Knitting, Dogs and Life on the High Plains

Tuesday, July 19, 2005
Bye, Bye, Birchie


Something's not right here....


... so it went into the freezer...


... and back into the ball.

I'm not sure if going into the freezer helped or not, but I'd read it makes ripping out mohair easier and I did get it all undone with no problems.

WHY did I rip it out?

From the very beginning it has just had not seemed "right". It was so loose and floppy but I had faith and kept knitting away. But last night as I finished up the first of 3 balls I had a very bad feeling so I did a little math...

The first repeat of Birch has 30 leaf motifs, the second 29 and so on for a total of 465 motifs. I had completed 140 motifs when I ran out of my first ball. That is only 30% of the total motifs. Assuming the math works out, I'd run out of the 3rd ball with 47 motifs (9 full repeats - 72 rows) to go.

Yes I could have bought a 4th ball but.... if I'm knitting way off gauge how BIG was this thing going to be? The finished Birchs I've seen out in blogland all seemed pretty good size, I didn't want to end up with a shawl that was WAY too big. When I pulled it off the needle I got my answer... the top edge was about 9 feet across!!

Yikes!

What happened here? I have no idea. I am NOT a loose knitter, in fact I am usually a tight knitter often having to go up a size or two needle when gauge matters in a garment. When I completed Cherry Blossom last week I mentioned I used only 4 balls plus a few yards of the specified fifth ball, thats the norm for me. I NEVER run out of yarn!!

I dont mind that I had to rip.. I mind that I have to cast on 299 stithces again.

Speaking of Cherry Blossom....

I promised pictures of Cherry Bloassom after blocking... here ya go....


I'm still very pleased with it overall, but I do have one issue... a minor one. It looked so lovely when I took it off the blocking board. But then after being folded up it got creased and it appears the KidSilk Haze holds the creases more than I'd like. Also the center began to pooch out a little, a complaint I've seen others have too.


But really, I still absolutely love it!

Larger pictures on the Cherry Blossom page.

Responding....

Thank you for all the nice compliments on Cherry Blossom that I received by mail and via the blog comments! A couple people had questions....

Hope asked if the color I used was Candy Girl. Yes indeed! Love that pink!

Janet asked about making it bigger... I think if you were to make it bigger you'd need to add another increase row. I'd probably do it after completing the 12 repeats of Chart C and then do some more rows of Chart B, then the edging.

Kira and Max Up Close and Personal



Anne at 7:43 AM        
|

getting a dog?
Read this first!!

on the needles
30. Fletcher
Noro Transitions


29. Rosedale
Patons SWS


28. Forecast
Cascade Quatro


27. Lady Eleanor (again)
Patons SWS


26. Marble Shawl Collar Sweater
Karabella Marble


25. Serrano
Dale Baby Ull


24. Tamarah
Artyarns Regal Silk, Silk Mohair


23. Apricot(Plum) Jacket
DB Cashmerino Chunky


22. Rusted Root
BS Cotton Fleece


21. Not So Shrunken Cardigan
Lavold Sily Wool


20. Sizzle
Nashua Kim


19. Hanging Garden Stole
KP Alpaca Cloud


18. Log Cabin Blanket
Cascade Pima Tencel


17. Mystery Stole 2
Crazy Monkey Lace



16. Petticoat Sallops
Opal Petticoat


15. CeCe
Lambspun Silk



14. Hyrna Herborgar
Silk for Life



13. Sea Foam Shawl
LaLana Phat Silk


12. Diamond Fantasy Shawl
CTH Possum Lace



11. Evergreen Cardi
Malabrigo


10. Mystery Shawl 3
Zephyr



9. Jaywalkers
LL Shepherd Sock



8. Pi @ Sunrise Shawl
Crazy Monkey Lace



7. Follow the Leader Aran
BS Naturespun Worsted


6. Peacock Feathers
HaindPaintedYarn.com lace


5. Kiri Shawl
Rowan Kidsilk Haze



4. Sampler Shawl
Starmore Campion


3. Highland Triangle Shawl
America's Alpaca


2. Leaf Lace Shawl
Misti Alpaca Lace


1. Total Maze Cardigan
Araucania Nature Wool




    38/46

finished in 2006
1/21 - Shadow of Love Socks
1/31 - Pineapple Jacket
2/5 - Smokin' Blueberry Socks
2/7 - Angora Fingerless Mitts
3/9 - Neopolitan Socks
3/18 - Summer Scallop Socks
3/30 - Spectrum: Red & Pink
4/2 - Felted Clogs
4/15 - Violets by the River
5/3 - Felted Hedgehog
5/6 - Felted B-4 Bag
6/15 - Pomatomus Socks
7/1 - Snapdragon Socks
9/11 - Simple Knitted Bodice
9/13 - White,Biscuit,Cream Shawl
9/14 - Something Lilac
10/4 - Cabbage Rose Socks
10/29 - Neck Warmer
11/15 - Lady Eleanor

gallery
Knitting
Beadwork

finished in 2005
1/21 - Seascape Shawl
2/12 - Wool Peddler's Shawl
3/21 - Fir Cone Square Shawl
3/25 - Misty Garden Scarf
4/7 - Obi
4/30 - Truly Tasha's Shawl
5/19 - Ivy
6/19 - Tasha II Shawl
7/13 - Cherry Blossom Shawl
7/26 - Mom's Birthday Shawl
8/9 - Birch Shawl
8/28 - Mystery Shawl
10/4 - Herbal Remedy
10/5 - Rosy Fingered Dawn
11/18 - Mystery Shawl 2
12/6 - Ostrich Plumes Triangle
12/26 - In The Dark Socks
12/29 - Red, Red, RED! Scarf

rings


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recent posts
It's All About Cherry Blossom!
My Backyard
More on our "Fine" Postal Service...
Rant About the US Postal Service....
Finally....
I Promised Pictures...
Excuses, Excuses...
Time for a Quickie....
Lace Illusions*
Lace Knitting and Blogging Don't Mix

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My Noro Philosophy:
ALWAYS have something Noro
on the needles!
  WIP: Twice as Nice

ME! ME! ME!
I live in Colorado.
I raise and show Samoyeds.
I knit.
I spin.
I do beadwork.
I have too many beads.
I have too much yarn.
I love to start new projects.

talk to me
whitestarsams (at) hpi (dot) net

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