(Knitting Regrets), I’ve Had a Few . . .
But then again to few to mention.
Over the years I’ve knit things I’ve liked and I’ve knit things that . . . well . . .
It’s time for true confessions and to reveal my
Top 5 Knitting Regrets
In no particular order, drum roll please . . .
1) Told Yourself You Could Skip the Swatch
So, yes, I’ve done that. I told myself every lie in the book. “I’m using the same yarn that the pattern calls for” or “I’m a good knitter”, or “it looks like it’s on gauge.” Most famously resulting in this atrocity.
2) Went to the (fill in the blank) Without Your Knitting
Always, I repeat ALWAYS have your knitting with you. Every time I’ve gone out without it because it’s just a quick errand, my subway is held in the station, or the doctor got stuck at the hospital so she’s 2 hrs behind in appt. The WORST is taking a project on vacation and finishing it with nothing new to cast on. Be safe, take one project per day of vacation. Trust me.
3) Convinced Yourself You Had Enough Yarn
Yarn chicken never ends well. You can tell yourself all the lies. You can do a felted join so you’ll not waste ends, shorten the sleeves, knit few rows of ribbing, but math is math. Don’t do it. Just get an extra ball of yarn. Don’t
4) Continued to Knit Lace in the Dark
Not wanting to wake up your husband is not a good enough reason to knit lace in the dark, because the morning always comes – and it. Is. Never. Pretty.
5) Convinced Yourself it Would Get Smaller When You Seamed it
See Regret #1. I knit the entire sweater back and front and still refused to acknowledge that the sweater was HUGE. Here’s what I’ve learned . . . when I was a kid my mother used to warn “the man won’t change when you marry him”. I never knew what she meant, but I can tell you, the sweater won’t get smaller when you seam it.
There, I feel better. What are your biggest knitting regrets? Leave me a comment.
To your 5 I’ll add one more!
6. Tell yourself that little mistake won’t show because you don’t want to rip it all out. It becomes a beacon to your eye and that’s all you see!
Not ripping out and correcting a mistake.
“Oh, I don’t need to put this (maybe lace?) in a bag. The cats will leave it alone” . HAH!! “Idle yarn is a cat’s plaything.”
Ignoring that nagging feeling that something is wrong instead of stopping to discover that rereading the directions means you don’t have to rip out the yoke (twice) or make socks that would fit Godzilla.
That glass of wine (or two) that I had before I picked up my knitting….Susan
My worst was not notating a needle size change on my pattern! Came back much later and finished it with the needle called for in the pattern. The back fits, the front AND sleeves are too big. Sew it together anyway! Bad idea. Waiting to be frogged.
Aggressive blocking isn’t always the answer either!
Alternating skeins on a pattern that goes from right side out to wrong side out and 5 inches later seeing how nice the skein changes show on the Right side. Ahhhhhhhhhh!
Chenille yarn and trying to knit something with it for the first time. Frogged. But don’t want to give up. There must be a secret.
Don’t grip too tightly or it will bunch up.
Being too scared or intimidated to try new skills. Took me years to try stranded knitting – finally gave in during the pandemic. It is now my fav thing!
For me if I have to rip I make sure I have my tools my kitchen table and calm . Read: don’t rip like a enraged crazy person. Also agree w if you are tired put it DOWN else to the kitchen table I will go!
Using the same weight yarn, but different fibers from what the pattern called for. I made a very intricate cable/lace cardigan – whole thing was intertwining cables and lace. The pattern called for a mohair/merino blend. I used bamboo. The fabric was beautiful, stitch definition was lovely – but it did not hang right and was too bulky. Never wore it. It was such a lovely shade of periwinkle too. What a shame.
These are great! Thank you Patty, I can relate to every one of them.
Corollary to #5 — It will be bigger once it gets blocked….
Not taking enough notes on a pattern so that when I wanted to knit it again, I made all the same mistakes all over again! I could have saved time and avoided that frustration with sufficient notes!