Back in the Saddle...

WHEW! I think things have calmed down over here for now (that is, until I trip over my computer again) and I can get back to The Knitting.

Here's my current bus-mate: a Ribby Pulli in Brown Sheep Cotton Fleece in the Rue colourway I love So Much. Some people, including me, call this Duck Egg—is that right?

In retrospect, this project alone just might cure me of my lacksidaisial freakin' habit of having a zillion projects flying around. [Or, hidden in the marination chamber, as the case may be, where they now get some bad habits themselves.]

This sweater, like many who are bordered by ribbing, start out on a smaller needle. When this one came into being, I worked those first rows right up to the point where you switch to Larger Needles, and worked one row of the Body of the Garment on larger needles. I think.

Usually, when something has been sitting this long, idling, plotting, and stewing, it will exact a revenge of its own on the unsuspecting Knitter. This Foul Play takes the form of distorted stitches when you finally start knitting again.

I know this.

I usually rip back a row or two and cut out the offending kinks. This time I just blithely went back to business without doing the clippage. And, yes. I have a funky row all up in there. Needless to say, because of my blurry attention span I wasn't even sussed about it until the ribbing got to be, uhmmm, over 3 inches long and it smacked me right between the eyes.

Now I don't know about you, but sometimes my Little Bad Muse [on my left shoulder] will NOT let me rip after a certain point, mocking me for my carelessness.

I'm hoping this state will just Go Away after the first wearing and washing. (Yes, it's really one of those things only a TypeA person would fret about ANYWAY. Hold on. I'm going to go look at it again. Yup. Still there.)

OOPS #2. Even though this is like, the, zillionth sweater I've knitted, I kept No Notes.

Notes are Good.

Here's what I usually do:

1. Make a working copy of the pattern so I can write all over it.

2. Mark the yarn used by the yarn section—substituters, raise your hands! ;p

3. VIP: write the Needle Size & BRAND & TYPE used by the tools section.

4. Write the start date on the front page, just so I can laugh at myself much, much later...

Now, perhaps the most important thing for a procrastinator like me to do is #3.

Why is this important?

Well. Since I also have a very pronounced bad habit of stealing needles from one project to Start Another Project I sometimes get unexpected gauge shifts. Ususally, I will use a slightly smaller or even really smaller needle as a Holder; I just slip-stitch those boys off quickly and forget about 'em.

And this bites me quite a bit. WHY I am in denial about doing this remains between me and my professional, but let's just say, as above, I will just pick the knitting up after a Long Delay and check NOTHING about it and just knit like mad.

MORE: with this Pulli, I didn't count the stitches to see what freakin' size I had started until 4 inches of ribbing were done. At this point I discovered I was making a size too small.

So immediately after finishing the bottom ribbing, I increased 4 sts, 2 sts in on the center panels. I repeated that INC after 5 rows, for a total of 8 sts increased. Because of the nature of the yarn, it should be OK...

I think all is quiet on the western front here now; the pouch pocket is about 3/4 done...

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