Because I am insane, I decided that just before Christmas was a good time to start a KAL project for myself. So I joined Ruth's mystery KAL for a pair of gloves. Now I've made several pairs of mittens in my time, and have enjoyed them, so I thought - how bad can a pair of gloves be?
Answer: pretty freakin' bad. Rather, pretty freakin' fiddly. First there was the yarn: Botany Lace (underlined emphasis mine). Then there was the gauge: 9 sts/inch (I don't even knit socks at that gauge). Then there was the pattern: lots and lots (and lots) of twisted stitches.
I managed to get both gloves done to the end of the hand by Christmas time, but my initial plans of having these be a gift was thwarted by lack of fingers. So after New Year's I started in on the fingers.
Holy Fucking Fiddly Batman. To be absolutely fair, my hatred of glove knitting has nothing to do with Ruth or her fabulous pattern. It can be totally blamed on the fact that I am, in the best of times, only slightly more coordinated then an octopus trying to conduct an orchestra. So I sat on my parents' couch, with wooden dpns sticking every which way at dangerous angles, growling at anyone who asked me how it was going. And that was only the first glove!
Thankfully by the time I got to the second glove, I was on my way home (hello airplane knitting!), and it seemed to go a lot smoother. I triumphantly finished the last thumb before touching down at Heathrow. Hooray!
You may be asking why it's taken me two weeks to show them off? Well, it took me a week and a half to weave in the ends one the first glove, another four days to find the project bag with the second glove, and last night to finish weaving in those ends. See? I told you it was fiddly...thankfully the finished project is gorgeous:
I promise - they look much better on, and will look much better once they've been blocked. I admit I couldn't wait to wear them, so they haven't had their spa treatment yet. And given that it was -5C this morning when I left the house, I was glad to have them - they are toasty warm!
Pattern: Butterfingers by Ruth Garcia-Alcantud
Yarn: Araucania Botany Lace, 450 yds/100 grams, about 75% of 1 skein in gorgeous purples
Needles: US 1/2.25 mm dpns/circulars for magic loop
Gauge: 9 sts/12.5 rows per inch
Start/finish: 26 Nov 2012 - 4 Jan 2013
Comments/mods: this is a lovely pattern for a lovely pair of gloves. I just have to be in the right mood to do fingers I guess. That is all.
Now, I'd like to say I'll never knit another pair of gloves again, but I've got another skein of this yarn lying around (in greens and greys - swoon!), and I am finding myself in need of a pair of gloves for running. Maybe a pair with some conductive thread in them...
Answer: pretty freakin' bad. Rather, pretty freakin' fiddly. First there was the yarn: Botany Lace (underlined emphasis mine). Then there was the gauge: 9 sts/inch (I don't even knit socks at that gauge). Then there was the pattern: lots and lots (and lots) of twisted stitches.
I managed to get both gloves done to the end of the hand by Christmas time, but my initial plans of having these be a gift was thwarted by lack of fingers. So after New Year's I started in on the fingers.
Holy Fucking Fiddly Batman. To be absolutely fair, my hatred of glove knitting has nothing to do with Ruth or her fabulous pattern. It can be totally blamed on the fact that I am, in the best of times, only slightly more coordinated then an octopus trying to conduct an orchestra. So I sat on my parents' couch, with wooden dpns sticking every which way at dangerous angles, growling at anyone who asked me how it was going. And that was only the first glove!
Thankfully by the time I got to the second glove, I was on my way home (hello airplane knitting!), and it seemed to go a lot smoother. I triumphantly finished the last thumb before touching down at Heathrow. Hooray!
You may be asking why it's taken me two weeks to show them off? Well, it took me a week and a half to weave in the ends one the first glove, another four days to find the project bag with the second glove, and last night to finish weaving in those ends. See? I told you it was fiddly...thankfully the finished project is gorgeous:
I promise - they look much better on, and will look much better once they've been blocked. I admit I couldn't wait to wear them, so they haven't had their spa treatment yet. And given that it was -5C this morning when I left the house, I was glad to have them - they are toasty warm!
Pattern: Butterfingers by Ruth Garcia-Alcantud
Yarn: Araucania Botany Lace, 450 yds/100 grams, about 75% of 1 skein in gorgeous purples
Needles: US 1/2.25 mm dpns/circulars for magic loop
Gauge: 9 sts/12.5 rows per inch
Start/finish: 26 Nov 2012 - 4 Jan 2013
Comments/mods: this is a lovely pattern for a lovely pair of gloves. I just have to be in the right mood to do fingers I guess. That is all.
Now, I'd like to say I'll never knit another pair of gloves again, but I've got another skein of this yarn lying around (in greens and greys - swoon!), and I am finding myself in need of a pair of gloves for running. Maybe a pair with some conductive thread in them...
3 comments:
-5C??? bbbbbrrrrr.... The first pair of gloves can be fiddly, and maybe having mirrored patterns left and right could have helped the confusion!! However I'm so happy with your FO :)
Yes, brrrrr is right! Seems a bit much for London in January, but what can you do? Apparently the Snowpocalypse arrives tomorrow to, so we're in for it!
The mirrored patterns on left and right glove weren't the issue so much as my having limited patience for working 20 stitch in the round on small, wooden dpns. That being said, the second glove was easier to get through then the first, so I am optimistic for future forays.
Thanks again for such a great pattern!
Right! Conductive thread! Next thing to try and find in my office - keep reminding me that I have a package of this for you!
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