Don't Call it a Comeback...Yet

Sure, these UFOs have literally been here for years, but I've not been working on them, and the mere act of dragging them out may not mean anything.  Their longstanding neglected status is not all these projects have in common.  They're both in states of waiting for their next steps, and their next steps are the final steps in knitting them.  One needs a bit of ye ol' pick up and knit action, and then it's just stockinette (and rev-st-st, and maybe a little more st-st) until bind-off time.  The other needs the set-up for the lace edge, and then it's a short chart repeated all the way around, eating up body stitches as I go, a quick graft, and the knitting's done.  Right now, they're also both rather unimpressive (and not terribly exciting when it comes to color, either) blobs of plain knitting--one garter, the other stockinette.  

They also have quite a bit of knitting left on them.  I mean, if I squint, I can make out the finish line in the distance.  The lace edge is an eight-row chart of thirteen stitches, but I will be working it over and over again to make it all the way around.  Sure, it's likely I'll get the chart somewhat pasted onto my brain after I've done it a number of times, but it's not mindless, and when I reach the corners, I will need to consult the written directions, too. I'm not going to attempt calculate the stitches that remain, but the number is not insignificant.  After some quick calculations, I think that the simpler project has over 16,000 stitches to go, but the knitting is pretty mindless once I get it on its way.  Still, if I recall correctly, the "requirements" for NaKniSweMo is knitting a sweater of at least 10,000 stitches in a month, but that's a bit hazy to me and I could be mistaken.  Then again, that's a totally made up, self-imposed, unimportant event for next month.  Ugh.  I just realized that next month is November.  I'm going to need a moment.  OK, I've pushed that reality back into a corner and can get on with other things. 

I guess I'm in the so close yet so far away zone with these, but giving them a chance to be something other than blobs of knitting in a bag seems like a good idea.  I hope you're giving good ideas a chance, too.                 

Riddle Me This

How is it that the days are getting shorter and longer at the same time?  The tedious, boring, draining drama of everyday life that is common to most people is running full force around here.  I'll spare you the details, but I just needed that bit of venting so that I could better move on to other things.  

Anyway, I've been working on this month's goals.  My first completion was watching my Spinning Stupendous Singles class.  Now I just need to make myself put it into practice.  You know how it is when you worry about wasting precious materials on learning something new.  Anyway, I think I will start by seeing if I have any more small bumps of fiber to start.  Then I should find something so wonderful that I won't want to stop spinning, right?  Eh, I'm just tossing around ideas.  

I completed the horseshoe lace chart of Bridgewater, so that's another one completed on the goal list.  It's time to work the edging setup round, adjusting the beginning of the round and adding a few more stitch markers to mark the corners.  After that comes a provisional cast on and then eleventy-gazillion repeats of the edging chart.  For now, the big, brown blob sits and waits.  Since I am having some computer problems but still want to include a picture in this post, you get to see an old picture of it.  Truly, it does not look terribly different.  Just imagine that the blob of garter stitch also has bunched up, unblocked lace worked around it.

I've been working on embroidering a handkerchief.  This is my first time using q-snaps instead of a hoop.  It's too soon to judge, so I just keep stitching.  I already have an idea for the next handkerchief, but I need to finish this one first.  I also want to try embroidering on kitchen towels, pillowcases, and maybe an apron or two.  

That's all the progress I have to report so far, but hey, I still have about half the month left, so there you go.       

Done and Just Begun

 


I finally finished my mittens, and then the hot returned.  It really is not so bad.  Perhaps the only reason I think that is because I have these wonderful new mittens.  I do love them, and it has only been a bit over a year since I started them.  The pattern is Sea Mineral Mittens by SpillyJane.  I changed the thumb because I think they are more comfortable this way.  While the way they are done in the pattern (peasant thumb) is just so very matchy-matchy, I think I did well enough with the gusseted thumb.  Now I just have to wait until I can wear them.  

With the mittens done, it was time to dive into the stash.  I was looking for yarn for some future knits, but more about that another day.  At one point, I was going through the lace bin, and removed the handspun yarn so it could live with its own kind.  Side note:  I have a good bit of handspun at this point, and I am considering a NoMillSpunNovember.  Anyway, I found some more lace in other bins, and the next thing I knew, I had trouble getting the lid on the lace bin.  If that is not a sign to cast on for new lace, please don't tell me.  

Augh!  The Color is Totally Off!

I decided to knit Bauble from Knitty (First Fall 2012).  It is a pattern that I liked when I first saw it, but it was not a good time for me to knit it.  I think it is an ideal pattern for me right now.  I have the full bin situation, I have been knitting (almost finished) socks with twisted and traveling stitches and so does this shawl, this Malabrigo lace yarn is so pretty and soft, and it has been too long since I have had lace on the needles.  I have already made it through the foundation charts and am on to the main ones, and am quite enjoying the knit.                   

Zig-Zagging Through the Week

Am I an easy mark, or what? At first, I just had a nice laugh as I read the dares. Before long, my mind had wandered to the stash, and I was mentally running through possibilities. As soon as I chased away a headache, I was digging through yarn bins and casting on 118 stitches. Then I remembered to prevent another potential pain by checking errata. I may have a new hat before the end of the week.

This project came along at the right time. My other knitting has been giving me trouble, and I have not quite found the next thing I need to knit. The Yoruba Hat has been a great companion today. It has kept my interest, but been easy enough to set down when I needed to do other things.

My poor Brucie-Pie is ill. I hope this is not the flu. He has needed my help throughout the day. If he feels the same way in the morning, I will take him to the doctor. If he gets feeling much worse during the night, we will be on the road. I suppose I ought to get a bag together just in case.

Cardigan, Begin Again

I mean this only in the sense that I have returned to regularly knitting on my EPS FIYC. It has sat and waited patiently for far too long. There are some other projects that are calling for their turn, but they must wait for now. I enjoy the mindlessness of this knitting. I did change my mind and added some shaping. I love that I can knit and knit on this without looking or paying attention. Still, it is not much to look at, and does not make for the most interesting of posts.

In more exciting news, I am in the running for prize-y goodness. The voting is open until May 14th at 6pm (EDT). I knit number eight, Shady Madness. All of the patterns for Sock Madness have been great. I want to finish the pair from the round in which I was eliminated. Then I can look to knitting the newest pattern. It has a cute, lacy folded-over cuff.

Untangling Tangles

I have not fallen off the face of the earth, but backed-up piles of work threaten to fall on me. While I have read more than a couple posts voicing a concern that Ravelry is quieting blogland, I am still woefully lagging behind on my reading. I suppose I am fortunate that the forums have not captivated me, or I might be lost forever. I know that I am quite blessed that these are some of my petty complaints for the day.

Icarus is just fabulous. Unfortunately, until I make it to the next chart, there is not much to show. I do enjoy knitting it. Most of the time, I only need to be able to count to seven. That is within my range of abilities for today.

Today's post is not completely lacking in entertainment value. First, I entertained several neighbors who saw me posing for the camera. The light kept changing, and this was more difficult than I had anticipated. Without further ado, I present my TYC!


Details: Pattern: Tangled Yoke Cardigan (Ravelry link) by Eunny Jang
Yarn: Knit Picks Merino Style Hollyberry, 11 skeins
Needles: US 4 Knit Picks Options
Time to Knit: Uncalculated

I SpunKnit

While I was unable to get in as much spinning as I would have liked to during NaSpiMoMo and the Redux, I did spin some. After seeing the Stork's Nest Scarf by Nancy Bush in the Jan/Feb08 Piecework, I thought that my Shetland/Angora yarn could be nice match. I wondered whether I had enough yarn and what size scarf I would get, but did not fret a bit. After all, it is a scarf. I could always change the number of stitches in a row, the number of repeats knit, needle size, or frog it if nothing worked. Then I saw the SpinKnit idea slated for March, and I knew I wanted to try it. I was also ready to get some lace back on the needles. I have enjoyed the sweater knitting, but it is not laceknitting.

This was a quick and easy knit. The charted pattern is a twelve-row repeat, but it is much simpler than that. Even after having memorized it, I still kept the chart by my side to mark the number of repeats I had knit. By the time I had knit the chart fifteen times, it was clear that I would not be knitting it the thirty-one times as written in the pattern. My handspun was a bit more substantial than laceweight, I bumped up a needle size, I never looked at the listed gauge, let alone check my gauge, so I was unsure of what scarf I would end up with when I finished knitting. I knit something like eighteen repeats plus the first eleven rows of the chart, and sweat my way through those six rows of garter stitch and the stretchy bind-off. I knit up every bit of my skein of yarn. I wondered about the length. Then it was blocking time. I was able to try for the first time my interlocking flooring squares and some checked cloth I had bought for blocking. After I pinned it all out, I tested out the ability to set the whole thing up on its side in the other room. It worked! After unpinning, I have a new 10"X60" scarf. I was going to give this to a friend, but I know she has some allergy troubles, and am unsure about how she would do with the fibers I used, but I really wanted to knit something for her. The length of the scarf ended my dilemma. It is too short for her. I will have to plan something else for her. Besides, the yarn I spun is not as soft as I would like, especially for a gift.

Anyway, I have had the scarf done since Saturday, but did not get any pictures taken until today. We had a small adventure. The new car bug bit my husband, so we ended up driving to Atlanta to check out the Smart car. It was nifty, but I do not think we are getting a new car in the near future. It was a long day, but it meant something to him for us to make the trip, so that makes it worth it. I slept through much of the trip. It was more comfortable for my back to be reclined, and I just kept falling asleep. Besides, I was in the sun on the way down and not up for having a pile of wool on my lap, and it was dark on the way home. Speaking of, I am glad to be home.

How Hot Is It?

It's so hot that they had to shut down a reactor at the nuclear power plant because the temperature of the water in the Tennessee River is over 90 degrees. Perhaps it is just the heat, but I have grown tired of following the Brady/Dimera Rivalry on Days, I look forward to my upcoming invite to Ravelry. I gave it a quick check, and I am #9374 on the list. A scant 26 people are ahead of me in line. I am a bit curious to explore it, but do not think it will consume my life. Who knows? I could be wrong. It happens all the time.

Speaking of being wrong, I was surprised that the errata remains in the Print o' the Wave Stole pattern. Eunny gave the corrections back in May of last year, but the pattern itself has never been corrected. It was not difficult to find this information, but it is just surprising that it was never fixed. I suppose this is part of the price one pays for a free pattern. I corrected my copy. I have finished the border. Next up is the edging. Then it is the magic of blocking, followed by the joy of gifting. We must think of a nice, enjoyable accompaniment for the knitting that comes after. I have some ideas.

Confessions

I suppose that confession is a much stronger word than I need to use. Perhaps it would be better to call these admissions, instead. In all truth, there really is not much of a need for me to come clean with all of you over these matters, but here I am blathering on about it anyway. Lately my Fit Knitter button has been mocking me. I have not been exercising with any regularity. I could spend more time examining the reasons for this, but I suspect it might lead to paralysis through analysis, and it would just be further procrastination. The biggest reason is that I do not like to exercise. Still, this is no excuse. Therefore, I am getting back on the exercise wagon. Wait, that is sedentary. I am hitching myself to that wagon and pulling it around. I hope that bringing exercise back to its rightful place in the schedule will drive away some of the pain that has been plaguing me. I also would not mind shedding a bit of fat and gaining some muscle. Whatever the outcome, it is good for me and the way my life needs to be. I am also employing a nifty tool to assist me. It is FitDay. I have used this in the past, and was reminded of it the other day on the radio. A particular dj, whom I consider something of a jackass, was talking about a similar program and running it down. He failed to see the usefulness of it. He was really getting on my nerves, and I wished he would get back to the music, but the experience was helpful. It reminded me of something I had in my arsenal but had not been using. Keeping a food log can be quite useful. I do not see myself using it everyday of my life forever, but it can be a revealing experience.

I also publicly proclaim that I am guilty of sending out my Caps for a Cure knitting a bit late. All I can say is that it has been hot and I did not want to go to the post office. I am making personal progress in that I did not beat myself up for having knit three caps instead of more.

I finished spinning up a second bobbin of singles. I will let them sit a day or so and then begin my plying adventure. This is my first big bunch of spinning on the wheel. I am not a huge fan of the fiber I am using. I have about four more ounces of it to play with, so we will see what happens.

I have cast on again for Sandia. I tried starting it last week, but it only served as a distraction, and I twisted my cast on. The knitting I did was helpful to pass the time, but it had to be ripped. Besides, one of the balls of green had a tangly mess and it needed fixing. I hope to have this hat gracing the head of a busy toddler soon.

I think I will have the time tomorrow to begin the border on Mom's stole. It will take some quiet and concentration to pick up and knit the many stitches along the long edges. By the way, my modification working the center panel worked out wonderfully. I highly recommend it to anyone who wants to try it.

News to Us

Our week has not turned out the way we thought it would. We were supposed to have out-of-town guests, but that fell through. I guess it was not meant to be. We kind of had a feeling that it was not going to work out, but continued with plans as if it were going to happen. I feel bad because it was probably their last chance to make it down before the new school year begins. To put a positive slant on it, at least I was able to spend time with my wheel. They do not quite understand my fiber obsession, but are quite kind about it and muster up as much interest as they can. However, they have invited us up to visit them, but our schedules might not work.

Then we received a phone call Monday morning. We were still in bed and let the answering machine take a message. When I returned the call later in the day, someone wants me to come over and take a look at some knitting. She wants to see if it is something I can make, and if so, she will pay me to do it. This seems to be a somewhat odd request. We head on over. I ask my husband what he thinks the odds are that this will be crocheting rather than knitting. We arrive and there is a package from Mary Maxim. She pulls out a kit she has purchased. I know you are dying to know what it is. I'll wait while you take a peek. That is a lot of pink. As it turns out, she wants this knit for this blanket recipient’s baby sister due in November. I had already planned some knitting for this baby, but I had not yet heard that it is to be a girl. I also learned about another baby due early next year, so I have a lot of baby knitting to do. Anyway, if I knew how to put a jump in a post, I would place a Choose Your Own Adventure thing here. Instead, I will just ask a question--do you think I agreed to knit it? Of course, I said I would. Will I be paid? I have no idea. I am not doing it for money. I am not quite sure why I am doing this. Many things are puzzling me, but I do not have time for that now. I have much knitting to do. While this blanket is not something I would have picked out, it is something I have agreed to knit, and I will keep this in mind when I feel like complaining. This will not stop me from offering up this bit of bitching about the pattern. It contains, of course, the familiar advice To Save Time, Take Time to Check Gauge. Then I read the gauge information. It reads:

Gauge or Tension: One square should measure 10.5" square using suggested needles or any needles which will give the correct stitch gauge or tension.

Yep. That's mega-helpful, Mary. As long as there is enough yarn, it really does not matter. It is a baby blanket. So far, I have one angel square finished. That puts me about 10% finished. I studied it a bit more in the pattern and I may need to change the edging. I know what my real problem with this is. I dislike deadline knitting. I will survive.

Constant vigilance! There are spoilers cropping up everywhere and I do not want my Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows experience ruined. Good thing I have all of this knitting and spinning to occupy my time.

Socks and Snacks

It is good to be home. I think we were only gone for about fifty hours, we had a good time, but I am still relieved to be back. I still have much to catch up on with Bloglines, but I wanted to share a bit of my out-of-town time with all of you. This picture is more illustrative of the trip than is good for me. We do not have Dunkin' Donuts at home, and have not for years. I missed them, and we became reacquainted quickly.

I managed to visit a lovely yarn store while we were gone. I bought some Warm Wine Corriedale roving and a clearance copy of the Winter 2005 IK. I kind of wish I had picked up the bag of black diamond bamboo roving. Ah, there is always next time. Besides, I have a lot of roving already.

I am wicked behind on Mystery Stole 3. Sign-ups are closing and the second clue is about to here. No need to panic. This is lace we're talking about, not life.

Baby, Baby

I may have bought Elizabeth Zimmermann's Knitter's Almanac specifically for this pattern. I think I would like to knit some other patterns in the book, but I know I will knit more of these sweaters. This is the first EZ pattern I have knit. Her instructions are different from others with which I am more familiar, but I made it just fine. I was unsure of how I would fare, so I just grabbed the unlabeled skein of soft, white, acrylic (leave me alone, it's a baby sweater) yarn and knit. It worked so well that I decided to cast on for another. I had the finished white sweater in my bag along with the variegated yarn when I was shopping for buttons and other fasteners. I did not find the right buttons for the first, but had buttons ready to go before I even cast on for the second. Minor mods: I changed this to completely seamless by working the sleeves in the round. Minor oops: She gives the directions for the buttonholes a bit later in the pattern and I had to fix my error. I do not know what I was thinking. I guess I was not.

I am going to see if I have enough of the Moroccan Red Cotlin left to knit one of these. It would go to one of two babies that are in process. I might also like to knit matching hats or maybe socks or booties to go along with these. I think that I have another ball of the variegated mystery yarn and could perhaps knit another set.

In other knitting news, I did not begin knitting for MS3. There is a bead issue. I may try something different. In other non-knitting news, we were missed an adventure Saturday night. Apparently, there were pigs running amok in the neighborhood wreaking havoc. We would like to have seen it, but maybe it was best that we were not here.

Festivity Blocked

This started out to be a quick knit. Then the project and the knit intersected and progress ground to a halt. I needed to be able to accurately measure the garment for shaping, but we were on the go so much. I have nearly given up my bad habit of measuring gauge swatches and other knitting on my thigh, so Festive was set aside. When I picked it back up, my enthusiasm waned briefly, but then I was making good progress and I wanted my top done so that I could wear it. I went through several changes of water as it let loose some excess red dye. Now I wait for it to dry. All that remains then, is to seam, work the collar, and sew on the snaps and frog closures (once I buy them).

Throughout the knitting of this, progress photos would not be very interesting, nor is it a thriller as it dries on a towel on the living room floor, not to mention the fact that the red in this picture is way off. I decided to take this opportunity to share a shot of my most recent chemo cap. I used Brown Sheep Cotton Fleece and the pattern is the Vine Lace Baby Hat from Knitting Daily. The original pattern called for much smaller needles and fingering weight yarn. I think I could have gone down in needle size for this hat, and will probably do so for the next one I knit. This is a simple pattern and I think it makes a nice chemo cap. I think the combination of the heavier yarn and the openness of the lace will balance each other nicely.

Although I got the time wrong, tonight, I was still able to offer a little help to one of my Skanks who was conned into teaching a beginner’s knitting class. They said that they just needed her to walk around the kids and help if they had a problem while someone else taught. She thought she would sit in the back of the room with her current project and knit until someone dropped a stitch. Then a week before the class, she found a flyer listing her as the instructor. All of a sudden, she was on the spot, and asked the Skanky Knitters to help. Unfortunately, it did not work with most schedules. I had resisted signing up for a spinning class, or I would have been unable to assist. I was glad to be of some help.

Muppet Murder

Ah, but it's for a good cause. I've been knitting away on the chemo caps for the kids. This is what I have managed to complete. Time to add labels and go to the post office. They were quick and easy to knit. I will need to vacuum the living room a few more times to rid myself of the leftover furry bits I snipped as I wove in ends. Now I can get back to knitting regular chemo caps for Caps for a Cure. I may dig out the beads and knit an Odessa.

The knitting is complete for Mom's vest. I just have to embroider, add buttons, and perhaps a light steaming. I have been thinking about making buttons for the vest. I used to play a bit with polymer clay, and I may look at the old clay stash and see if I can create some nice buttons. It has been a while since I've made a millefiori cane, but I have some ideas for designs.

I believe I signed up correctly to join Sock Madness. The 128-place roster is full. I hope I'm part of the insanity. The sock pattern previews look interesting.

Happy Valentine's Day

Valentine’s Day is good stuff. We passed it in our usual low-key fashion. I bought Bruce the mega-pack of microfiber cloths from Costco that he has wanted for so long. He ordered me a Cascade Little Si drop spindle. The arrival of the Little Si is something I eagerly anticipate. I am excited about having two drop spindles. Actually, I have three, but the first two do not count. The first was a cd drop spindle, and the second was one of those Louet sheep head ones. I never really got very good results from either. I used to think I was the problem, that perhaps spinning wasn’t my thing, and that it was good I had not invested much in my endeavor. Then my mom bought me my Maggie. Having the proper tools makes all the difference. Spinning regularly is key, too. I have given the old spindles a go now that I have more experience. I can only say that they are deficient. I don’t have enough spindling experience to tell you what is wrong with them, but I know they are not top-quality. My journey in spinning is ever so wonderful. Last week I had an adventure creating some yarn using Navajo plying. I even tried to do a thing I saw where you ply as you go. I was not terribly successful with any of it, but I definitely will revisit the technique. I think this would be good for creating sock yarn, and I definitely want to spin some of that.

The Snowmen & Skates vest is coming along. The blocking was wonderful. I like blocking more than anyone should. I have worked one arm band. At this rate, I am sure Mom will have her vest by her next birthday (December 5^th, for those of you keeping track).

I need to take a progress shot of Arwen now that there is something to show. The back is finished. I am working the short-row shaping on the arm of the left front. The reversible cabling is lovely. I’ll try to take a picture tomorrow. A local weatherman says that winter may be over for us next week, but the cold weather now has me ready to wear Arwen now. Knitting that lovely, warm wool is just the thing to close this lovely day. Yeah, yeah, I know I still need to exercise.

It's Not Just Me

Knitting Mom’s vest has been a bit stressful. She is wonderful, and deserves good things. That added a bit of pressure. I meant to give this to her for either a birthday or Christmas gift. I missed those deadlines. Then I began to think that there could be some problems with the pattern. I was more worried that I had been the one to mess things up and could not see what I had done wrong. I did not know of anyone else knitting this vest. Then the other day I was using a different search engine and came across this blog. It seems that the problems I have run into knitting Snowmen & Skates are not mine alone, but they can be overcome. I busily knit away last night and finally bound off the vest. We had snow, so I had to lay it out on the front porch and take a picture at 2:30 in the morning. I hope this works out well. I ran out of the cream. I did a lot of fudging on the neckline decreases. I think I was supposed to have made a couple more decreases, but I decided to try my luck. Then I worked the crochet reinforcements on one armhole. I cut. I went on to crochet reinforce the rest of the steeks. I cut some more. It looks like this might work. Next I will block it, and then sew the shoulders, work edgings, embroider, and sew on the buttons (that I have yet to purchase).

Red Scarf Away

I sent off this red scarf and gift card the other day. I just doubled some mystery sock yarn and worked in seed stitch until I ran out of the yarn. This is such a great project. Encouragement for young people who are making good decisions is important. I think I'd like to knit more for next year. I have a few ideas for good patterns I'd like to use.

I'm also making progress on my Arwen. I completed the back and have begun the left front. I ripped back my cabling as I did not care for the looks of my initial backwards loop cast on. It looks much better now. This reversible cable is lovely. I also re-wrote the charts. I wanted to make them larger and make one change. I wanted the uniformity of reading a blank square as a knit stitch and a black dot as a purl stitch no matter which side I am working. Since doing this, I'm moving along more quickly and smoothly. I also made the charts without the set-up row. Again, it is not a big change, but it just simplifies reading the chart for me.

I've been getting in a bit more spinning. I'm considering trying my hand at Navajo plying. I'm going to search for videos and written instructions. I think I'll play around with my old Louet sheep head spindle. I do not love this spindle, and want to investigate why. There may be some adjustments I can make to improve it.

Well, the shoulder seams to the vest are not seaming themselves. Time to get to it.

Hanky Time

Nah, I’m not going to cry about my knitting woes. However, if I need to, I am prepared. Behold, the lace-edged handkerchief I knit. The handkerchief itself originally belonged to my great-grandmother. I like this simple piece. I believe that I will knit more lace edgings on handkerchiefs. The next time I knit one I will try to work the corners differently. I have some ideas that could work.

While you like viewing my lace, I know you’re most interested in my knitting sorrows. I have frustration with Mom’s vest. You knew this already. I knit through the Cream that I purchased per the pattern’s instructions. It got me through my second time knitting the little houses. I have now unraveled my swatch and am preparing that yarn to use in the vest. I hope that it will be enough to complete the vest. I still need to decrease about twenty stitches on the fronts. The decreases are meant to be worked every-other round. The math on this is simple. What baffles me is how there could be forty more rounds in the body of this vest. Is there an error? Is this just a row gauge issue? If so, what do I do? I’m considering working my decreases more frequently. I so want this to be nice. I do not like the unkind, common adjectives that keep popping into my mind when I think of this vest. Oh, great and wise Kathleen Taylor, what has gone awry? What would you suggest? If I continue to follow the pattern as written, I think it will be longer than the target twenty-three inches for the length of this vest. The largest size measures 23 ½ inches in length. The other possibility that occurs to me is that I am not getting any kind of accurate length estimation due to the drawing in of the garment because of the decreases along the various steeks. Does this make any sense? Am I just grasping at straws? I again worry about Knitpicks leading me down the wrong path as another of my Options cords has shown itself to be defective. I also believe I found another set of possible errors in this pattern, but I’m not sure. Even if I am correct on this discovery, it is only a difference of two stitches. It should not matter much. It does not matter to what I am having trouble with presently. As we return to the issue troubling me so much, I desperately seek your advice. If the problem is not an error, but rather a difference in row gauge (the pattern does not list this) between my knitting and the author’s, how would you suggest I fix this problem?