Slow and Steady

I’ve been trying to work on my Keelin when I have time and not feeling rushed. I want to finish this sweater with the care that it deserves. This weekend I had some time by the pool, so I finished seaming:

Since I finished my socks I’ve been itching to start my Dale of Norway Sweater. I started swatching:

After swatching and determining that I had gauge I was ready to start. As I started casting on nearly 300 stitches I thought back to something I’d read a few years ago. I follow a lot of knitting blogs. A lot. I just went to count, and it seemed daunting. I’m going to estimate that I have about 90 blogs in my reader. Not all knitters are posting as frequently as they used to (don’t think I’m criticizing – I know I am in no position to judge the frequency of ANYONE’s posting), but I enjoy reading them all, so I keep the subscriptions going. So, the point of this rambling is that when Claudia knitted Autumn Rose a few years ago she started with a sleeve to truly check her gauge. That seemed like a really great idea. So, I decided I’d do the same.

Great idea. Seriously. After knitting about 30 rows, it was really evident that my gauge was too tight. So I ripped it all out, and started again. No problem. I often say at work that I don’t expect anyone to have all the answers, just that they should learn how to ask them and of whom. I hold myself to that standard as well. I’m really pleased that I’d remembered that process change. I’m such a rule follower that I always start with the back or body of a sweater. This may seem like a simple switch for most, but it really took a push for me to jump ahead to the instructions for the sleeve. I’m really looking forward to this project.