Friday 21 December 2007

I work better without a pattern




I know this cardigan is crocheted in very thick wool (courtesy of Lidl) but considering how I struggled with the cardigan I made from the Fabulous Flirty Crochet Book in the same thickness for my niece Kath due to ambiguous instructions. I decided to "freestyle " the one for my other niece using the other cardigan as a template. I changed the pattern stitch and didn't put a collar on this one and crocheted in just a few hours. I think I am better doing it that way. My mind just doesn't work with US patterns that tell me what to do every row (sometimes wrongly) plus I have to convert the US stitch names to UK ones at the same time. I can visualize a whole lot better with just the wool and a hook. The garment is a little snug fitting on me as you can see from the photo. I am hoping my niece is still smaller than I am. Like a lot of the western world she has put a bit of weight on but I just didn't want to insult her by making it my size. It is shaped in for the waist (hence the 2 button fastening) and out again for the bustline in case you think my hips are even bigger than they are!


Tonight I am going to start to crochet the sleeves on Kath's other jacket. I only have those and the belt left to make to finish that off , and the knitted doubled hat to finish. Anything else I make before Christmas will just be a bonus to add to my presents for people. I have a few small items in mind if I have the time.


On the subject of wrong instructions on patterns I actually read on a blog ( a US one of course) where the designer was defending the fact that mistakes on patterns often happen and says knitters and crocheters should use their brains and work around these things and not complain so much. Excuse me but am I paying £15 - £20 a book for the pleasure of correcting mistakes? I was in the hand knitting trade for over 30yrs and I can hold my hand on my heart and say pattern mistakes from our UK designers were very few and far between and if any were found then the pattern was withdrawn immediately until a corrected re-print could be issued. They took that kind of thing very seriously and never once was it suggested that the knitter should work her way around the mistake! The US designer in the blog actually stated that she was thinking of bringing out a book of designs without any instructions and tell people that they had to work out how to make it. That is extremely arrogant of her. Lots of people are not gifted in that way and can only work to definite instructions, without adaptations, so she is belittling a whole lot of people. What is the point of buying her book anyway. It will be just a load of photos which we can see in any fashion magazine anyway.

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