As a newbie knitter oh so long ago, I wrestled with countless patterns before producing anything that was even half way identifiable as lace. Indeed, I ended up with many brand new scarves that were full of holes with no rhyme nor reason to them. Even attempting to read these strangely foreign diagrams were headache inducing. What were these odd hieroglyphics that everyone seemed so eager to use? I couldn’t understand for the life of me why the instructions for lace items are almost never written out in the abbreviations I was only just getting the hang of. Wouldn’t it be easier for the writers anyways?
What seemed like a never ending struggle when I was in the moment now feels like ancient history looking back on it now. I personally believe that my knitting ability has progressed a great deal since then, and I’m pretty darn proud of some of the things I’ve recently made. To demonstrate just how completely full-circle I’ve come, I I even prefer to use diagrams in general now, even for patterns that won’t produce lace. What I absolutely love about my Japanese amigurumi books is that they always use diagrams, so even if I’m unsure about a few kanji here and there, it’s a snap to figure out what to do next.
This particular scarf pictured is one that I attempted previously during my earlier knitting days, which failed miserably at the time. When I came across a delightfully autumnal muticolored yarn, I knew that it was destined to be a part of my second try. It was perfect in every way to me – a cozy scarf of falling leaves in gorgeous reds, browns, and greens, just like the colors our trees outside are displaying right now.
I’m very pleased to say that this time I was met with no problems making my way through the pattern. My fresh try was just in time, too, because this autumn is shaping up to be rather cold and windy. Although it still has holes since it’s still lace, it certainly provides comfort through the soft strands of cotton thread.
Sorry for the crummy detail picture, but I assure you that the lace really does look like falling leaves in person. I’m so happy to finally be capable of following such a skillfully written pattern and doing it proper justice.