Following Knit Patterns makes me Cranky

There is a truism in knitting that says American patterns include too much and European patterns don't include enough.  There are whole classes in how to read Japanese patterns.  I think there are all kinds of reasons for this that are cultural, reflect traditions and accessibility to mentors.  As an American knitter taught by a neighbor when I was 13 and then not coming back to it until many years later I have been slowly trying to knit my way to competency.  Which brings me to why patterns make me cranky.

First, they so often have huge errors.  Errata sheets abound.  Having designed a couple of things,  Errors happen.  I  have had to make corrections; even when I had test knitters.  Personally, I really like inexperienced test knitters, because they really, really read the pattern and ask all kinds of questions which allows one to find the confusing places.

Second, in the digital age I think it is possible to sell a pattern and include a FAQ about the pattern which the buyer does not have to print but they can reference.  I think this should be standard.  I spent a good bit of time yesterday trying to figure out if the designer really intended to have the "wrong" side of the 3 needle bind-off be on the "right side" of the little sweater.  Being somewhat dyslexic,  when things get all inside/outside I start getting twitchy.  I went to two different websites and a project page at Ravelry trying to figure out if I was the only one who found the following instructions

On a RS row make two button holes
Cast on over button holes on return row, knit one more row
Now put right sides together and bind off left shoulder
3 needle bind off right shoulder *

had the stitches incorrectly placed on the needle to actually accomplish this instruction.  I was getting twitchier by the moment.  Was I really that stupid?  How come I couldn't make this work?  If I had started on a wrong side row would it have come out correctly?  Is there an error in the pattern?  Is the error this part or that part?  ACK!!!!!!!  I would love to have gone to a FAQ page and seen a designer say:  "Why yes, the "wrong" side of the 3 needle bind off showing on the shoulder is suppose to be a design element".  I still don't know.  I just "made it up", and in the bigger picture it doesn't really matter, it's only knitting and a kid sweater to boot.  Except I would like to have enough expertise and confidence to actually know I can read/interpret what is being written and understand what the designer is trying to accomplish. 

There is also too much information.  There is a designer who wrote 24 pages for a pattern, the majority, in my opinion, waxing poetical about how clever she was.  Someone else condensed the pattern down to one page and if you cut out one paragraph from somewhere around page 23 you can knit this very simple shawl without ever looking at the other pages.  Yes the design is clever and beautiful and deceptively simple - but in this case just give me the straight instructions.  Give me a FAQ page and let me wax poetical about how brilliant you are.

My knitted knickers are in a twist today over pattern reading.


* short version of instructions

 

 

 

MKAL - Game of Thrones

I am participating in a MKAL through Jimmy Beans Wool on Ravelry.  For those who need a translation this means:  a Jimmy Beans Wool designer a has proposed "Mystery Knit A Long (MKAL).  The theme is from Game of Thrones, a very popular book and HBO series.  The mystery is we have no idea what the designer has in mind.  We get a new clue once a week for 5 or 6 weeks and happily or fearfully knit, trusting we will recognise the item at the end.  Whether it is something we will ever use is not the point.  It is the experience of mystery and stretching our skill set we are chasing (at least it is for me).   There are apparently some 500 individuals who are participating in this and the skill range runs the gamut from beginners to seasoned beta knit testers who have no fear of plowing there way through any thing because they have this incredibly broad skill set from which to draw when things get wonky.  This MKAL is on the website, Ravelry.  Ravelry is a knit and crochet social networking site and one of the best  social networking sites I've ever seen.  Absolutely brilliant and free.   Everything was just honky-dory until Clue #4.  Then all hell broke loose and the "we all play nice" gloves came off.

Clues 1-3 were pretty simple knit/purl in the round stuff.  Clue #3 added short rows for some shaping which caused some of the beginner knitters a crisis in confidence.  But everyone made it through.  The forum provides chat, feedback, pictures and encouragement.  There were some very seasoned knitters that provided advice, pictures and were the vanguard - they also managed to knit the entire damn first 3 clues in less than 15 minutes.  Personally, I think some of them have magic knitting wands - but that is a separate issue.  Clue #4 got a bit tricky - you have to separate the front from the back, start knitting flat and do this birds eye lace piece and oh yes....add some button holes on either side.  Just to add some spice - the instructions were wrong, some lines of instructions were missing and .....well......the designer was at a wedding.  Between last night and this morning there were some 200+ comments about this clue and some of the opinions were less than courteous.  It seems everyone has an opinion about Clue #4.  Typically, both sides have valid points. 

Crazysalad had this to say: 

Everyone is so patient and expects so little. Not me. I expected the instructions to have been written in advance, tested and proofread. Some of the knitters seem to feel that the designer is offering this Mystery KAL as an act of charity. Jimmy Bean’s is a multi-million dollar company that is taking advantage of a hugely popular TV show. At least 500 knitters joined, many of them purchasing (as I did) Jimmy Bean’s own custom-dyed yarn specified in the pattern. I assumed that all the blog postings were prepared and ready to go BEFORE the first clue was even published. I never dreamed that we’d have to wait for someone to recover from a family wedding to post the 4th clue two hours late.
As for the mistakes in the pattern…
When you offer a Mystery KAL, it is essential that the instructions are crystal clear because we are following BLINDLY. We have no pictures. We don’t even know what the finished object is. We are trusting that, at least, the instructions are correct. We follow on faith.


Lilb had this to say in response: 

I think everyone here has had patterns where there are errors. I’ve been a beta tester for knitting/needlework/beading patterns for years & it ALWAYS happens. The most common types are the one we had with the lace “I knew what to do so it just slipped my mind to put it in” I’ve seen that on almost every pattern I’ve checked & done it myself more times than I can count when trying to write out instructions or teach someone a new technique (I’m no designer, having the ‘honor’ of having FLUNKED kindergarten art & I’ve got the report card to prove it). To expect perfection all the time is unreasonable especially when the person posting the pattern in a KAL is in the middle of a big, happy family event.

I think these two individuals pretty well represent the two sides and are both correct.  Most of the other commentary is clarifications or comments on the comments.  Having designed a couple of things - it is amazing what gets overlooked, or isn't clear in the instructions when it is all so clear in one's own mind.  Test knitters catch all kinds of things.  Knitting patterns often end up with mistakes some knitter out there catches after dozens have knitted it up without comment.  Experienced knitters often just wing it, fiddle, or go their own way when they run into a confusing bit and mistakes don't get noticed until some new knitter tries to follow the instructions literally.  This MKAL has some 500 test knitters of different skills levels and I have to agree a greater attention to detail and clarity in the 4th clue would have been appropriate and helpful.  I also agree that to expect perfection is unrealistic.  But above all - I would expect courtesy which is so much a part of the Ravelry experience.

One of the things I have always appreciated is the courtesy, support and generous sharing of experience and skills on the Ravelry website.  While Clue #4 definately had some instruction difficulties, time and good intent on the part of the designer (and the other eperienced knitters) would and is making it all come out correctly.

In the meantime, some rules from the road of life:

Patience is a virtue
I don't think everything that can be said, should be said. 
Our moods shouldn't dictate our manners.
Criticize in private and praise in public.

Master's Knitting Program

I love design and I deeply admire the technical abilities of the great knitters.  It has become increasingly obvious that my technical abilities do not equal the knit designs that are rattling around my brain. I also love stranded work and after designing my Unicorn Hat I realized I needed to learn more techniques than the usual "fly by the seat of my pants" version. I think knitters have many teachers that contribute to their knowledge. 

I think we all learn from each other and the fiber community is amazingly generous in its willingness to share a love of the craft.  But it is time to really explore knitting, hence I have committed to increasing my expertise and have decided to enroll in the Master's Knitting program from the Knitting Guild of America .  This is a three level program with a review committee that guides the learning process. You may not proceed to level two unless you have successfully completed level one.   I have a University level Master's degree and frankly this Master's certification program seems every bit as complex.  It is probably the first certification program that I actually respect, and I have lots of certifications that I have picked up in the mental health field.  I have several goals in taking this course:

1.  To increase my technical abilities and really learn this craft
2.   Learn to design more effectively
3.   I would really, really like to be able to work part time in a knitting shop and know that I had the skills to help those who were just starting out in the very satisfying and addictive world of fiber. 



Design gone Bad

Sometimes the ole family motto:  "Seemed like a good idea at the time" applies when what happens is sorta yuck.

I wanted to design something different than a hat.  But I like the quickness of accessories so I thought I would design a neck/cowl thingy.  I wanted it to be somewhat stranded but not exactly fair isle.  Because it was stranded I thought it should be reversible so the backside of the stranded work wouldn't catch on things.  I also wanted a southwest flavor and since it was going around the neck - not scratchy.  I started fiddling with the math of gauge, size, yarn and charting to make it all work with 3 repeats of the design.  I came up with this:

Ye ole Chart

The white background of the chart would actually be a black yarn and I was looking for gold, turquoise, red and black.  I chose KnitPicks Gloss DK yarn for it's softness; and I was thinking about submitting it to the Independent Design Program.  Well...I have said before I am not the most technical knitter and figured  I would just duplicate stitch the sun motif (which I didn't), and do a modified intarsia for the deer rather than carry the threads from one deer motif to the next.  This brilliant idea gave me a gazillion ends to weave in.  I am thinking a duplicate stitch for the deer motif and the sun would have been a better choice over all.

Now I generally don't mind weaving in ends, but this was just plain obnoxious.  It also created another problem - showing through the front.

You can see the woven ends showing through the black - yuck!

To use the yarn more efficiently I stripped the back side which made it look way to "Cat in the Hat" for me.  But then I am not a big fan of stripping.

I have just sat on this thing for weeks.  I am at the 3 needle purl bind off, once I finish weaving in the rest of the ends, and I am having the hardest time looking at it.  I can say that it won't be going to the IDP program for consideration. I am so disenchanted with this I don't want to spend the money to buy yarn for test knitters.  I might in a moment of madness buy more yarn for myself and do the whole thing over again doing a duplicate stitch for the deer and sun to see what happens. 

 I will probably post it to Ravelry for the usual $1.99 with a serious "You really don't want to do this because you will regret it sales job" description.  Charging for something kicks in the cognitive dissonance function and psychologically peeps are less likely to be irritated then if you give the pattern away for free - go figure.

The Problem of Fair Isle

I have just discovered a problem with designing Fair Isle....what the *bleep* do you do when they discontinue one of the colors you used for shading?  I thought I was so done with that pattern, I sure don't want to redesign it again.  Blech!   Call me naive, but it didn't occur to me how quickly it would become stale dated.  I, of course, posted my dilemma to Ravelry and got some wonderful advice - Rav is really one of the nicest places to hang out.  So I am trying to figure out what color will work as a replacement and then if I can weasel some friend to knit a swatch with the new color and compare the results to the old colorway.....    I have an email in to KnitPicks to see if they have a color recommendation, but haven't heard back yet.  Maybe I should try just sticking to one color or maybe create my very own line of hand dyed stuff......that would be a no.  I can hardly find the time to continue on the winter tam what with the tawny tornado around the house, much less start dyeing and selling yarn.

Much of my time lately has been caught up trying to entertain a year old animated dust mop who after a bit of a tough go with her tummy is now on an eating regime that works for her.  Of course the relative down side of this is she feels so much better and is one very, very busy girl.  Trying to keep her entertained is time consuming. I finally broke down and took her to the groomers to so they could do something with her bangs.  They are so long they generally need a scrunchy so she can see.  This is relatively ineffectual.

This before picture shows that the eyes are completely hidden - can't see a thing. 

After a facial trim, you can see eyes!!  Rather sad eyes actually and her ears are all wilted from the stress of the groomer.  Poor puppy, but she has recovered and is currently sleeping after a morning at the barn. 

Well, I am avoiding the Summer Dragonfly Tam problem hoping it will magically solve itself, but I had better get back to it and patch together some solution for those who don't already have the color "mustard" from the Palette fingerling line

Pixels vs. Paper (a fiber post)

There has been some discussion lately on Ravelry which is a knit and crochet community, on pricing of knit and crochet patterns.  It might be helpful to know that Ravelry is the Facebook of the knit/crochet world and there are some amazingly gifted individuals there creating and offering patterns for sale (and a bunch that offer free patterns, I mean really good free patterns).  Money in the knit community is made from patterns, not from knitting an item and then selling it.  Okay, you can also make money being really, really clever and doing workshops and teaching people things or writing wildly funny blogs that get you book contracts, like the Yarn Harlot  http://www.yarnharlot.ca/blog/.  But for the rest of us, we make a pattern, then post it for sale here, there, or submit it to magazines or Independent Designer Programs, etc. This brings up the question of how do we price?  I waded in on a discussion that was occurring regarding this issue on Ravelry with the comment that we are selling Pixels not paper and that if we are selling a pdf download it should be cheaper than if they were selling a paper pattern we then mail to a customer.  I received not a few "disagrees" over that opinion.  But I still hold to it.  My panties haven't untwisted over one of the big publishing houses fight with Amazon.  Amazon wanted to sell the Kindle version for less than the trade paperback version.  The big publishing house wasn't having it.   Amazon lost over what I see was definite corporate greed by the publishing house.   

If I create and actually print the pattern for sale I have costs I don't have when I create a pdf download.  I have paper, ink, printer wear, storage, my time, postage for mailing.  These are hard costs and it seems reasonable to factor them into the price of the pattern.  But if I create a pdf download then the majority of those costs are yours not mine and if does not seem reasonable to pass those costs on to you as if I actually incurred them.  But that is essentially what that big publishing house did when it faced down Amazon.  I'm reminded of what I used to say to my kids (I'm sure they hated it)  "Just because you can do something, doesn't mean you should".  I don't think you should charge paper prices for pixels.  My pattern is priced at $1.99.  I think it is probably priced a little low, but I don't think it should be priced higher than $2.50 max.  It is a pdf download, all associated print costs are yours.  If you want me to print, mail, etc.  I will charge you $5.00 for the pattern, otherwise $1.99 is reasonable in my opinion.

Just because I could charge more, doesn't mean I should.

Fiber Artist at Work

I apparently have been remarkably mellow the last several months.  Other than the ongoing adventure with Nana that can be found on my other blog - I have had only moments of small irritation, not enough to get all fired up and write about.  Of course now that I think about it there has been a recent knit pattern that I have my panties in a twist about because it is poorly edited, contradicts itself and the designer is not particularly responsive.  Really cute item, but I will never buy from that designer again.

My attention has been directed to my own knit designs.  I submitted a knit pattern to KnitPicks and they accepted it into their Independent Designer Program.  I have two other design ideas in progress, not counting the current project I have on the needles by the designer that will remain nameless and life is pretty well taken up with dog, horse and fiber.  It occurred to me that almost all the designers have blogs or websites and I figured that I already had a blog, in fact two of them.  I thought about creating a third which was just crazy.  I don't keep up with the two I have.  So I thought I would just tweak this one to be more fiber oriented.  Unfortunately, Stitch and Bitch is taken so Tired of Being Nice Sometimes Designs will just have to do.  Heck.....I can stitch and bitch to my heart's content here without having to create anything new.  Who knows, maybe I will get so mellow I will have to change the title to Enjoys Being Nice. Frankly, I wouldn't bet on it.

I'm Having Commitment Issues ( A Fiber Post)

I've decided that yarn projects are like dating.  About a month ago I consummated a blind date with a Fair Isle Tam kit I picked up when I was in Washington.  Like most blind dates, I wasn't sure how it would all turn out, but was willing to try. I loved it, it was fun....I got all lit up and decided that I should do this again.  In fact, I decided to design my own Fair Isle Tam.  I started searching sites for suitable matches to my inspiration.  I was all giddy anticipation, romantic delusions in place. Would this all work out, would there be a happy ever after?  And then reality strikes, oh my.....hmmmm......this yarn doesn't quite have the texture I was looking for, that's ok...I can compromise a little.  I stare at the yarn, it stares back.  There is an awkward silence. 

It is time to commit, to cast on, to actually get started.  What do I do?  The dishes, the laundry, anything but cast on and commit to my fantasy of trying to create something with these 10 balls of fingerling color.  I can do this...really, it's just a matter of ...ummmm.....casting forth, I mean on.  But what if I get it all wrong, I internally wail.  What if it is awful? 

Sigh....I guess I will never know unless I at least commit to a second date with this yarn. As I said, I am having a small commitment issue.  Well, I can always kick it to the street if it does me wrong and then start searching the Internet for a better match - one more my type.