Warning: If you’re under a lot of stress today, maybe you don’t want to look at this picture. There’s an awful lot of confusion here. Back out now.

Still here? Brave soul.

Did you ever read that knitting in the round isn’t as tight a tension as knitting back and forth? [...]]]>

Warning: If you’re under a lot of stress today, maybe you don’t want to look at this picture. There’s an awful lot of confusion here. Back out now.

Still here? Brave soul.

Did you ever read that knitting in the round isn’t as tight a tension as knitting back and forth? I just found out that’s true for me with this sweater. Maybe it’s the first time I’ve had a project that went from knitting back and forth to knitting in the round. I imagined I would be the exception. Ha.

I fought to hold the yarn tighter as I knitted, trying to make the tension remain the same, but after a few inches of that, the knitting just kept feeling looser and looser. I stopped and eyeballed the sweater and thought it looked like larger stitches. I measured. Yup. There’s a longer distance between crosses on the ribs.

I don’t know if going down one needle size will work exactly right, but it’s got to help. If it starts knitting slightly too tight, I’m okay with that. I wanted a lightweight sweater with a nice close knit, not all open and airy like it started to feel the last few inches.

So I’ve been stalled for a few days waiting for two size one circular needles to arrive in the mail. They came today and I uncoiled them in the magic way of dipping them in boiling water for a half second. Tickles me the way that happens. Maybe I’m simple.

Then I sat and worked a size one needle through the row of stitches where I started knitting in the round. At the halfway point, I changed to the second size one. These are only 24″ long and I need the room because there are a mondo number of stitches back there. I’m not convinced I have each and every stitch exactly right, but I can tink back another row or two if need be to get myself all straight and true again.

Anyway, now that the size ones are in place and marking the switchover to knitting in the round, it’s even more obvious that the stitches got bigger.

Here’s the back. Notice how some nervous nelly has the size one needle tips rubber-banded together. There’s enough confusion what with the sleeves being on waste yarn and putting my stitch markers back where they belong and whatnot. I can’t stand the thought of stitches slipping off the back if I sneeze or something while fussing around on the front, or vice versa.

Tune in again, folks, and see if I save my bacon or not. I likely will. The question is how much swearing might happen.