[Nfb-krafters-korner] Dropped Stitches

Wed Dec 22 14:03:12 UTC 2010

This is my biggest problem in knitting. I have been blind for three years, 
and have knitted all my life. I could do anything with knitting when I could 
see. Now, if I drop a stitch it is an emergency. I have tried and tried to 
catch the dropped stitches or fix a hole I find in my cloth after I have 
knitted a couple of inches above it. I cannot do it. It is so frustrating. 
Just last week, I had knitted the entire back of a shawl, and then 
discovered a hole near the vbeginning. I tore the entire thing out to begin 
all over again. This is so frustrating to me.  Later, I goofed up and 
dropped stitches on both sides of the front.  I struggled so much trying to 
fix them.  I did the best I could - it is particularly impossible for me if 
it is a garter stitch!  I finally emailed my friend and said I have a 
"knitting emergency" and she came over and fixed everything for me. I do not 
have the sensitivity in my fingers to find those lost stitches. My fingers 
are calloused from knitting and doing beadwork  and making pottery all the 
time. Will I EVER be able to FIX my own knitting blunders???? Lynda River 
Woman
----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Dixie" <blueherons at sbcglobal.net>
To: "'List for blind crafters and artists'" <nfb-krafters-korner at nfbnet.org>
Sent: Wednesday, December 22, 2010 7:35 AM
Subject: Re: [Nfb-krafters-korner] Christmas Crafting Miracle!


> You, go girl!  Hmmmm, it sounds like you have another class to teach in 
> the
> new year, possibly?  Hahahahaha!
>
> No seriously, I had quite a time of it saving my dropped stitches when my
> sight was 20/15, I can't begin to imagine being able to do it so
> successfully sighted much less by touch.  Great job!
>
> I will have to remember your patience if, or more likely,  when I come up
> against that kind of challenge.
>
> Merry Christmas!!
>
> Dixie
> ~  @-> ~ <-@  ~
>
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: nfb-krafters-korner-bounces at nfbnet.org
> [mailto:nfb-krafters-korner-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of Eileen 
> Scrivani
> Sent: Tuesday, December 21, 2010 11:33 PM
> To: Nfb-krafters-korner at nfbnet.org
> Subject: [Nfb-krafters-korner] Christmas Crafting Miracle!
>
> Okay, this is my own short story of a Christmas miracle...
>
> Since last week, I've been working on a military hat/face warmer for my
> brother-in-law as a Christmas present. I wanted to finish it by tonight,
> wash it and lay it out for blocking tomorrow and then if it stretched I
> could re-wet and put in the drier to try and shrink it minimally.
>
> I finished the main hat portion last night without any problems, even was
> smart enough to weave in my ends at that point so I would not have minor
> finishing to deal  with at the end.  Then started on the face ribbing. 
> All
> was going well, except as I was sitting and working on it this afternoon
> while readjusting my stitch markers I thought I felt something weird!
>
> Panic!  The cable on my adjustable needle broke and about 30 or 40 
> stitches
> were just hanging there.  I felt heart sick and instantly started thinking
> "Oh, s - - t" I'm going to have to rip the entire thing out and it would
> never get done for Christmas.  Picking up stitches has remained one of my
> short comings where my knitting is concerned. I tried my best to stay cool
> as best I could without letting it get the best of me. I started to think
> about what would be the best way to even try to attempt getting all those
> dropped stitches back on the needles with the least frustration.
>
> Instantly, I went and got 2 size 0 needles, one that I use as a life line
> and one that I have just as a skinny needle tool for other tricky knots 
> and
> dropped stitches which is a straight 0 needle, the smallest crochet hook
> from my set. And of course a packet of the ever loved Clover locking 
> stitch
> markers.
>
> First those stitches that actually remained on the needle point I slipped
> onto the size 0 circular needle, pushed them onto the cable portion and 
> just
> let it hang there while I worked on those that were in limbo.  I took up 
> the
> size 0 straight needle and no matter if I was able to grab up a single 
> nice
> loop or loops that felt doubled or triple thickness scooped them onto the
> straight needle and used the clover locking markers to catch the remaining
> stitches that already started running down the ribbing.
>
> Next I started to tink (knit backwards/unknit) stitch by stitch to make 
> them
> all behave and line up.  I was even able to use the crochet hook to re 
> hook
> up those stitches that were held by the locking markers.  Amazingly I
> finally figured out how to hook them up on both the stockinette side and 
> the
> rev st st sides. Whew!  After about 2 hours of carefully working through
> this I got them all back; stitch count correct and pattern in tact.  I 
> know
> 2 hours of time sounds like a lot, but keep in mind I've been working on
> this hat since about last Thursday.  Two hours as compared to an entire
> weeks work is nothing.
>
> So tonight I've been happily working on my ribbing, have bound off and 
> will
> be able to launder it tomorrow and see what the fit is like.  I'm so happy
> that I could actually get them all straightened out on my own and was able
> to properly use the crochet hook on both the knit & purl sides of the 
> fabric
> to keep the ribbing pattern correct!
>
> Merry Christmas to all!
>
> Eileen
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