kiri: hate!

This is one of those quirks that I’ve picked up recently, and I suspect I got it mostly from TWOP; it’s taken over the office as well. When your hatred bubbles up so violently, you merely say: “Haaaate!” And that’s how I’m feeling about my technically finished Kiri.

Sigh.

I cast off too tight. But I used a size 10 needle! Apparently my tension was unaffected by needle size.

It’s too short! I misjudged how long I would want it to be. I was correct in estimating that it would come right to the bottom of my back, and I thought that’s what I wanted, but now that I’m seeing it in practice it is too too short.

hate


Excuse the sloppy yoga clothes; class is in 45 minutes.

My god, I hate it. The bottom edge is a complete wreck. Up close on the work, the stitch is so damn pretty my insides ache, but when looked at as one piece, it’s atrocious.

I had dinner last night with a knitter, who warned me that there’s no frogging of lace. Must tink or start over. I was thinking I could just try frogging. I’m an experienced knitter! No johnny come latley. Not afraid of knitting! But, helloooo, Minty, you have never knit lace before. And if you manage to take it out to before the edging successfully, you will have to put it back on those dreaded Crystal Palace bamboo circulars, the ones that forced you to manually push each stitch over the join. Don’t do this to yourself.

So what am I considering doing? Starting over from scratch. On Addi circulars. Heck, it should take about a week (though since it’s the second one, I’m far more likely to get irritated and/or bored). Due date is late May! Pshaw, plenty of time.

Am I totally delusional? I like to think “No.” I like to think that my perfectionism is not a sign of my demented nature but rather a person knowing when there’s more that she can do, better she can do.

And away we go!

8 Responses to kiri: hate!

  1. Stitchy McYarnpants says:

    And there you have the horrible beauty of lace. That’s why it’s such a treasure. To actually execute it perfectly is really hard. I tried, I failed. I’d chalk this one up as homework. Learn from it and the next one will make your heart sing. Can’t wait to se it!!

  2. nicole says:

    I wish I could give you the magic solution! Is your plan to rip this Kiri out completely and start over? If so, then I think you could frog the bind off stitch by stitch and try again. Maybe? It sure is pretty!

  3. Rachel says:

    Well, I think it’s not as bad as you think, though I can see how you would feel it’s smaller and not as fluid as you might like. Starting over actually doesn’t sound crazy to me, especially as it did go pretty quickly the first time. And if you know any pre-teen girls, you could gift the original to someone in that age group — I bet it would “fit” nicely and be a big hit.

    Sorry about the disappointment. Consider it your practice lace. Good luck with the new one.

  4. Ashley says:

    Ugh. How disappointing. I have the lace itch right now but this is exactly what I fear. On the other hand, I feel totally compelled by that pepperming Alpaca Cloud! Definitely looks worth starting over…

  5. Jess says:

    Having knit an enormous stole in Alpaca Cloud, I would strongly recommend using a circular needle that has a sharper point on them than the Addis. I used a vintage needle from my grandmother that I’m not sure what it was, but some ideas I’ve heard are Inox and Aero (i think…). Sorry I can’t be more help! I think a metal needle would end up so slippery that you would be frustrated. I HAVE frogged lace before and I survived — you may have to tink the row below it if when you pick up the stitches you find you missed a couple, but I don’t think the lace pattern is complicated enough that it will be too huge of a problem. Good luck!

  6. Meg says:

    Why not try threading a lifeline through and then frogging back to that point? Then all the stitches will be held for you on the lifeline for as long as it takes to find a better needle! (I did my Kiri on Addi’s; I think it comes down to choosing between smooth join or pointy tip.)

  7. Laura says:

    Poor Minty!

    Can you take the cast-off edge out carefully and catch the stitches on a needle as you go? You could then add a few repeats and BO using a looser method. (EZ’s sewn BO to help control the tension?)

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