Committed

Remember the topper I started in January?  I’ve been making slow progress on it since.  I have the back and both sides of the front done.   Then I started the sleeves.   They are 3/4 length sleeves that start at the bottom and have increases spaced evenly to the top.  The row stitch pattern is a repeat of 4 stitches, so as I was working on the sleeve when I had increased 4 stitches on each side I added a new pattern to the edges.  I had finished 43 rows of the 60+ that I needed when I decided I didn’t like the jagged, zig-zaggy look of the sleeve.  So I tore it out – after much gnashing of teeth and pulling of hair.  I wasn’t sure I would like NOT adding the pattern to the edges any better.  I wish I had taken a picture, but I didn’t.

And I started again.  This time I have not increased the stitch pattern, doing a plain stockinette on the edges of the new stitches.

First sleeve

I’ve nearly finished this sleeve.  I have about 6 more rows to go which will include one more set of increases and get me very close to the goal of 13 inches. What do think?  Can you imagine what it looked like with another set of the pattern added in the edges?  I did not like that look, but struggled with not following the pattern. (I’m just that way, I guess!)  But at about row 40, I decided I like this look and am sticking to it! 

And that brings me to this:

The end!

Yep, that is the end of my big bobbin of hand spun yarn.  It will come close to finishing this sleeve, but I have 2 arms.   And it is a good thing I do as I will have to go back to the wheel and see if I can match the thickness and spin enough yarn to knit another sleeve and do a crochet border. 

I think I’ve overcome my frustration with this and the excitement to see it finished has returned.