Hello, all. I attended my local knitters guild meeting last evening. It is really fun to get together with lots of people who are passionate about knitting. We have over 400 members in the guild and about 50 people were at the meeting. The “program” for the night was “Knitting Basket of Horrors.” Members were supposed to bring in their knitting disasters and share the horror. It was very funny.
I shared my recent horror story. I used to fix sweaters for people — beloved, well-worn sweaters that people love too much to throw away when they get holes. I always saw it as a labor of love. However, I got kind of sick of poring over these ratty rags and decided to “get out of the biz.” BUT, I got a call from a man with a One Hundred Year Old sweater. I was intrigued. I just had to check out this antique, this heirloom. It was red with a large, shawl collar. Simple stockinette in worsted weight yarn. There were pockets with a double lining (great place to obtain yarn for patching). The cuffs had holes and there were several other holes throughout. I thought it would be a piece of cake. I made the mistake of telling him that when I was done with it, it would look like new (I NEVER make promises I cannot keep…).
I started by removing the lower sections of the pocket linings and straightening the yarn. I re-knit the linings with yarn that was not the best color match. Then I removed the cuffs and started unravelling them. The yarn came apart in shreds! It was so fragile as not to be believed! I tried re-knitting the first cuff, combining the cuff yarn with the yarn from the pockets. It looked like crap. I was in a panic. The sweater was in pieces, and I could not fix it.
To make a long story short, I ended up buying new yarn that matched better and re-knitting the cuffs with it. It didn’t look too bad, but it isn’t perfect as I promised. I also re-knit the pocket linings so they would be the same color as the cuffs. I had also told him I would try to fix the horrible looking buttonholes. They were machine stitched monsters. I managed to redo them using a grafting method I had learned in a workshop with Sally Melville. I never thought that technique would come in handy. I charged him what I had quoted, which probably added up to $1.50/hour. I am still waiting for the check — maybe it’s “in the mail.” ETA: he loved the results and paid me more than I had asked for!!
I vowed at that moment to never fix a sweater again. Done. Finito.
RE: Wendy made a very nice comment about the Beaded Mini-Purse and wanted to know if the pattern is available. It is my own design and I will post it as a free pattern at some point in the future. At the guild meeting last night, one of my former knitting students said she has made many of the bags and gives them as gifts. She took one to South Africa as a shower gift and another to Argentina! People have gone absolutely crazy for them. Go figure!
