Wednesday, June 26, 2013

Yarn Along: Playing Chicken


{Yarning Along with Ginny}






I hit the part of the Boneyard Shawl that comes around in all triangle shawls where it seems like each row is never-ending.


It's not the shawl's fault. The shawl is still lovely and pretty and going so well. It's just that it's in the home stretch and so very close to the end that each row takes approximately 10 million minutes longer than the previous row.




I must admit that I'm playing a miniature game of chicken with this shawl. I'm trying to use up every last bit of this yarn (or as close to it as possible) and you can see how much I have left. I know I'm very close to needing to switch over for the border in order to have enough yarn, but not quite there yet. If I don't switch quite soon enough I'm going to run out. So I'm in a little game with every 2 row pair. Can I make it 2 more "normal" rows before switching and still have a complete border? If I don't switch over now am I dooming myself to ripping back because I will be just shy of being able to complete the bind-off?




I'm super close to finishing Game of Thrones on the kindle and have Ready Player One waiting in the wings. My brother sent this book to me about 2 weeks ago and is anxiously waiting for me to read it so I promised I'd jump into it next. He's not exactly a voracious reader, but said he finished it in a weekend so I'm hoping it will prove a quick read for me too. It seems I'm in desperate need of a quick read- or so my brain is saying. While I've really enjoyed the first book in the Song of Ice and Fire series, I need something a little faster to gain a bit of reading momentum.


How is your knitting going this week?
Posted by Erin at 7:32 AM
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11 comments:

  1. EMMAJune 26, 2013 at 9:09 AM

    Oh my sounds like some intense knitting moments there!! Hope you don't have to end up ripping back all those stitches!!!

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  2. stephJune 26, 2013 at 9:30 AM

    sounds like you are walking a tightrope!!! Those borders ALWAYS take more yarn than you think they will! How are you figuring this out????? (Inquiring minds NEED to know!)

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    Replies
    1. ErinJune 26, 2013 at 11:59 AM

      Hahaha... by extremely mathematical methods of course! It's a gradient yarn that went from that is slowly working it's way from 4 plies of a light gray to 4 plies of black. I'm down to 1 ply medium gray and 3 plies black. I'm going to see where I'm at in the 12 row pattern when I hit the black and then either finish the pattern and then move on to the border or jump to the border.

      I'm playing this fast and loose because I won't be heart broken if I find out I'm 17 stitches short of binding off. I'll just rip it back and go again if that happens. That being said, I'm probably going to throw in a lifeline on every WS row starting on my next wrong side, and then I can really easily rip back and go again if necessary. If I *would* be heartbroken (i.e. if the pattern were super complex) I'd be weighing my yarn along the way and definitely being more mathy about this. :)

      Delete
  3. Emily SJune 26, 2013 at 9:46 AM

    I have two projects I'm working on and I feel bored with both. Maybe that means I need a trip to the yarn store to motivate me to finish them so I can play with new yarn!

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  4. karenJune 26, 2013 at 11:21 AM

    that feeling you get not knowing if there is enough yarn is the feeling I LOVE. Call me crazy but that's living on the edge :) Happy knitting and hope your gamble results in no ripping!

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    Replies
    1. ErinJune 26, 2013 at 12:01 PM

      Hahaha, Karen! I really dislike having leftovers and get a strange satisfaction from binding off down to a nubby little tail. It is so very satisfying to have so deftly used every last bit of a skein.

      Delete
  5. Tracey ~ CloverJune 26, 2013 at 11:42 AM

    I hear you loud and clear about rows taking ten million minutes to finish. Too bad we aren't closer, we could sit side by side, knitting our shawls and cheering each other on. Guess I'll just have to settle for the internet and be your cheerleader from here.

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    Replies
    1. ErinJune 26, 2013 at 12:02 PM

      Tracey, your shawl is *gorgeous* and so worth the time! The way I'm heading between you and Karen this will truly be a shawl-filled summer for me after all your collective inspiration!

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  6. elizabethJune 26, 2013 at 12:39 PM

    you can do it! I know, things can take a long time...

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  7. EileenJune 26, 2013 at 6:27 PM

    Oh how often I seem to play chicken to with my knits----keep going use up as much yarn as possible..:)

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  8. no spring chickenJune 26, 2013 at 9:57 PM

    Knitters are such a daring breed! I'm cheering you on... with my fingers and toes crossed. :)

    Blessings, Debbie

    ReplyDelete

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