Tuesday, February 27, 2007

Dear Gentle Reader,


Ok, this is so complicated. I have really noticed that lately I just don't "think" about my knitting as I used to. The stitches, the fabric, the craft...blah..blah..blah. I am just knitting.

I knit the back of AIR with no problems. Then came the trouble. (Thank you Jodi for opening my eyes...you know I would have finished, seamed and modeled it without ever really noticing.)

I love knitting the fronts together, as well as sleeves, so when I am done, I am done. You know?

So I started knitting the fronts.
A lovely picot cast on, some moss stitch, yada, yada, yada.
Then the buttonhole row. Hold up.
I have to knit the one side then mark the placement of the buttonholes then knit the other and make the buttonholes to make the placements.

Are you following so far? Good.

Ok, I stop the buttonhole side and begin knitting the side that holds the buttons. I place my markers to set up the pattern (and this here marks the tragedy).
Then I knit...and knit...and knit...

It's like when you are driving...and driving...that drive you always do...and you arrive at your destination not really consciously remembering how you got there. Or better yet ending up in another city. (I know you are amused Dad...but I do remember someone ending up in London on their way to HW)

Has that happened to you?

WELL...that is what happened. I ended the front and started the other side...and finished.

ALL THE WHILE TAKING PHOTOS AND POSTING THEM WITH PRIDE OF FINALLY ACCOMPLISHING SOMETHING...AND NEVER...NEVER NOTICING THAT I SET UP THE FIRST ROW WRONG ON THE BUTTON SIDE.

You can't even begin to understand...no...yes you can. I know you can.

It's like listening to a speaker, but not really hearing them.
I was looking at my knitting but not really seeing it.

WHERE WAS MY INNER KNITTER WHEN I REALLY NEEDED HER????

I remember feeling such empathy for the knitter here.

Oh the pain. It has to be ripped back and reknit...and I just hate not having the luxury of time to do this. I could be on to other things....
Like that sock that I had to rip all the way back because of the decreasing mistake...
Or the lace scarf that I made that double decrease mistake on...
Or the mittens that are really too tight...

Yeah, that about sums up my knitting this year.

I know, I know you will all offer words of encouragement.
"Don't hang up the needles."
"Pick yourself up...dust yourself off and start RIPPING!"

And I will...eventually.

But for now...I will lie here...this once prolific knitter...lie here defeated.

RIP
(no pun intended)

24 comments:

Laritza said...

You can not even imagine the number of times I have done stuff like that in over 40 years of knitting! go rip it right now! and cast on again, the pain will go away faster.

Kristine said...

Okay, now I'm just throwing this out there, and you can believe me or not...

But I kinda like it better your way.

amber said...

I work 50 hours a week and absolutely understand how much it sucks to have to rip out that hard earned knitting progress.... it's a week's worth of work rather than a day. And it takes so long to get back all that knitting. But alas I'll take the little amount of knitting time I get :)

Hang in there... I feel your pain.

Anonymous said...

I know exactly what you mean. There are just times when you can't think about your knitting. I find those times are very good for plain, plain socks.

Good luck finding your mojo.

Angie said...

I'm with you. You need a win - make a hat, a nice simple hat, get a win under your belt and you'll feel better. Hang in there.

Amy said...

Ugh, I'm so sorry. Get yourself a luscious little skein of something beautiful and do a simple scarf?

Jeanie said...

Ouch. I've never even knit a button band yet but I've had to frog for lots of other reasons and can totally imagine your frustration and disappointment. I have a little trick though that seems (in some crazy way) to make frogging just a little less painful. IF you have enough yarn to be able to, start your new front without frogging the existing one. Just set it aside and try not to think about it again, or if you do, do so only to inspire you to keep going on your "new" front. Once you've gotten past the point (on your new front) that you realized your mistake (on your old front), frog the old front. There's something about having the "corrected" version right there in front of you that makes frogging the "wrong" version SO much easier. I'd even go so far as to buy extra yarn to be able to re-knit the new version without having to frog the old one, if you can swing it. You can then save the "frogged" yarn for a different project. Don't ask me why this makes frogging easier for me -- I only know that it does. Good luck and do NOT give up, whatever you do!

Anonymous said...

Have some wine. And a bubble bath.

shoeboots said...

You know, my current project had me ripping and re-knitting 2x2 ribbing THREE times because I could not cast on the right number of stitches or use the correct size needle, so don't beat yourself up. I think it's in the air!

Obsessed with knitting said...

I appreciate what you said about your inner knitter - it's that intuitive part that says, "something's not right here. stop. check it out." maybe the lesson is not just about knitting but about listening to the inner voice. I often hear it and keep knitting anyway. then when I pick up my knitting the next day and see the mistake that I made, I realize that I have to rip out right back to where I heard the message the first time.

Dove Knits said...

Oh, dear. I feel your pain.

I once threw a freshly-finished shawl in the trash. In. The. Trash. I pulled it back out and salvaged it (and love it now and wear it all the time), but jeez, do I feel your pain.

Alyson said...

ARGHHH. I feel for you, I really and truly do. That sucks in the way that sucky things really suck. Chocolate?

Anonymous said...

Above all, be kind to yourself! Don't judge your current knitting progress by the same standard you used before you started working again. Eventually you'll settle back into your knitting rhythm. For now, allow yourself time and space to adjust to your new lifestyle. No time is ever really wasted -- but sometimes we have to move on to be able to understand that. :-) I try not too dwell on ALL the time I've spent ripping and re-knitting. . . Hang in there! And take care of yourself.

be squared said...

I found your blog last year when I saw your completed Forecast and I've been lurking ever since. You've really inspired me with your beautiful work over the last year, but I have to say you've always amazed me with the sheer amount of knitting you do. I've been sad to see over the last few months that even you are only human! I'm sure the inspiration and focus will return as you adjust to your new responsibilities.

mle said...

Oh dear! I really feel for you! That's really terrible!

trixie stix said...

Ouch.

Know that in the frog pond of knitting (and life) you can rely on the life preserver that are blogging friends. They will give you the buoyancy to keep knitting - happily.

Sorry about the bad word plays - it's a habit.

Leyna Faye said...

I was looking at your pic, and I noticed right away that the sides were differrent, but I honestly believed that it was SUPPOSED to be asymmetrical. That is the thing now isn't it. So I looked and I looked and I looked, and I decided that I was blind for not being able to see what your mistake was. Turns out that it was your design element. I thought it was intended! (And looked good!)

Anonymous said...

You cannot give up now, i need you to fix mistakes that i make with my knitting, now you know what i mean when i call you ms ripperback lady. never give up.
Your Cuz Renee

Anonymous said...

{{{HUGS}}}

Mag said...

Buck up sweetie pie! You're being too hard on yourself. But hey, your post did perfectly articulate the way it feels to make such mistakes, so blissfully unaware until the moment of clarity smacks you. We've all done it, all of us knitters.

Anonymous said...

I know you'll be okay because you haven't lost your sense of humor. That unintended pun really made me laugh!

Anonymous said...

Can you say "DESIGN ELEMENT"?? I stared at it for 5 minutes and eventually had to look up the pattern in order to figure out what you were talking about. Yes, that is a humdinger of a mistake but NO ONE who has not seen that pattern photo (in your daily life that would be- how many people?) would ever think that the sweater is made "wrong".

I say, if it's not too late already, LEAVE IT. It looks good. Only your knitting buddies will know the truth and we won't tell. ;-)

Bethany Hendrickson said...

You'll have to pardon me but I don't see the supposed big, giant, glaring mistake...could someone point it out? I didn't see the cable mistake either...

Anonymous said...

I make mistakes all the time. Once I put myself into the mindset that ripping is part of the knitting process (because every single one of my creations has needed it one time or another) then I didn't stress about it anymore. Patience!