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D'vorahDavida
Yetzirah

This Is A Test. I Just Know It
Tue Oct 30 2007

[album 65561 GoofyHen2.JPG]"There is a large
black cloud over the
knitting table today.
I'm not going over there.
Not even for candy corn.
I know when to steer clear
of a knitter on the edge."

So here's my problem....

No, let me rephrase that.

I've decided to have a meltdown.

I have been knitting a certain way for quite some time now, and made more than a few knitted objects of varying degrees of worth. But because my knitterly friend P. says I am making a mistake in the way I wrap my yarn for each stitch, I have gone into dark waters trying to figure out what the heck to do about it.

There exists such a diversity of ways to go about knitting, that one could lose one's way trying to figure everything out.

I have even been to The Knitting Heretic site [where I thought surely I would belong] and found to my dismay, that even THERE my method would be heretical.

Yoiks!

So I am swatching.

Here's the basic difference between my way and P's way. Her way is on the bottom half, mine on the top half:

[album 65561 Meltdown2 003.jpg]

And here is a comparison of a few other stitches, P's on the bottom again and mine on the top. The change happens where the needle is pointing:

[album 65561 Meltdown2 004.jpg]

My ribbing is very much neater and tighter. But I kind of like the look of her stitches. . .

But here is where things get really weird....

When you stretch it out and look at it with light behind it, this is what you see....

My knitting is on the bottom, P's on the top.

[album 65561 Window 002a.JPG]

BIG difference eh?

Huge.

P's knitting is also stretchier. Now I don't know about you, but too stretchy seems like a bad thing in knitting most of the time. But that honeycomb look also has a certain.... 'rightness' about it too.

I don't know WHAT to do now.

I can do the new way without too much trouble really. It's just a matter of paying attention, I don't have to change the way I hold my yarn or needles or anything. Just change that wrap.

I am paralyzed with indecision.

(What a lot of fuss over some stupid yarn orientations... really. Can't we move on to something of more substance?)

Not today smart ass. Not today.




9 Comments
  • From:
    FutureCat (Legacy)
    On:
    Tue Oct 30 2007
    Her way does look more like how I expect knitting to look, but yours gives an interesting effect. Maybe you could just say you've invented a new stitch? :-)

    ^ ^
    00
    =+=
    v
  • From:
    Pragmatist (Legacy)
    On:
    Tue Oct 30 2007
    Hmmm. Yeah, I see the difference. Hooda thunk it?

    Well, kiddo, as for which method you use, that's gonna have to be your decision. I have no comment.


    Bless

    Oh, yeah, and (), you try holding the needles and yarn, *then* you can express an opinion! Until then, zip it.
  • From:
    KiwiKimi (Legacy)
    On:
    Tue Oct 30 2007
    The way you do your ribbing looks like a ribbing variant that's in some patterns I use - it gives a particularly stable result in garments that might get fairly hard use.

    My mother (who was a constant knitter) taught me to knit the first row of each piece by "knitting into the back of each stitch" to make for a stronger first row. If that's carried on through the garment, it gives a result that looks a bit like yours. It's certainly attractive, but not the same as ordinary stocking stitch.

    I'm a bit of a knitting heretic myself, as I hold my needles very oddly (people point and laugh), but I do form my stitches in the so-called normal way.

    It's your decision. There's no right or wrong. But I suspect when it comes to complicated stitches (lacy patterns, say) you'd find you got better results by mastering the orthodox method.

    Just my 1 cent's worth.
  • From:
    Ichandra (Legacy)
    On:
    Tue Oct 30 2007
    yours is more beautiful
    so stop knit picking
    if it is the wrong technique but the correct results then go for it

    mistakes arent always mistakes they are a good way to view the world often

    Little Red I hope you get some candy corn on halloween
    well canadian halloween is tomorrow I dont know about the american squashers
    oh please forgive me for saying that word squashers I am so sorry I cant control it
    it is not a nice way to describe the united states of america

    hee hee
    happy halloween hee hee hee
  • From:
    Ichandra (Legacy)
    On:
    Tue Oct 30 2007
    ps. all my life I have wanted to be a white witch and what is unnerving is that sometimes I actually believe that I am
    hee hee
  • From:
    Mamallama (Legacy)
    On:
    Wed Oct 31 2007
    Well there definately is a difference. More than I thought.
    We can maybe say we crochetknit, since that is how we throw our yarn.
    Just a thought.
    I like both ways, but I think I'll stick to how you taught me.
    The "Unique D's." That's us.

    On a personal note...I seem to be getting quite good at dropping stitches. Good thing I learned how to repair them, eh? Maddening, to say the least.
    Happy Knitting!
  • From:
    Bookworm (Legacy)
    On:
    Wed Oct 31 2007
    Oh, really, wow. I had no idea. Your knitting looked fine to me, but then maybe I'm doing it wrong, too. ;-)
  • From:
    InStitches (Legacy)
    On:
    Wed Oct 31 2007
    Personally, I like the body part of a sweater to be stretchy, but I prefer the ribbing on cuffs to be tighter so they don't bag out. Baggy cuffs are not a pretty site.

    As to your problem, what's most important is that knitting be fun and .....

    yoiks!.....

    dare I say it....

    relaxing.

    So do not get too hung up on the rightness or wrongness of either method. Just view yours as an interseting variation and use which ever method works best for the project.

    How's that for a diplomatic way out? :)
  • From:
    ImNotLisa (Legacy)
    On:
    Fri Nov 02 2007
    Interesting. I can't quite tell what you're doing, it does look like you're knitting into the back of the loop but you say it's in the wrap. I'm not going to get into right vs wrong, it's all about technical stuff and that is something I'm usually not. I would say that being comfortable knitting both ways is important - especially when knitting sweaters etc. It shows large changes in gauge between the two ways of stitching, though if you're doing a gauge swatch before starting a sweater or whatever it shouldn't matter. If you have swatched, do you notice a big difference in needle sizes?