I went on holiday last week which meant I was faced with the inevitable knitter’s dilemma…what project to take with me?
The blanket I’m working on is a bit bulky to chuck in a suitcase, not to mention it was a balmy 28°C in Italy which isn’t my preferred blanket knitting climate. Knitting blankets in winter is ideal when you can snuggle up underneath them as you go. Knitting blankets in summer (to me anyway) is just odd. Knitting at all when it’s really warm can be tricky, there is suncream to contend with, possibly the introduction of sand, and your tension can totally change when your hands get warm.
That being said I hate going away without knitting so I pondered what could I possibly take?
In the end there was an off the wall solution…
Patchwork
A few years ago I started making a patchwork out of all my old pyjamas. It’s still a work in progress but it’s much more portable than a full knitted crib blanket.
To my surprise I started knitting another baby blanket as soon as I’d cast off the last Vivid square (full disclosure, I can’t lie to you dear reader, I still haven’t blocked or made up that blanket but I will that’s what bank holiday weekends are for). I didn’t particularly have anyone to knit it for, I just had loads of wool left over and I liked the pattern so off I went.
Stocking stitch with a simple lace pattern
Anyway, last weekend I made a TINY mistake. Literally even I wasn’t quite sure it was there, I showed my mum, she couldn’t see it.
I carried on knitting.
Four lines later (and each line is 127 sts, so that takes a while) it was still niggling at my brain. I can be a bit of a perfectionist sometimes but I genuinely think part of what makes hand knitted items so lovely is the odd mistake, they give it an extra bit of character. The rational part of my brain nodded along with that.
‘Done is better than perfect,’ I thought.
Unfortunately the irrational part of my brain took control and I was still smiling and nodding, ‘done is better than perfect’ while I ripped back 4…5…6…I’m not even sure how many lines at that point and started to reknit that section of pattern.
Now here we are, a week down the line and after a super busy weekend and some very careless knitting over tea I find myself with an extra stitch. I need to emphasise it’s between the pattern repeat and as such completely unnoticeable. The thing that is annoying me the most is that I can’t figure out where it happened. I think I missed a decrease rather than picking up a stitch somewhere. But after careful inspection I’ve decided if I can’t spot where it is, it doesn’t matter – no one else will either. So, you know what? This time my rational brain is going to call the shots and I’m going to keep going because, overall, done is better than perfect….and with a cheeky extra decrease no one will ever know…Except you lot, because I told you. Shhhhh….
Done is better than perfect…
Pattern
Diamond blanket by Style Craft – I can’t remember where I originally found this pattern but here it is on Ravelry
Needles – Lantern Moon Ebony I love working on wooden needles and these ones are absolutely beautiful. They are a bit of an investment piece but I have had mine for about ten years so they are worth it! I’ve used 4.5mm and 5mm which is correct for the yarn I’m using but larger than the pattern suggestions
Hints and Tips
It’s a great pattern and very straight forward to follow once you’ve got used to the terminology (well T2L/T2R was new to me anyway). Clearly don’t knit tired or you end up with more stitches than you should!
Knits from a Small Island 