Chapter One | Chapter Two | Chapter Three| Chapter Four
It’s done! I’m so glad! I had to cut that accursed yarn another twice but I made it! And, oh, that colour gradient. It’s so beautiful. I’ll never buy this yarn again so I’m appreciating it all the more.
I had my doubts before blocking – the wing tips were so scrunched up and curled in.
I was able to stretch them out to a decent shape even when they were dry, though, so I put my trust in the power of blocking. I absolutely didn’t follow the bind off pattern either, but I could see from pictures that lots of folk had found the bind off too loose and I wasn’t here for that. I did wrap and turns instead of just turns, used a needle two sizes larger (not five) and I alternated super stretchy bind off stitches with normal ones. If I were to do it again, I’d probably go super stretchy throughout for a more relaxed finish, but I erred on the side of caution and it really is very neat and tidy.
I started the project on or around the 19th May (G was away that weekend and on those occasions I devote my time to excessive knitting and devouring Dairy Milk like a wild animal, since I’m unobserved). So it took nearly two months to finish, which is reasonable when you consider that it’s not a portable piece and couldn’t be taken on buses and trains like my other WiP (details to follow in a future post). There would have been stitch markers and cable needles loose on every public transport in the land.
It was amazing how much the Knit Companion app helped me with tracking the repeats. Not only are there repeats within rows, but whole sections repeat themselves too. Having six separate counters available was invaluable and I definitely recommend the free version of the app. One thing it doesn’t do (either free or paid) is record your project start date so look out for that. Otherwise the free features covered everything I needed.
I also recommend the pattern. While I did struggle with binding off, overall it was clearly written and a lot of work has gone into it. You have the option of written, charted, or intuitive instructions depending on what you like. I’m a written instruction person all the way. It also contains hints about how to adjust if you run short of yarn. It’s a complex construction, there’s no denying it, and I didn’t come completely off pattern at any time. Not suitable for social or engaging TV knitting, either.
It was weird that I used so much less yarn than suggested (not a common experience, going by other Ravelry projects) but I never did check gauge so that’s a big shrug emoji. While I theoretically had enough yarn to make the larger version, I couldn’t have worked with that tangled nightmare a minute longer so I’m glad I didn’t commit to it! And I like that it’s just slightly over the width of my actual span – the wings are just my size.
As a final reminder: this is Wingspan (Ravelry link) by VectorKnits (Designer’s site). I’m knitting it in Cotton Kings Sultan Shadow (Hobbii link).
The Crafty Yarnster 