So, I really want to knit the Princess Shawl, which is stunning. It is also Shetland lace, which I have never done before. I’ve never worked with cobweb lace, and I’ve never used such teeny-tiny needles. What could possibly go wrong, right?
I bough the ChiaGoo mini interchangeable set, which is just lovely. I got some cobweb lace from Estonia through Etsy. And I have torn out so many, many rows that I must be learning something, right?
I cannot understand why knit two together should be so damn difficult, but it is. I can’t seem to place the needle correctly, and keep on having to regroup and try again. Also, it’s really, really easy to lose my place. And the stitches are really small, so it’s hard to backtrack and understand where I am. The lack of a return row also removes an entire level of error-checking that I am used to rely upon. Also, it doesn’t knit-back worth a damn, hence the many, many tear backs.
I am up to row 16, again. I am thinking I will just add lifelines every five rows, for a while. Although, honestly, picking up the knitting from a lifeline is not nearly as easy as it should be, either. Such tiny needles, such tiny yarn.
I’m not having fun, yet, but I am getting really, really frustrated, so that’s a good thing. Why did I want to learn Shetland, again?
10-04-2018
I am getting much better at this, but I keep on having trouble with the K2tog and K3tog, as I split the yarn all the damn time. Difficult to get a clean insertion. I do not know what my problem is. The pattern itself has become deeply repetitive, which is a) boring and b) useful. I am trying to built some basic skills and basic muscle memory, so repetitive is helpful.
10-28-2018
Still plugging along. It’s getting a little easier. I find that the only way to make the K3tog work is to insert the right needle the wrong way through the three stitches to loosen them up, and then K3tog. It’s a trick I learned doing nups a while back, and it seems weird to have to do it for only three stitches, but seriously, whatever works.
I want to do 30 repeats of the main pattern, and I’m at 22 repeats. So, onward, excelsior, all that jazz. Then I get to do pick up and knit and mitered corners and stuff. This is going slowly.
11-10-2018
Tomorrow, we begin the sideways knitting. I have knitted finished the main body, and knitted around the edges. SO MANY MISTAKES! But, it’s a practice piece, I keep on telling myself.
11-19-2018
And we’re done. I Kitchenered, and it only took me one retry to get it right. Mind you, I didn’t really have provisional stitches on the one end, like I was supposed to, what I had was a lifeline through the stitches, which I then kinda picked up. So, cheated at bit there. But it doesn’t look too bad, and should look better when blocked. The sideways edging was simple and boring, but lots of good practice. I’m quite pleased with how it came out, taken all in all.
lydydrew notebook 
projects
handspun
stash
queue
favorites
friends
groups & events
needles & hooks
library
blog posts
Project
