Riddle me this
I'm using yarn that's really no more than two wispy threads twisted together. It snaps when it snags on a rough fingernail. It's a bitch to wind, even with a high-quality swift and ballwinder, because the yarn is not heavy enough to keep the swift turning. It's practically sewing thread.
I'm using tiny 2.50mm (US1) needles, the smallest size of bamboo circulars carried by the well-stocked notions department of my favorite yarn store. The little pins - about the diameter of cocktail toothpicks - flex dangerously between my fingers as I knit. I feel them bend and give, and bite my lip for fear they'll snap in my hands or during transport.
My point is, everything is pretty much as small as can be. If the materials got any smaller, it would actually be NEGATIVE knitting. In a mathematically inexplicable paradox, the fabric would un-knit, the earth's rotation would reverse, and time would move backwards as I worked.
So seriously, what the hell?
At row 120 of 249, more or less half the center-to-tip measurement of the shawl should be completed. Just for giggles, I pinned and measured.
21".
Which means completed tip-to-center will measure a little more than 42", which means tip-to-tip will measure about 86".
Only two inches smaller than the pattern measurement. Angst and worry and nail-biting and hemming and hawing, and for what? Two. Measly. Inches. Excuse me now while I curl up in the corner and sob like a child.
Comments
Wow I truly admire your work. I certainly wouldn't have the patience to work with such a fine yarn and such small needles. It will be well worth it once finished I'm sure.
Posted by: Tess | November 11, 2005 12:59 PM
Don't cry. Drink! And take a blanket with you. The floor in the corner is cold and hard. You'll need that blanket when you pass out from all the booze.
Posted by: baast | November 11, 2005 01:15 PM
Hi I'm new to your site and just wanted to say WOW! Your work is truly amazing and inspiring! Your lacework especially is something I wish I could do so well!
Posted by: Annie | November 11, 2005 01:38 PM
Hi Eunny,
All your recent FOs are lace knits. I had not done any lace knitting yet and your FOs are just screaming at me to try it out. And I will with Rowan Butterfly which you had done a fantastic job with.
Posted by: Jade | November 11, 2005 03:19 PM
Hmmm. Your results defy explanation. The yarn has a mind of its own, apparently. Perhaps it is *meant to be* the larger size?
Posted by: Diana | November 11, 2005 04:13 PM
Oh, I hate it when that happens! I'm so sorry you went through the angst.
But that is so, so gorgeous.
Posted by: Purly Whites | November 11, 2005 04:27 PM
I am so in awe of your lace work. That is one place I haven't dared to go. Bravo! Sorry it's giving you fits tho.
Posted by: Kim | November 11, 2005 04:36 PM
Gah - winding yarn like that makes my head spin! But your shawl looks like it is going to be beautiful.
Posted by: MeBeth | November 11, 2005 04:42 PM
I agree with baast- grab a beer!! Just don't try to drink & knit lace at the same time! The results can be disasterous!!
The shawl is looking lovely (as always). You are the bravest knitter I know!
Posted by: Leah | November 11, 2005 04:54 PM
Sometimes you just have to let the yarn do it's thing...oh and you have to drink some wine or sangria!
Posted by: yahaira | November 11, 2005 04:56 PM
Wow, that is going to be beautiful!
Posted by: Jackie | November 11, 2005 07:16 PM
oh my...what a pain! the lace is absolutely gorgeous though. can you do less or the repeat that you're working on now to make a smaller shawl?
Posted by: jody | November 11, 2005 08:24 PM
You can probably make it smaller by taking out some of the repeats of the pattern in charts 3-5. You'll have to mess with the math to make sure you have the right multiple of stitches for the later edgings, but other than that, it shouldn't be to hard to alter.
Posted by: Jessica | November 11, 2005 10:43 PM
That is some breathtakingly beautiful lace. Still, I've found that situations like this call for vast quantities of chocolate -- the darker the better. (Laura from Affiknitty sent me, by the way.)
Posted by: Erica | November 11, 2005 10:52 PM
Eunny, that is unbelievable! It deserves a story on the news... "Yarn defies physics, film at 11" You must tell me what you do (meditate?) to have the patience to knit that quantity of lace...I think I would lose my mind :)
Posted by: Julsey | November 12, 2005 11:23 AM
Eunny, you never sieze to amaze, even with dental floss yarn, tooth picks to knit with you still knit up an amazine lace project.
Posted by: Estee | November 13, 2005 04:28 PM
Nice blog bro!
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