HELP me I afraid to screw this up

Hello all,

My name is Megan, I am 24 and have become obsessed about knitting in the past few years. However this project has become my knitting nightmare. See, I have made one sweater before and I hated it it turned out ok it fit and it was what the pattern looked like but it was oversized and made of scrathy walmart woll and it made me look like a marshmellow when i wore it so i threw it out and bought all the wool to start this project thinking that no problem I can do this my first project was a pair of toe up sock on circs that turned out perfect im a quick learner and there will be lots of people to help me with it that was almost a year ago now. The wool came and I was so excited to start I got my needles out and started looking through the pattern. When I came to the part where it says carry the second color with you I was stuck i dunno how to do that. so I gave up and said I will post about it tommorow and someone will help me I know theres lots of people on the forum. I realized I was afraid to start it so now the pretty yarn sits in the closet and makes me sad. Until about a week ago I cleaned my closet and ther it was. Then my boyfriend informed me that I spent all this money on the wool and never started it . I told him that I didnt know how to carry the wool up with me each row when I wasnt knitting it, to my surprise he said thats never stopped you before why dont you get on all those sites you spend hours reading and ask. It was then that I realized that i was afraid to start as I did not want to spend another year knitting something to throw it out again. That first sweater throw my sweather confidence. So really long story short. Can someone help me I dont know how to carry the second color with my work. I know long rediculous life story wasnt necessary for such as simple question but oh well.

Thanks,

Megan

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Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by KnitWhich? on September 2, 2011 at 10:38am

Megan,

We all have problems at some point. Never hesitate to ask for help. We'll be more than glad to help you.

You didn't mention what the sweater looks like. Is it striped, or Faire Isle? The way to carry the thread is different depending on the pattern.

Let us know and we'll be glad to help.

Permalink Reply by Megan on September 2, 2011 at 10:41am

I am trying to make the exact sweater from the classic lines cardigan pattern in the gray and white because I saw the picture and it looked so classic lol, and because if I knew those colors looked good it was a safe bet lol

Permalink Reply by KnitWhich? on September 2, 2011 at 10:50am

OK. That's easy. When carrying your yarn, let it hang down while you knit a row, and when you get back to the start, bring the yarn you are using up under the one you are carrying and continue knitting. When you are ready to use it, just pick it up and add it to the yarn you are using, then drop it again and wrap the yarns as before.

Let me know if you don't understand.

Permalink Reply by Megan on September 2, 2011 at 11:00am

I think I get it let me try it out and i will see if i completly understand thanks for your help

now i really have no other excuses to not start

Permalink Reply by Sandra Draper on September 2, 2011 at 11:11am

Megan,

Your post made me smile -- I've put off projects SO many times because I was afraid of doing something wrong. I have found the on-line tutorials to be fantastic, from many sources, but this one was helpful to me on stranded knitting. http://www.squidoo.com/colorknitting

I haven't done this specific project, but I don't believe you really need to carry the yarn along each row in order to use both yarns in the same row, you just need to carry the accent color behind the rows of the base color until it's time to use it again for the accent rows. Basically you just need it kind of "tacked" in behind one stitch every other row or so in order to eliminate a long float that would catch fingernails or fingers when you put it on.

Hope the video helps you.

Sandy

Permalink Reply by cherylbwaters on September 2, 2011 at 11:16am

Megan, I haven't done this sweater, but I can guarantee you are in good hands with Jo, a/k/a KnitWhich?. She has done two beautiful ones that I know of.

And welcome to the wonderful world of fiber! I love people who are willing to jump right in. That is how you learn. And the best thing about knitting is you can always rip out and redo, well, that is before you do any steeking! ❤cheryl

Permalink Reply by robdob on September 2, 2011 at 5:01pm

Megan, I found the cardigan to be the best fitting of any sweater I've made. And since it's been a while since I did my CLC I believe the only "carrying" is once you've knit a couple rows with your main color you hold the accent behind the main and drop it again to continue the next 2 or 3 rows of main color. Like one of the ladies says, it just keeps you from having a long strand running up the edge to catch a nail on. Then just pick it up and knit it with the main color for a row or whatever the instructions say. I'm not good at explaining things but maybe that helps you to not be so afraid. And like Cheryl says, you can always unravel and redo. It's a journey!

Permalink Reply by Nittingnana on September 30, 2011 at 12:35pm

Hi! I bought the wool and pattern for Classic Lines when it first came out, but I'm just now pulling it out of my expansive stash. I spent the morning rewinding the skeins into pancakes, and made my swatch for gauge, humming happily as I went. Then I cast on the first sleeve, worked up to where you start the first "classic line" and stopped humming! As I knit that line, the lighter colored yarn wrapped itself around and around the two strands I was knitting with. Uh-oh. How do you untangle this yarn and keep it from tangling with the other two??? I feel stupid, but if I keep going like this, I will have rewound the lighter yarn into a tangled mess! Can someone make my journey less tangled?

Permalink Reply by KnitWhich? on September 30, 2011 at 1:32pm

I'm not sure I understand the problem. Is it tangling with the other two skeins, or is it just wrapping around the yarn on the stitches? If it is the latter, that is how it should be. The three yarn strands do not lie flat, but twist around each other so that the lighter yarn will be on top sometimes, but not all the time.

If, instead, you have the skein tangling with the other skeins, try putting the one on one side of you and the others on the other, and let them only come together as you knit them.

Did this help?

Permalink Reply by Peggy Stuart on November 14, 2011 at 8:23pm