Hockey Knitting

I feel like I have not accomplished much knitting wise this week.  When we parted last week I was heading to the basement to dig out yarn for the next project.  I located the yarn, found the pattern and cast on.  I had chosen eweCanknit #144 The Whale.  I can't find a link to the pattern to show you.  I think the company has ceased operations.  I know I have had it in my library for a long long time.  I purchased the pattern from Mary Maxim for $1.69 when my eldest niece was a toddler.  She is now 27.

My plan was convert the pullover to a cardigan, put the killer whale motif on the back instead of the front and add a collar.  The yarn was also bought at Mary Maxim for $1.99 per ball on a clear out.  The yarn of course is also discontinued.  It was originally for an adult sweater with whales on it.  I planned on knitting the sweater but never did and now don't want to.

I was well into the ribbing when I looked at the yarn label.  It said hand wash.  I was sure that yarn 20% wool and 80% acrylic was machine washable.  This sweater was for a little a girl and her Mother and I had agreed the sweater should be machine washable.  So I knit a swatch and threw it into the washing machine.  It did not felt or become icky but it came out much wider and somewhat shorter.

If the swatch changed size then the motif knitted into the sweater was going to become distorted as well.  My chunky healthy looking whale was going to become a long wide emaciated one.

I still want to use this yarn for something.    I have settled on the Monkey Scarf from this book. (Ironically also bought at Mary Maxim.) I will have to make a matching hat or mittens to make up the child's winter set for the Fair.

This is just a long way of saying that I did a lot of work with nothing to show for it.  I thought this sweater would be great hockey knitting once the motif was done.

Instead Hubby and I went to game on Tuesday and I knit on Luella.  I thought all that stockinette at the beginning would make great hockey knitting.  I hadn't counted on the lace weight yarn  and the fine needles being hard to knit by feel alone.  I was having to look down all the time and was missing too much of the action on the ice.  There was a lot of action too.  Essex tied the game 2-2 by scoring on their own net, the referee lost his balance and fell on his backside but Essex finally won 5-2.

On Thursday Amherstburg hosted on their home ice and won 3-1.   Hubby was on Pelee Island and I had another commitment so we had to settle for the Pointstreaks site for updates.   Last night the game was back in Essex.

 I had finished the back of the gansey and the three needle bind-off of the shoulders.  Stitches were picked up at the arm openings for the sleeves to be knit from the top down.  I had completed the textured stitches on the sleeves and was already into the plain knitting round and round.  I took both the gansey and the shawl to last night's game.  I decided to work on the gansey.  I could happily knit on it without looking and would catch all the action.

 By the end of the first period I had decided that I had messed up.  The pattern said to knit for 10 1/2 inches from the opening.  I took that to mean where I had stopped knitting round and round and started knitting back and forth.  Half the underarm gusset was knit in the round.  I decided that the pattern actually meant that the underarm gusset was part of the opening for the arms and I should only have knitted for 10 1/2 inches from where I started the gusset.  That would explain why I had 32 stitches too many for the sleeve.  I just decreased that many in the first round instead.

Off the body the start of the sleeve looks weird.  When I put it on me, it fits well and looks just fine.  The gussets of course are now too low for the underarm but I am a busty woman and the gussets are placed just right to give me the extra bust room I need.  I messed up good!  I am going with it.

What do you think?

I knit the rest of the game plus the sudden death overtime on Luella.  Essex lost 3-2.

Luella is bigger but I bet you can't tell.

Hubby and I are heading to Amherstburg tonight for game 4.  I may be taking three projects!

To close out this post - for your enjoyment - a cute doggie photo.