Knitting Disasters, Pretty Flowers

Knitting Fail

My knitting fail for the week would be the little girl shrug I've been working on.  If you're a knitter, you will ask if I checked my gauge, which of course I did not.  And I should know better.  It might fit my little girl in about 4 years - not sure until I actually finish it.  But I will anyway.

So that you understand, here's a photo for scale.  The pink shrug is one that fits my little girl right now.  The blue is my ummm recent work-in-progress.

I've had LOTS and LOTS of knitting projects go awry. 

First it was the infamous Red Lace Shawl. 

It should have looked like this one....

This one was knit by a fellow raveler, see it here:  http://www.ravelry.com/projects/Maaike27/shaped-triangle

Isn't it amazing?

I don't have a picture of mine, because about halfway through I ripped it.  It was intricate lace, the first project of that scope that I ever attempted, and after hours and hours of work I dropped a stitch.

OK, usually dropped stitches are no big deal. In lace knitting, maybe not so easy.  It's already full of holes.  And finding which one was from my dropped stitch, vs which ones were intentional, not so easy.  At that point in my experience I couldn't figure out how to pickup and fix that stitch.  So I ripped.  It actually took me a good solid couple of hours to rip the thing apart!  Argggg. 

When my husband came home, he was quite perplexed that I was in tears over the whole affair.  And he said, " But don't you think it was a good learning experience?"  But I didn't want to 'learn' anything.  I wanted my shawl.

My father-in-law was living with us at the time.  When I explained the situation to HIM, he said, "Wow, I just think it's amazing that you could even do that at all in the first place.  I mean, WHO's able to do that?"  Right answer!  I felt a bit better.

Then there was the Purple Cable Knit sweater that was about 5 sizes too large.  I ripped that one. 

A plethora of newborn hats that never fit the babies they were intended for....

The slippers I made for myself, and then accidentally felted one. My daughter saw one come out of the wash (just her size then, at 5) and before I could lament over how it ended up in the wash, she said "OH MOM, you made me some slippers!"  I sure did, honey, sure did. 

Sometimes I can hope that no one will see the mistakes.  And then there are things that should never be knit in the first place.  Like Men's neckties.  Or other things......

Thanks Beth, for that delightful gem of a link.  :) It was great for a laugh.
It could be worse, definitely worse.  Yes, just because you CAN make something, doesn't mean you should. 

The Successes

On a more positive note I DID manage to get some baby knitting done over the past several weeks.  Thank goodness for my tried and tested, small projects! 

And ALWAYS a bonus:  to get to see a great photo of one of those adorable babies wearing my hats!!  Thanks so much Kelly for the pic.

Isn't she adorable??

My Flowers

And, even if I failed at my project - my garden flowers have been exceptionally beautiful this year.  That makes me really happy, and makes up for a lot :) I've had lots of nice arrangements for my house. 

Very Fragrant Antique Rose - La Ville de Bruxelles - Only blooms once a year!

This Rose grows like CRAZY at my house!  It is called 'The Impressionist'.  It has the most intense color.  It was a find at Heirloom Roses - one of their own. 

Apron Corner

Today's Apron:   A lovely red, adorable apron.  It features polka-dots, vintage rick rack, and a layer of organza that poofs! 

The pocket was so unique - I've never seen one like this on an apron anywhere. 

Capturing a Moment

This was, of course, right after I made a batch of cookies.  It was a not-so-subtle hint, that made my day.