sitting on my hands

Posted on Posted in projects, Uncategorized

i have several projects to finish, and i have been working diligently on them:
red malabrigo sweater (still no name yet—what’s up with that?)
obstacles shawl (almost done, almost done, almost done)
finish work on a customer sweater
brother sox
laceyLegs socks
voodoo smokes socks

those are my current on-the-needlesand-holding-my interest projects. i also have some not-so-current-but-still-interested projects that i pick up from time to time and really, i should finish already (two sweaters, 2 shawls, and a lace scarf that i know of, and probably more . . .).

so i ask you, why are my hands just itching—on fire i tell you!—to start something new? i don’t need anything new to do.

and i’ve had this yarn since the summer—why is is being so demanding NOW all of a sudden? it keeps butting in on my thoughts about my other projects—even when i’m knitting on the cashmere. and it’s not even that nice.

it’s an acrylic/cotton blend—i mean so what, right? it’s not that great.

i think it has to be the project it is destined for. i bought this yarn in july so that i could make my littlest niece a jumper for christmas. it immediately lost my attention after the purchase—christmas was so far off then.
but now, christmas is coming and i am suddenly in the mood to whip up another lil’ girl’s dress. i did a quick sketch late last week when i was too busy to actually write a pattern or start the dress. i kept it all week next to my document holder so i could mull it over while i worked. i thought i had it all figured out yesterday when i sat down to write the pattern.

ha!
it took quite some time to realize that my first imagined version (of the pattern) wouldn’t work at all. then it took me some MORE time to figure out what would work. then i had to write it. i’m too fussy when i write—i know that—i get bogged down in details. i work best with wool in my hands, after all.

but i love the numbers too. i really love the tech part a lot. a well-written pattern is a thing of elegance and beauty to me—a briliant translation of intuition-into-instruction. the fact that it is sometimes hard to do does not make me love it less, but rather more.

does that make me weird?

i was determined this time to write the pattern first completely, and then knit from it to see if it worked. i usually design in my head, get out the yarn, and shape things on the needles, while writing everything down, then i use my notes to write the pattern. i thought it might be interesting to try this other way, in order to test my tech skills.

when i worked in the fashion business and made clothing patterns for a living, we did things this way a lot more—not for couture work so much, but to prepare for production pieces. the pattern came before the sewing, and the technical development was a little more married to working with the fabric. of course, i wasn’t writing instructions, and it’s different in a few other ways.

i prefer to knit first and then figure out how to tell other people to do it. but i wondered if that method was too fraught with the pitfalls that come with relying on memory, jotted phrases, quick calculations on the fly, etc. i want to see if having a fairly well-developed framework first is a good thing, or is it just as inaccurate?
i also had this silly idea that being able to produce a pattern out of my head without knitting it first would really test my skill at translating knitting-into-words (which is a lot harder than you would think)(and, i’ve become more than fascinated with this challenging form of communication lately). if i can shape a garment—no, not a garment, but the instructions to make a garment—from thin air onto paper successfully, i will pass. and i will probably respect my skills more.

this is what happens when i sit on my hands instead of letting them roam free over the yarn.

ok, NOW you can say if i’m weird or not.

19 thoughts on “sitting on my hands

  1. No Anne, dear, you are not weird at all! The engineer/architect part of you is coming out to challenge the artistic craftsperson. Go with the process and enjoy what happens. It might even be easier.

  2. That is a very interesting approach – generally I like the technical and editorial side of the process, although when it comes to writing patterns, I finish even fewer than I do of actual knitting projects. I think this happens because of that itch you are feeling – the constant desire to move on to something new.

    I’ve been holding myself back all weekend too, after winding yarn and swatching. I actually didn’t cast on, but only because I am trying to redouble my finishing efforts, and there are quite a few languishing projects…

  3. Hee. OK – maybe a little weird. But in a good way.
    It’s people who like to take things apart to see why, people who want to know, people who need to make things interesting and elegant instead of just done who make out world better, more beautiful and interesting.

    So I think it is a good thing really.

  4. Sounds like a logical process – From the little preview I can see of the dress, it will look adorable! There are so many resources out there for novice knitwear designers that it makes it doable!

  5. Hardly weird. More like talented and flexible and curious. Why are we women so quick to put ourselves down, even with tongue in cheek?

  6. I don’t think you are weird at all, just very clever and curious. What a lucky little girl to get a present that someone has put so much thought, interest and love into.

  7. I’ve used this yarn for a multidirectional tank top for my daughter and a bag for myself. It was perfect for both projects. I’ve used a different color though.

  8. No, You’re not weird, just unique…and that’s the best way to be. I wish you were my little girl’s auntie! I’m exactly the same, I get close to finishing a project and my hands itch for a new one.

  9. I admire your skills, intuition, and drive. I have not written patterns yet but hope to learn. It is as if I am still in the horse and buggy and I stop to gaze at those who are shooting to the stars.

  10. Anne, if you sit on your hands, then you can’t knit at all! 🙂

    You’re an artist–how you roll is how you roll. I wouldn’t expect your process to be quite like anyone else’s.

    Have a lovely Thanksgiving. I bet T-day at your house is yummy, yummy, yummy. 🙂

  11. Hey Anne – Kind of OT, but your catalog link isn’t working. Went to look at socks, and it was nowhere to be found. (And Casino is almost done at my house!)

  12. You’re not weird at all! Challenging yourself is a huge part of the process, as is approaching things from different angles. I’m looking forward to seeing the results!

  13. Nope. Not weird at all! It sounds exciting to me, challenging, fun. And, I know that it’s only acrylic and cotton, but the texture and colors in that yarn are stunning. I, for one, am definitely looking forward to seeing how the dress turns out.

  14. Yes, Anne, you are terribly weird. An absolute knitting/designing/spinning/teaching/writing/gardening/cooking lunatic. That’s one reason we all love ya!

    Of course, the rest of us (OK, maybe just me?) are now overly excited and anxious to read about how your experiment goes and to find out if your designs are as utterly fabulous when worked on paper first. We’re (I’m) weird too, I suppose.

  15. You’re so totally not weird at all. I mean, maybe, a little, but in a good way. It’s funny how we come up with things to challenge ourselves. I can certainly understand why you might be challenged to try your pattern writing from a different angle.

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