Vintage Directions: The Author's Dead.
As I have mentioned before, and as is evidenced by that vintage cardigan I'm slogging through, I just LOVE vintage skirt-and-sweater sets. They're just so darn cute.
However. They're not without their little problems.
The main one being that the people who put them together are dead, and the companies that they worked for are defunct, and there's no recourse for glitches.
Mostly I worry about the obvious -- will there be enough yarn? -- cause if there's not, there's no buying some more, even in the wrong dye lot. It's just not in existence on the planet, anywhere where it could possibly be located.
Well, I'm ok with the yarn on the cardi -- will certainly have enough. The "Country Life" company was generous in this kit, I'm happy to tell you; I'm done with the major pieces, and working on the front bands, and I've got a couple of skeins left. I'm fine.
What got me about this kit was hidden in the directions.
Here are the directions for shaping the armhole on the back:
Cast off 5 sts. at beg. of next 2 rows.
*Next row: K.2, k.2 tog., t.b.l., k. to last 4 sts., k.2 tog., k.2.
Next row: P.2, p.2 tog., p. to last 4 sts., p.2.tog. t.b.l., p.2.*
Rep. from * to * until 100 sts. remain.
**Next row: K.2, k.2 tog. t.b.l., k. to last 4 sts., k.2 tog., k. 2.
Next row: P.**
Rep from ** to ** until 38 sts. remain.
Cast off.
Ok, fine. Nice and clear. Great. Now, here are the instructions for shaping the armhole on the right front, which I got to whilst sitting in an airport waiting for a flight to Tulsa, and which I found a little disturbing, having already finished the back, according to the directions above:
Cast off 5 sts. at beg. of next row.
*Next row: Patt. 17, k. to last 4 sts., k.2 tog., k.2.
Next row: P. *
Rep. from * to * until 24 sts. remain.
Yes. Right. Well, if I do that, then the armholes aren't going to match, are they? Cause I worked the back first, as I usually do, not just cause the patterns are set up that way, but because I like it, and so I did, and I didn't read ahead, did I? Cause it's not like COOKING, where I might all of a sudden discover I need CAPERS! It's not like I'm going to be knitting along on some sweater for which I've got the yarn and the pattern all put together by somebody in Galashiels, Scotland, who, theoretically, READ the damn instructions at some point, or, hey, even got somebody to WORK them, and so theoretically would have discovered at SOME point, theoretically BEFORE the instructions got printed out, that the back raglan was decreasing on EVERY row for a little while (and I should admit here that I did sorta wonder about that at the time I was knitting it), but neither the front nor the sleeves did, DID THEY! And so they're not going to FIT!
And, as I mentioned earlier, all those people in Galashiels, Scotland, who originally put this thing together, are Not Available to Feel the Force of my Ire.
Luckily for me, they gave me way too much yarn. I intend to use a bunch of it after a little bout with Frogging.
Here's the worst part: is this going to teach me to read the directions all the way through, first, carefully checking to make sure everything makes sense?
Nope. I've met me. I have full and great confidence that I will learn NOTHING from this.
However. They're not without their little problems.
The main one being that the people who put them together are dead, and the companies that they worked for are defunct, and there's no recourse for glitches.
Mostly I worry about the obvious -- will there be enough yarn? -- cause if there's not, there's no buying some more, even in the wrong dye lot. It's just not in existence on the planet, anywhere where it could possibly be located.
Well, I'm ok with the yarn on the cardi -- will certainly have enough. The "Country Life" company was generous in this kit, I'm happy to tell you; I'm done with the major pieces, and working on the front bands, and I've got a couple of skeins left. I'm fine.
What got me about this kit was hidden in the directions.
Here are the directions for shaping the armhole on the back:
Cast off 5 sts. at beg. of next 2 rows.
*Next row: K.2, k.2 tog., t.b.l., k. to last 4 sts., k.2 tog., k.2.
Next row: P.2, p.2 tog., p. to last 4 sts., p.2.tog. t.b.l., p.2.*
Rep. from * to * until 100 sts. remain.
**Next row: K.2, k.2 tog. t.b.l., k. to last 4 sts., k.2 tog., k. 2.
Next row: P.**
Rep from ** to ** until 38 sts. remain.
Cast off.
Ok, fine. Nice and clear. Great. Now, here are the instructions for shaping the armhole on the right front, which I got to whilst sitting in an airport waiting for a flight to Tulsa, and which I found a little disturbing, having already finished the back, according to the directions above:
Cast off 5 sts. at beg. of next row.
*Next row: Patt. 17, k. to last 4 sts., k.2 tog., k.2.
Next row: P. *
Rep. from * to * until 24 sts. remain.
Yes. Right. Well, if I do that, then the armholes aren't going to match, are they? Cause I worked the back first, as I usually do, not just cause the patterns are set up that way, but because I like it, and so I did, and I didn't read ahead, did I? Cause it's not like COOKING, where I might all of a sudden discover I need CAPERS! It's not like I'm going to be knitting along on some sweater for which I've got the yarn and the pattern all put together by somebody in Galashiels, Scotland, who, theoretically, READ the damn instructions at some point, or, hey, even got somebody to WORK them, and so theoretically would have discovered at SOME point, theoretically BEFORE the instructions got printed out, that the back raglan was decreasing on EVERY row for a little while (and I should admit here that I did sorta wonder about that at the time I was knitting it), but neither the front nor the sleeves did, DID THEY! And so they're not going to FIT!
And, as I mentioned earlier, all those people in Galashiels, Scotland, who originally put this thing together, are Not Available to Feel the Force of my Ire.
Luckily for me, they gave me way too much yarn. I intend to use a bunch of it after a little bout with Frogging.
Here's the worst part: is this going to teach me to read the directions all the way through, first, carefully checking to make sure everything makes sense?
Nope. I've met me. I have full and great confidence that I will learn NOTHING from this.
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