Frogging

I taught myself to knit almost 6 years ago now. I began with scarves, shawls, and then moved to hats, mittens and eventually to socks. I love knitting socks. They are small projects that you can tote around easily and they are functional. Everyone I have given a pair to has just loved them. There is something about a hand-knitted pair of socks. I hope they feel the love I put into them, I hope that is the secret ingredient.

I did try a sweater 3 or 4 years ago with disastrous results. The sweater came out wide and short. Not a great fit. But it found a home with a short waisted friend who can use it to keep warm at home....not exactly a public wearing sweater. And for all I know she eventually gave it to goodwill, which would be fine with me. I didn't think I would ever knit another sweater. But then this pattern came along, February Lady Sweater, and I knew I had to make it. I printed the pattern and let it sit. It kept coming back up in my mind, so I used a gift-card and bought the yarn. I started it over the holidays. It knits up pretty easy, there are some tricky parts, but overall it is a nice thing to knit while talking, or watching tv.

I have a confession. I am a perfectionist, OCD, anal-type personality, whatever you want to call it. If I am going to do something, I want it to look right. This trait trips me up in life quite a bit. But in knitting and renovating my house, it has served a purpose.

Well, after spending many hours on this new sweater, I got to a point to where I could really look at it. I loved the yoke the increases were nicely done with no holes. The garter stitch looked even and cozy. But the buttonhole placement was all wrong. I had fussed and calculated and agonized over the buttonholes, but they were still not right. So I did what every knitter has done at some point in her knitting career. I frogged it and started over.

Frogging. My husband asked me what frogging meant and why that term. I really didn't know, so I looked it up. The term frog is used because you have to "rip it" out. Ha ha! I had no idea it had a funny connotation. I like that. Because frogging is painful, it hurts any knitter's being to have to undo hours of work.

In life we often have to frog and start over. Relationships, careers, etc. Sometimes we use the same yarn and pattern and just try again. Sometimes we use the same yarn and find a new pattern. Sometimes we have to abandon the yarn altogether because it is just too painful.

Well, this sweater is getting a second chance today. I will try once more to make it work. I have found in life that anything worthwhile, takes work and second chances.