This is the "knitting that must not be named" that I worked so hard on before Christmas. I used Elann's Highland Bulky and size 10 needles.
I thought really hard about the things that need to happen to make this pattern more knittable. You can find the pattern in VK Winter 2003/2004. I thought the point of being a pattern designer was actually having people make and enjoy your designs. No one ever intended a soul to knit that top up the way it's written.
1) Chart the patterns. There are only a few that you actually need to do. This is a sanity saver. I was struggling on the collar, and pissed off about frogging it for the 3rd time....I went back and counted, and the pattern covered 49 different stitches without taking a breath. No wonder I was struggling.
2) Knit it in the round. The pattern is intuitive when you are on the right side, but the P2W and PTBL locations aren't clear when you are working on the back side. Having a right and wrong side made it unnecessarily difficult. I knit the neck in the round. There comes a time where you have to just knit reasonably. Maybe make it 2" longer, too.
3) Every other row is wrong on the point slope. If you are working in the round, you can see the error, but it's not easy to catch when you are working front and backs. I wrote VK but they did not respond. If you work in the round, just compare the instructions to what's actually happening.
I don't think I am an expert knitter, but I am a competent knitter. I can't believe that after all that, the designer wrote a chart out to Swiss darn!! Can we take it any farther over the top?? Crazy talk!
Oh, and sharp needle points are NOT this yarn's best friend....too snaggy. My life got better when I switched from Balenes to bamboo.
PS-if you want the real deal, search my blog for "knitting that must not be named"
5 comments:
A+ for effort.
A for the yarn.
D for the design.
PS..Surely Elann could have dug up a more attractive sweater for the bulky? Those bust points...shudder.
Yay, it's OVER, Bets!!! ;-}
Hi Bets
How can you NOT refer to yourself as an expert knitter when you can knit this out of a poorly written pattern and come up with an absolutely beautiful piece of clothing. I hope your daughter appreciates it. It would be nice to see a picture with her modelling it.
You're a mighty fine knitter girlfriend.
Evelyn
That's the thing, Evelyn, the pattern wasn't BAD, but it was written by a blind guy during a power outage. It wasn't a bad pattern, it was bad pattern writing!
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