A lesson from the Knitting Gods

It seems that the Knitting Gods feel I need a lesson in the benefits of embracing the act of ripping out my knitting.

First, there was the Stonington Shawl "lesson".

Remember that the Stonington Shawl had been my "mindless" portable project. I was in desperate need of a simple project to knit while we were out to dinner with friends. I had planned on starting over with my new square shawl plans.

Then I remembered that it was a bit difficult to see the tiny lace yarn strands in the dimmed lighting of restaurants. Umm, maybe I should go to Ravelry and review the Queue that I so carefully cleaned up a few weeks ago.

Ta Da!!! The Simple Yet Effective Shawl by Laura Chau. And, thanks to my stash organizing I was able to quickly find my collection of Gloss HW in Doe. A perfectly neutral color for a particularly comforting shawl.

But, the Knitting Gods were not finished with me yet. I began the shawl and knit about twelve inches. I realized that I didn't like the Stockinette bands. They seemed boring on the "right" side and not very attractive on the "wrong" side. Refer to my illustration. Rip!!

I decided that a nice reversible Seed Stitch would be better. I cast-on and started knitting. As I made the transition between sections, I must have been distracted. I ended up with a couple of rows of Stockinette Stitch making a flat line of stitches. Umm, I suddenly felt like a bit of plain fabric between the garter segments and the seed stitch segments. Without the "clear" area, they bumped into each other rather ungracefully. Refer to my second sketch. Rip!

Alright, one more time!!! Success!!!

Love, love, love this shawl!! I knit on it through the dinner, the Masters and while I read an excellent mystery - Maisie Dobbs. It is moving along very quickly since the yarn is heavy and I am using a #9 needle.

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Comment by Diane Stump on April 14, 2011 at 12:19pm: Hi Kelley. I've just started this shawl and am trying to do the seed stitch sections. I'm confused as to how to handle increases on all right side rows when doing seed stitch. Can you help me? I've made several swatches but they don't look right. Thanks in advance.

Comment by Lin Haraway on March 21, 2011 at 12:31am: I have been listening to you all week in podcasts while painting baseboards. You make everything sound so easy. When I look at all the perfect finished products on Ravelry, it seems everyone is a quick, perfect, creative knitter and I am a moronic dud who cannot even make one garment that isn't freakishly large or small. This post has given me hope. Thank you, Kelly.

By the way, the podcasts have made our 3.5 year renovation of an 80-year-old house bearable to me. With KnitPicks, Wait Wait Don't Tell Me, and This American Life, I have managed to avoid both homicide and house-i-cide. It's been especially helpful this week, which was Spring Break and was supposed to be a trip to Ireland. Instead, we worked on the house. Truly, the podcasts got me through with only two bouts of pouting!

Comment by Evelyn M. Dugger on April 17, 2010 at 11:15am: Kelly, you are my hero! You make ripping out so,oh, I don't know, exciting?, educational? inventive? a lesson in patience and perseverance? sometimes a necessary evil? Whatever the word my be, your shawl is a good example of all! ☺E.

Comment by KnitterGirl39 on April 15, 2010 at 10:48am: Love how it is looking! Trial and error, isn't that part of life? lol

Comment by Peggy on April 15, 2010 at 7:00am: Your shawl is beautiful Kelley:) Great job. I hope you will share the pattern with us:) *hint hint*

Comment by HavetoomuchYarn on April 13, 2010 at 8:54pm: Thank you for sharing your journey about how your shawl came to be. I love the way it looks!

Comment by Susan the Blue Lake Knitter on April 13, 2010 at 6:09pm: Very nice shawl! The knitting gods will let up on you eventually! ♥s

Comment by Peggy Stuart on April 13, 2010 at 3:56pm: Kelley: Here's my take on it. The knitting gods want you to recognize your talent as a designer. Happy knitting! --P

Comment by Tara Addesa on April 13, 2010 at 3:21pm: WoW Kelley :)))))) Beautifulllllll Shawl gf !!! Way to Go Awesome !! Well Worth All That Ripping to get to This !! Gee Kelley I Just had a monumental Birthday a few weeks ago (Just In Case You Dont Know WhaT to Do with This Lovely Shawl !!! Lol lol J/K

Comment by cherylbwaters on April 13, 2010 at 3:03pm: Oh, Kelley, the knitting gods were just trying to nudge you in the right direction and I definitely think they have! Seriously, no sarcasm intended. ♥c