07-17-2018

Diagnosis of insanity confirmed. I have had to restart this upwards of 30 times. In addition to all the fascinating ways in which I can screw up DPNs (hello, needle that twisted and I knit those suckers out of order, and hello accidental yarn-over when I change needles) I managed to, not once, not twice, not three times, but MORE THAN THAT knit with the tail. And unknitting in the round is incredibly hard, and mostly I just tore back and started over. I’ve gotten quite good at Emily Ocker’s Magic Loop, though, so there’s that.

The three into seven stitch is really hard, it really helps to loosen up the stitches before you attempt it. Even so, it’s a bastard.

07-19-2018

I have achieved circular needles, and my life is so much better!

07-21-2018

I bought three different colors of beads from Caravan Beads, not sure which one I wanted. They arrived yesterday, and the “sapphire” is perfect. The color of twilight. Perfect for a shawl called Evenstar.

07-26-2018

I have started chart three. I knit too much, my hands hurt. But this pattern is tons of fun, if also incredibly irritating. Oh, wait, I find being irritated to be fun. Sigh. Brains.

07-30-2018

So, yesterday, I found that I had had a point protector failure, and when I took the work out of my bag, a gazillion stitches were unstitched. After careful consideration, a little bit of screaming, and a long scold for not being able to figure out how to fix this, I tore out two hours of work (four rounds) and redid them. Thank god for life lines, is what I’m saying, here.

08-05-2018

About 60% through chart 3. Have just noticed that the edge goes on sideways. That’s always fun, but also usually involves me putting it on wrong way round multiple times. So.

Bought more stitch markers, cause I like to keep the colors consistent, and I had run out of blue. I am using (mostly) the Coco round markers, which have a nice heft to them. I am getting a little compulsive about stitch markers, but hey, whatevs. I really like the feel of the Coco markers. The fact that they will stick to a magnet has not yet turned out to be handy, but who knows.

08-07-2018

Oh, god, I just realized this probably all ends in Kitchener. Oh, god.

08-12-2018

Ok, then. I have done one iteration of the edging. Fifty-five more to go. I appear to have gotten it on right side round the first time, which is a relief. It didn’t say to break the yarn, so I didn’t, but I’m worried that there will be a rather large gap when I get back round.

I was right, it does all end in tears, I mean, Kitchener. But, that is many, many stitches from now. The beads look really lovely, just the right hint of blue. I’m happy about that. The edging isn’t complicated, but it is finicky and irritating. So, it’s got that going for it, too.

08-22-2018

Ok, it’s time for some bad math. An iteration of the edging, minus egregious errors, takes about 32 minutes. I … occasionally make egregious errors. That does not count stringing a lifeline each iteration, or loading the fleegle beader. So, call it 35 to 40 minutes. So, that’s between 32.5 hours and 37.3 hours, so call it roughly 40 hours plus. That does not count the half hour I spent crawling around on the floor, retrieving the beads I spilled one evening. At any rate, I have about 18 more iterations to go. And then, tears…I mean Kitchener.

08-25-2018

I have declined to play yarn chicken. Also, I have established that I would lose. I had 14 grams of yarn left, and 13 iterations of the border. I did an iteration, and had 12 grams left, therefore each iteration is 2 grams, and so cannot possibly complete the border without ordering more yarn. So, I haz ordered more yarn. If I am lucky, it will get her before I run out, but that’s not likely. I will have to consult with my brain as to whether or not I am allowed to work on an interim project. My brain has gotten a little more flexible in this regard, but I remain cautious, as I once spent five years being unable to do anything because I had failed to finish a project.

08-29-2018

As I predicted, it ended in tears. However, I remembered to put in life-lines for both sets of live stitches, so although there were tears, I was able to actually Kitchner the fuck out of that seam. It actually looks ok, too.

It’s a beautiful shawl. I can’t wait to block it.

09-07-2018

So, I guess I should have gone up a needle size, since it blocked at 56 inches, rather than 60 inches.. But, oh, my, it’s pretty. Will take it out of pins probably Monday when I get back to Beth’s.