Wednesday, March 21, 2007

SFS Sweater Woe is Me Wednesday

My gauge is off. Last night I kept looking at what I was doing and thinking it looked small. I smoothed the stitches out as far as they would go on the 24" circular and wasn't comforted by the results. I remember seeing Sally Melville wearing the sweater at Stitches East. Hers was sort of a celery green, similar to the one pictured in the pattern. Maybe it was the one pictured in the pattern. Sally's was oversized. I want mine oversized.

Can you say 'swatch'? Before I started the sweater the first time I did swatch. I was using two straight aluminum needles. I was very careful when deciding on what size to make. I added the six inches to my measurements as required. I have no hips but lots of boobage so I went with six inches added to the top measurement. I did not measure this time. I should have. I should have swatched as well. OUCH!

Okay, so I'm a little above my fighting weight. I considered continuing with the size on the needles, but when the ruler showed my gauge to be off that was the last straw. I will be at my best weight again, maybe even in the next few months and certainly by the time the sweater is finished. However, I have doubts about "oversized" even if my gauge was right. Can you say 'frog pond'?

Yes, I am going to frog Sally's Favorite Summer Sweater The Bane Of My Existence yet again. How many times is this? Five? Ten? Who knows? Who's counting?

The good news is, with my Knit Picks needles, restarting and getting back to where I am right now will not take long. Also I discovered how really handy the Knit Picks ruler is. It's called a View Sizer. Do you have one? Well, you should! It has a needle sizer section and a magnifying bar with a red line to keep you on the right row and two red lines that mark off four inches. No, I am not affiliated with the company, just giving credit where it's due. This little ruler is fabu! And so are the needles.


So here's the plan: I will go up a needle size for both needles AND make the next size larger sweater. First I will measure myself again, then swatch again, then check that I have enough yarn. I have extra, but maybe not enough for "oversized" across this boobage.

Stay tuned. The fun is just beginning.

Bona Fide Knitter

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