Monday, March 08, 2010

My Knitting Olympics Project = Finished!

Finished Tangled Yoke Cardigan


Green TYC = Done. I used the same exact buttons on this sweater as I did on the red Tangled Yoke Cardigan I made a couple of years ago, just in a nice kahki color.

Tangled Yoke Cardigan Button Detail


I haven't tried it on really yet, so I'm not sure if it fits. I think it might be a little too big because I think my gauge was a bit off. No doubt there will be more photos once I've worn it. :)


Question now is, what do I knit now!? I've got a Seraphim shawl on my needles, I haven't finished the bucket hat I started (mostly because I"m terrified it's going to be too big!) and I'm thinking it will be too warm soon to knit the Malabrigo Blanket. So I'm thinking of casting on something new.

I have a sock that Bev knit a while ago. I got both the sock and the yarn for the second sock. I really could use a pair of black and grey socks.

At the same time, I do have this lovely Madelinetosh DK yarn. And I'd love to knit Ingenue out of it from Custom Knits.

Wednesday night I'm going to Jersey for a business trip and I have another this weekend to Boca. I think I could probably finish that one sock during one or both of those trips, but then I'd have all that extra time without a project, so I'm leaning towards Ingenue. I'm having a bit of trouble getting gauge though. If I can't get gauge, I might just bring the sock and the Seraphim Shawl so my bases are covered.

Sunday, March 07, 2010

Tangled Yoke Cardigan Notes

I figured I'd write a post in case I ever decide to knit another one of these. Here were my pitfalls:

Decreasing doesn't make sense the way the pattern's written. Add 1 1/2 inches of pattern before starting decreases. Decrease on the following rows: 11, 27, 35, 41, 47, 51. Increase on the following rows: 59, 67, 77, 87, 97, 107.

On the button band: pickup 3 stitches, then skip 1 stitch. 154 stitches need to be picked up for the button band on both sides. Buttons should be about 2.5" apart for 9 buttons.

Monday, March 01, 2010

4th Place

The worst place to come in, because it means you were close, but you couldn't quite make it. It means you totally don't get a medal even though you're heroic, and I'm pretty sure that's exactly what place I'd come in if I were to compete in anything Olympic-wise.

I turned to Stan and I said, "maybe I just don't have the focus one needs to be an Olympian." He didn't say anything, because he's an amazing boyfriend, and gave the best consolation hug after I realized I had totally failed at medalling.

Here's the progress as Jacques Rogge announced the games were officially ended:

Progress at the end of the Closing Ceremony


So what the hell happened? It seemed like I could totally do this, why didn't I?

The ribbing directions at the bottom.
I knew they were different, I thought I'd figured them out and written them down. I might have, but I probably did so in a notebook that is long gone. I had noted where to decrease on the back of the photocopy of the pattern. I remembered having issues with the ribbing at the bottom, but I was convinced that those directions I'd written were the revised directions because why else would I keep the pattern. They weren't. I followed them blindly, even when Beth told me it could be the ribbing patterning, I was convinced my problem was my gauge. It wasn't. I lost a day to swatching on several different sized needles, and made Stan drive me to brooklyn to get said needles (No really, he's a sport and a catch. And no, you can't have him, he's mine!).
My inability to concentrate on charts.
I had to rip back the first two rows twice because I couldn't get the right number of stitches between the 1 into 5 increases. I had to put stitch markers after every repeat so I didn't get confused, but I did anyway. I kept forgetting to mirror the cabling, so the chart took me way longer than it should have.
Plain poor planning.
Before the Ravelympics, Knitting Olympics or what have you, I made plans with Stan and our friends to visit MOMA for the Tim Burton Exhibit. I just neglected to look at the date and to register that it was the Saturday before Closing Ceremonies. :/ If I'd had that one more solid day of knitting, I think I totally would have finished.

Sigh. At least I have most of a nifty Tangled Yoke Cardigan done and I might even get it done sometime this week.