Sunday, March 20, 2016

Knowing when to give up on a project

I have been working with this yarn for a while.  I bought it last summer, and it is a fingering weight wool/cotton blend.  The knitting pattern is the Tucker Sweater from Interweave Knits Fall 2015.  It is a beautiful pattern. I modified the pattern substantially for my thinner yarn and to use a top-down construction.  It still looks perfectly fine my way.

But, I do not love it.  You can tell by the creased wrinkles that it has been sitting in a knitting basket, unloved, for a while.

Here it was even earlier, back before I re-knit the body smaller, so I have definitely knit enough on this project to have it finished by now if I hadn't re-knit the body.  It doesn't matter, though, because I don't love it.  Sometimes, I'm just not excited about how something is turning out, and I've gotten better at just cutting the project off at that point, be it knitting or sewing.  If I'm not happy with something halfway through, even if I can't pinpoint why, I'm not going to be happy with it when it is finished.
So, I ripped out the whole thing and started something new.  I still love this design, and I hope to try it again in a bulky-weight yarn, in a color I think suits the design better.  For now, I'm using my blue yarn to make Intersect, by Norah Gaughan for Brooklyn Tweed.

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7 comments:

  1. Amanda S.March 20, 2016 at 8:16 PM

    What a bummer! This is why I gave up on knitting BTW. It was so much work and you are never guaranteed to like the fit but can't tell until you put hours into the project. Too frustrating for me. But you produce some really beautiful things so I'm glad you are willing to stick with it. The new design looks really pretty. I hope the yarn performs better for you the second time around.

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    1. JennyMarch 21, 2016 at 5:08 PM

      Well, the more I do it, the less often this happens, but obviously, it still happens from time to time. I try to remind myself of the relaxation and joy I got from the knitting process. :-/ I'd rather just knit something once, though!

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  2. SewCraftyChemistMarch 21, 2016 at 6:12 AM

    Ugh. How frustrating. :/ FWIW, I think it looked really good on you but know that it is a waste of time to continue on with a project that is bringing you down! I bale on sewing projects all the time! There isn't enough to time to force myself to complete wadders.

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    1. JennyMarch 21, 2016 at 5:09 PM

      Thanks! I know it looked perfectly fine, but it failed the test of "would I want to buy this if I saw it in a store." If not, what's the point? :-)

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  3. Tampa Bay LisaMarch 26, 2016 at 4:22 AM

    This comment has been removed by the author.

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  4. Tampa Bay LisaMarch 26, 2016 at 4:24 AM

    Thanks for sharing this! It's great to see that even experts like you don't get it right all the time! I thought it looked fine, too...and I love the color...but I will add your comment of "it failed the test...what's the point?" to my decision process when I tackle all of my UFOs!

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  5. MyraMarch 28, 2016 at 5:12 AM

    I'm so sorry it didn't turn out… However, I love the style too, it's very pretty and I love the color of the yard!

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Thank you so much for taking the time to comment! It is wonderful to know someone is reading. :-)

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