Is there a pattern or skill that you don’t yet feel ready to tackle but which you hope to (or think you can only dream of) tackling in the future, near or distant? Is there a skill or project that makes your mind boggle at the sheer time, dedication and mastery of the craft? Maybe the skill or pattern is one that you don’t even personally want to make but can stand back and admire those that do. Maybe it is something you think you will never be bothered to actually make but can admire the result of those that have.

Apparently I forgot to hit post yesterday, so look for day seven of this later today.

As has been previously mentioned on this here blog o’ mine, I am what they call a Fearless Knitter. Meaning no, there aren’t things in knitting I think I couldn’t do. I lace, I cable, I knit backwards, and I colorwork (a little. I don’t like it that much). Generally I tend to knit pretty simple things cause that’s what I prefer, but that doesn’t mean I can’t or don’t knit more complicated things (see those socks I posted a couple days ago).

What I do lack is patience. On the whole, I prefer things that can be knitted quickly. I have a whole host of patterns in my queue for sweaters knit in fingering or lace weight yarn, and though I would love to own them, I simple do not have the patience. I usually knit one thing at a time and work on it til it’s done, but not that kind of sweater. For example? This sweater:

It took me almost six months to knit it. It was a super simple knit and I’m sure I could have finished it in around a month but it took FOREVER. Each row just kept GOING and GOING and GOING and GOING.

That being said, it is one of my favorite sweaters.

And will I make more sweaters in lace or fingering weight yarn? Probably. I have the yarn for three more in my stash and actual plans to make them (including another Featherweight in Malabrigo Lace).

Another thing that I wish to improve at (though, strictly speaking, it is not a knitting thing) is grading sweater patterns. I have a ton of sweater ideas sketched out and the yarn to knit several of them (though admittedly, I do lack the time), but I’m not very good at writing up the patterns and mathing them for different sizes. For example:

This sweater is pretty simple: It’s a loose raglan sweater. Writing up and mathing out the pattern? Took FOR. EV. ER. Partially it’s because I’m bad at math, partially it’s because I never swatch (I measure gauge about halfway through the project and use it for the other sizes), and partially it’s because I utterly lack the patience.

Some of those I can improve, anyway.

(PS: Don’t forget to enter yesterday’s contest! You can win a kit to knit some awesome spats!)

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