A Case of the Dropsies

Dear knitters, believe me or not I have never dropped a stitch. Well, not until this darling cap I’ve been knitting. I used to be under the impression that dropped stitches were the karmic punishment of careless, sloppy knitters who didn’t pay attention and tried to knit at raceway speeds.

Knitting Gods: “Oh! So you knit a full sized, adult pullover in
a mere two hours? Take this!”

*Zap! Goes the Staff of Dropped Stitches*

That, like most generalizations was unfair.

I lost count of just how many stitches I had dropped after repairing the fifth or sixth and continued to drop them here and there as I knitted along. Pathetic! At least it was yet another trial in my knitting catechumenate and I dealt with it as I do with any other new aspect of this craft. I researched the matter, located my crochet hook and came to the rescue of my poor cap which was starting to look like a pair of Courtney Love’s nylons.

Dropped stitches are importunate little things but thankfully they are easily spotted and remedied. Even if you have no desire to crochet, it’s wise to have a crochet hook on hand. They’re quite useful tools in knitting and the best wrangler for runaway yarns. I have a little ‘k’ hook I keep in my knitting bag just for this purpose. Dropped stitches can also be recovered by the very needles with which you are currently knitting but it is a nimble feat that may very well end in further frustration. Below is a tutorial courtesy of How Stuff Works.

Count your stitches often as you work, especially after casting on and after making increases or decreases. This habit will help you catch many mistakes. If your stitch count is less than it should be, it may be because a stitch has dropped from your needle.

Use a crochet hook to correct a dropped stitch, whether it has dropped one row or several rows (a running stitch).

Step 1: Hold the knit side of the work toward you. Count the horizontal strands between the two needles to determine how many rows the stitch has slipped. It's important to begin with the very first strand closest to the dropped stitch. With the loose horizontal strands behind the loop of the dropped stitch, insert a crochet hook into the loop from front to back. Catch the first horizontal strand and pull it through the stitch (fig. 20a). Repeat the step with each horizontal strand until the dropped stitch is back at the current row.

Dropped Stitches: Figure 20a

Step 2: Place the stitch on the left needle untwisted, with the right loop of the stitch in front of the needle (fig. 20b).

Dropped Stitches: Figure 20b

Continue in pattern.

After this harrowing experience, I came to a name for the cap in question. I think the “Oh @#$! Cap”, is most fitting. And so my fellow knitters, if you’ve yet to drop a stitch, count your blessings but be warned; you are knitting on borrowed time.

Dropped stitch tutorial is the intellectual property of: Kimbrough, Terry. "Knitting Instructions." 16 May 2007. HowStuffWorks.com. 15 June 2008. .. and is used here in accordance with the citation guidelines as stated by the aforementioned.

FO: Liesel Scarf

The Liesel Scarf is blocked, unpinned and ready to be giftwrapped to give to my mom on Easter Sunday. Here are the specs...

Pattern: Liesel by Mary Joy Gumayagay

Made For: Mom

Needles: KP Harmony Interchangeables size US8/5.0mm

Fiber: 100% Wool

Fiber Weight: Worsted

Fiber Brand: Lion Wool by Lion Brand

Colorway: Winter White

Fiber Amount: 271 Meters (296 yards)

Finished Size: 150cm (59") x 23cm (9")

Liesel Scarf

Well I finally managed to complete Mary Joy Gumayagay's Liesel scarf. I am very pleased with the project, the pattern is well written and no problem to figure out, although I had some trouble at the beginning with the SK2PO (slip one stitch, knit two stitches together, pass slipped stitch over), I can't remember what I assumed it meant but my knitting posse at Men Who Knit cleared everything up for me.

Don't think it was all wine and roses, Liesel and I started off on the wrong foot. This was my first "big boy" pattern, life before Liesel was all knit, purl and not much else. I was determined to get through this however. I started Liesel on some aluminum (I don't like metal), straights which were the only thing I had at the time in that size. What resulted was bursts of progress and then a mistake of some sorts would send the thing flying into the frog pond. "Great" I thought, I would have to lock myself up like a hermit if I were to ever make some serious progress with this (that's when I learned about using a lifeline). Then something new came along to halt this project, I ordered my KnitPicks Options Interchangeable Harmony Wood Circular Knitting Needle Set, surely after frogging it yet again I could wait until my fancy new needles arrived and dump those aluminum straights. Well, as it turns out the size I needed for the Liesel Scarf was in place and I was happily knitting away when I found there was a defect in one of the tips which snagged unrelentingly at the wool. So another wait was eminent, thankfully Knit Picks took care of the problem in no time at all. Finally, with no more excuses, Liesel was under way toward the end of February. As I type this entry, it is done. Liesel is blocking on my ironing board right this very moment, as a matter of fact, my hands are still pruny and smell of wool wash.

As a beginner, I learned some good lessons from this pattern. Here's a little rundown...

• When dealing with patterns composed of various stitches/techniques, keep count of your stitches! I double checked at the end of each row that I had the correct number on the needles. I also went through each row of the pattern and wrote down the number of stitches that should be left on the needles at completion of that row. This made life so much easier.
  


• I made myself a large-type printout of this pattern in an easy to read font with lots of space between rows. I put said pattern on my clipboard and was ready for action (this stopped me from knitting half of row 6 and finishing it with half of row 7).
  


• SK2PO means Slip One Stitch, Knit Two Stitches Together, Pass Slipped Stitch Over
  


• Using a lifeline is as vital as the name suggests. I used a length (not too short or it may pull through) of black cotton embroidery floss after each pattern repeat. This way if I had to frog, I only had to rip down to the string which also let me know how my stitches should go back on the needles. I used embroidery floss as it is less likely to get in the way when knitting the row above it, embroidery floss also doesn't (shouldn't) shed, getting odd colored fibers into your work. Think about it, why would you want to frog an entire project when you could get away with frogging only a couple of rows?
  


• The felted join is a fabulous way to start a new ball (assuming that the yarn you are using can be felted)
  


• Knitting the tail of your Cast On into your work with the first couple stitches (no need to weave in one end at least).
  


• Duplicate Stitching as a means to neatly weave in the remaining yarn end(s).
  


• And finally, I've learned that my ironing board isn't such a great blocking board. I really need to come up with something different.

All in all I am very happy with my Liesel scarf. This is the first project I am super proud of. I will post some specs as well as pictures of the finished scarf soon. Also, to my fellow newbie knitters; dive in the deep end. I highly recommend it. Choose a project that seems just a bit too advanced for you and get yourself through it no matter what. I guaranty you will be pleased with the lessons you've learned.