep that in a bag that zips shut. I would also make sure to have point protectors on the needles when you are not knitting. None of these things will be Fred-proof, but all together, and maybe also keep it on top of the fridge, and you have a darned good chance of flying through this project with nobody taking it off the needles on you!
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4/13/2005 10:48:38 AM
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Patricia
Posts 1802
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I frogged the whole thing! I think that when I put another one on the needles I will take your advise Michelle regarding storage! I think that it will go really fast, shoot, I think that with all the re starts I`ve probably already made one complete one! LOL
I received my Austerman Peru yesterday and I think it is a good candidate for this shawl because the colors are so vibrant. How do you think this shawl would look in varigated yarn?
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4/13/2005 11:08:24 AM
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Daryl
Posts 3078
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Yum, yum, yum. I love the idea of making it out of Peru. Then I could justify more of the yummy stuff, without buying enough for a whole other sweater. Hmm, one of each color perhaps? Says one who has not even cast ON a FB shawl yet, despite the drool rapidly accumlating and the intimate knowledge of the distrated manner in which knitting is accomplished (or frogging set up) in her house. Daryl
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4/13/2005 7:47:44 PM
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bets
Posts 18976
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I don`t recommend it in variegated-I`ll send a scan of mine.
b
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