Tuesday, February 16, 2010

We now return to our regularly scheduled programming

Life is good again. The internet connection is stable and I can google at will. No more jonesing for blogs. No more whining for email. And I didn't pull out all my hair...
Ahhhhhhhhh...

The cabled coat's collar piece is still drying. It went from pieces to piece when I grafted the live stitches together in the middle, rather than seaming them as the pattern called for. (There are only 2 reasons to use a seam rather than a graft - a) a seam gives stability, like at the back of a sweater's neck, or b) trying to explain how to kitchener two cabled sections would make both the designer and the knitter crazy. There was no reason for the center of a collar to need stability, so I'm going with option b as the designer's reason for the seam.)
There is a problem lurking, however. The instructions said to knit the collar pieces to a length of 24.5". I started measuring at around 18" and every other row thereafter. (Are we there yet? Are we there yet?) No way did I want to knit those last two pieces even a millimeter longer than I had to. The graft line came at exactly 24.5". Unfortunately, when I blocked it, the length grew and grew to over 26" at the midpoint. I tried pulling it widthwise, but that only scalloped the edges. Looks like I'm going to have to suck it up, and start seaming from opposite ends, then cut and rip back the center part and regraft it to fit. I'm at a standstill while I contemplate this.

So, with a major project off the needles (not complete, but off the needles. That totally counts.) I felt free to cast on something else!
But what?
Maplewing has been making my heart go pitty-pat for months. But there was also this sock pattern that caused sudden lust to overcome me.

What to do first?

Here are your clues:

Maplewing is at the top of my list for I-want-want-want-this-shawl. It has been for months.
I started it last fall, but hated the beige yarn I'd picked. In my heart I wanted orange.
I spun beautiful orange roving to make beautiful orange yarn especially for it.
I had a ball of that orange yarn already wound and ready to go.
The cast-on for Maplewing is 522 stitches.
Skew is a passion of only a few days. (So far. It just came out.)
I did have sock yarn in the stash.
I didn't have any sock yarn wound and ready to go.
I'd have to hunt for sock needles that weren't already occupied by something else.
The cast-on for Skew is 12 stitches.
But I'd need to go online to look up Judy's Magic Cast-On, which I use just often enough to not be able to remember how to do it.
I was having internet connection problems.
I could use Turkish cast-on, instead.

Which do you think I started?

Bonus points for guessing the time interval between binding off the last stitch of the cabled coat and casting on for the new project.

6 comments:

Bobbie Wallace said...

I'm betting you went for Skew and used the Turkish Cast On. Time elapsed? I'd say less than an hour; lol! I'm lusting after Skew as well; and I have The Perfect yarn for it. As soon as I finish the Secret Knitting and the other Red Sock.

Laurie said...

I think you did Skew. I think you should do Maplewing.

Becky said...

Holy Crap! Maplewing is GORGEOUS! If you DID start the sock, I think you should cast it aside and immediately cast on for the shawl. It filled me with shawl lust!

Diane said...

You cast on both of course. Oh, OK, Maplewing first, then Skew.

Joansie said...

Love, love, love the shawl. Don't you just love Anne's designs!!!! I say you cast on for the shawl because you are a "night owl" and no time elapse between the projects as you finished one and reached for the needles on the other.

Bullwinkle said...

So I'm late. But I just want to mention: proper project management requires you to cast on for one prior to the final completion of the other. Otherwise you violate The First Rule: Something must be on the needles at all times. (UFO's are exempt.)