Saturday, March 6, 2010

Now if I could only figure out how to download the medal

The Wintergreen mittens were finished around 4:00 pm est on the final day of the Winter Olympics. I can't say that I really enjoyed knitting them - it could be the pattern wasn't fun, but more likely I don't like knitting to a deadline that isn't a real deadline (e.g., Christmas, a due date, etc).

















I think I screwed up the thumb opening - or maybe there's something I don't understand about "work in pattern for 5 stitches, work 9 st in scrap yarn, sl 9 back to the left needle and continue working in pattern." Doesn't this essentially result in a grafting the scrap yarn into the knitting? And if so, when you remove the scrap yarn, how exactly do you pick up the top stitches? The bottom stitches are simply loose stitches - no problem. The top stitches, however, aren't really loose stitches, even though they are not stable, either. I just picked them up "doubled" - and k2 tog as I joined the yarn to make the thumb. I am sure this isn't clear but the instructions weren't either. I don't know what type of thumb this is (e.g. afterthought?), so I couldn't even look it up online.

















But anyway, they are done and it wouldn't have been an exciting Olympic finish without the thumb crisis.

I'm most proud of the fact that I finished these AND kept db fed, clean, and happy AND kept to the editing schedule for my book manuscript AND did my regular teaching/meeting work AND kept to my usual yoga schedule AND didn't get in horrible fights with Todd because of all the stress.

2 comments:

Abbey said...

Holy Crap! Those are nice mittens, and seems like you managed to cram everything in. That should be a medal, just on it's own! Congrats!

Usually, with those thumbs I think you increase to the number of stitches you're going to use for the thumb. Then, you put them on scrap yarn and then keep knitting the number of stitches you had before the increases. That's kinda unclear.

tara said...

they are awesome. are you so very happy with the color? I love the contrast. that sounds like an afterthought thumb? but I'm not sure because that has never made sense to me- the afterthought heel etc.