Everyone makes mistakes

By Meg Dedolph

Friends, this is not looking good.

A few weeks ago, full of optimism and hope, I decided to knit my partner a sweater. We’d just gotten a new shipment of Nightshades in at the shop, and after listening to people gush about this yarn for months, I decided it was time to give it a try.

Because a sweater isn’t the kind of thing I like surprising a person with, I asked Jonathan to pick out his favorite color, which he did, and I picked out a pattern, (Herringweave, by Anne Hanson) and he liked that, so I knit a gauge swatch and I measured my husband and I cast on.

And it was going great! The yarn is a joy to knit with, the subtly textured pattern really shines, the cable keeps it fun …. I have no complaints.

The only problem is that the yarn is basically black, and our cats are basically black, and sometimes we mistake my project for a cat and start talking to it. Also sometimes the cats mistake my project for a bed, and that's also unhelpful.

I was keeping an eye on the calendar and staying on track, and then I caught a bad cold, which on one hand, is a bad cold (seriously, this thing is a doozy. Go wash your hands. Right now.) but on the other hand, meant I needed to rest by watching Netflix and knitting. 

And today, just as the rookie detective inspector made a breakthrough in the series of murders plaguing London, I cast off the back of the sweater. I held it up, admired it, and decided to move on to the next step: knitting the front.

The pattern said, “Using the smaller needle, cast on….” and I realized with horror, that I had just cast off using a pretty small needle.

I read the pattern again. Cast on with the smaller needle, knit the ribbing, switch to the larger needle … where was my needle gauge? I measured needles, hoping against hope that I had switched to the larger needle.

I’m sure you see where this is going.

I did not switch to the US7 after the ribbing. I kept going with the smaller, US5. I mention this, because I think sometimes beginning knitters think that as you get more experienced, you make fewer mistakes. I am here as living proof that this is not the case. You make bigger mistakes on tighter deadlines instead.

So, 10 days before Christmas, I have, essentially, one sweater sleeve knit. 

Something tells me this may be a New Year’s gift. Or maybe a Martin Luther King Day gift.

(Are you in the same boat? Check out our Scarf Market - we have lots of great crocheted, knitted and woven pieces made by our customers, and the best part? The proceeds benefit Teen Parent Connection in Glen Ellyn. Cross something off your list and help a great organization at the same time. Win-win!)