Share those little project vents (grr!)

[luckygrrl]

(Hope this is in the right place!)

 

Okay, c'mon, I know you have them. Those little things that drive you absolutely batty when you're working on a project. The teeny, tiny little things that get under your skin.

 

Here's mine for right now: why is it that whenever I pick up my seamstress measuring tape, I always, always, ALWAYS pick it up from the wrong end, instead of the end that starts with 1 inch? I go to try and measure something and EVERY time, I'm looking at 57", 58", 59", 60" instead of 1", 2", 3", 4". It takes all of one second to switch the tape around, but why oh WHY can't I pick it up right the first time for ONCE?!!

 

 

So, what are your little vents? It feels better to just let it out, especially when it's something so little and stupid.

[RachelG]

Finding the beads in my chair that eluded me while stringing them after I've put the container of beads away.

 

Noticing I'm like just a couple of inches of thread short of finishing.

 

But generally, everything turns out okay in the end.

[caseysmom57]

While working on an afghan and noticing that I have missed a stitch or have gone in between the ply and having a thread sticking out 5 or whatever rows before. Urgghhhh! I HATE to frog!

[shelain22]

I am testing a pattern for a scarf right now, I am not really a beginner, I guess I would call myselfe an advanced beginner, and eventhough the pattern is very well writen, I just cant it to come out right!!! Soooo frustrateing!~

[donnalynn2]

When using a "Pull Skein" I hate it when everything is going along great and all of a sudden the yarn gets caught. You look and as you tug a little more, this big huge knot of yarn comes out of the middle of the skein and before you can move on you have to sit there and unravel it! HELLO? I'm using a center pull skein! If I'm pulling from the center it shouldn't be coming out in knots!

 

Drives me batty!

 

Oh and even though I have like a zillion pair of scissors, when I need them I can NEVER find them!!!

[yarncat]

Knots in my yarn:angry .

[Qmare]

Finding the beads in my chair that eluded me while stringing them after I've put the container of beads away.

 

Noticing I'm like just a couple of inches of thread short of finishing.

 

But generally, everything turns out okay in the end.

 

Two of my pet peeves as well and I agree, it all does work itself out!

[Lucki721]

I was thinking along the same lines as Donna, about pull skeins. A lot of yarn I work with is in a skein, but it's not a pull skein. So, I have to work from the outside in. I haven't figured out how to fix that problem, I don't want to wind it in a ball (I wind them too tight) and I do not have a winder. Any suggestions?

[bythehook]

I have a suggestion for winding a ball that makes a great center pull. I use my empty pill bottle. I put 1 end of the yarn inside the pill bottle and put the lid back on it, then I wind the yarn around the middle of the pill bottle until I get a large "hump", then I start winding it in a diagonal fasion, moving the pill bottle around so the yarn is winding evenly. I'm careful not to cover the lid, but it's OK to cover the bottom of the bottle. When I finish winding I pull the bottle out from the top, remove the lid and WALLAH! a center pull ball.

I was thinking along the same lines as Donna, about pull skeins. A lot of yarn I work with is in a skein, but it's not a pull skein. So, I have to work from the outside in. I haven't figured out how to fix that problem, I don't want to wind it in a ball (I wind them too tight) and I do not have a winder. Any suggestions?

[luckygrrl]

I have a suggestion for winding a ball that makes a great center pull. I use my empty pill bottle. I put 1 end of the yarn inside the pill bottle and put the lid back on it, then I wind the yarn around the middle of the pill bottle until I get a large "hump", then I start winding it in a diagonal fasion, moving the pill bottle around so the yarn is winding evenly. I'm careful not to cover the lid, but it's OK to cover the bottom of the bottle. When I finish winding I pull the bottle out from the top, remove the lid and WALLAH! a center pull ball.

 

HOLY COW! (Where's a cow emoticon when I need it? lol) I had no idea you could make a pull ball of yarn. That's fantastic!

 

(p.s. Dot-- off topic but I just make the connection yesterday between your username here and your site. Your shawl pattern was the very first thing I ever attempted that wasn't simple sc or dc, and was one of the inspirations to get me to venture out to more complicated projects. )

[Lucki721]

Awesome tip, I will definitely put that to use with my next skein!! Now I do not have to get an expensive winder.

[goldi316]

If you don't happen to have any pill bottles, you can always use a tp roll. Just make a slit along one edge of it and slip your yarn end into the slit to hold it in place, then wind away on the roll. You can even leave the yarn on the tp roll until you're ready to use it (recommended, to keep it tidy). No doubt, these supplies will be plentiful in most households!

[goldi316]

Awesome tip, I will definitely put that to use with my next skein!! Now I do not have to get an expensive winder.

 

I do have to say, though, that a ball winder is worth it's weight in gold! And with a good coupon (40 to 50% off), you can save a bundle on it. Your wound yarn will definitely come out much neater and more evenly wound. Not to mention that the winding process goes so much faster with it. What might take you (on average) a half hour to wind by hand will only be about 5 minutes - tops - with the winder!

[RachelG]

Knots in my yarn:angry .

 

 

Oh yeah, especially when you have beads and you have to restring them. Not fun. Especially when there are two knots in the same ball. It's a good thing I like FO's!

[luckygrrl]

Ugh, I already have another one to add.

 

Button holes. Not the holes themselves, adding the buttons and having them lined up perfectly. I just added all the buttons for the baby hoodie I just finished.... only to find out that I somehow lined them up all wrong! Had to take them all out. Grr.

[goldi316]

Project vents? Hmmm, almost too numerous to list!

 

Drives me nuts to reach the end of a long row of complex stitches only to find that I'd screwed up at that spot on the previous row, meaning two whole rows to frog!

 

I hate it when I have days where I feel like I have two hands consisting of ten thumbs - no matter how hard I try, I cannot make ONE stitch without a struggle. Makes me feel like a retard when that happens, stupid stupid stuff.

 

Losing my stitch in the middle of completing it and having it immediately unravel itself so that I have to start it all over again (happens far too often!).

 

Having the back of my crochet hook dip itself into my project as I'm working, so that I have to stop and disengage it.

 

There's more - lots more! - if I care to think about it hard enough, but these will do for now.

[Chicki]

When following a pattern, especially for clothing my gauge is always, always, always off. Always.

 

Always.

 

I dont know what is wrong with my tension LOL

 

and its not always either too tight or too loose, its always different.

 

Very very frustrating, but its okay i guess. Have to start over almost every project, but at least by the time I am done (if I finish haha) I know that sucker back and forth, and the next time I do it, it goes pretty quickly.

 

Once I get the tension right that is.

 

~Chicki

[Tikki]

I use a travel toothbrush container to wind center-pull balls on. Its length makes a great handle to hold on to while winding and most of my hooks live inside the container too.

 

My frustration is in trying to write down the instructions of a hat I designed. It's a very simple pattern but I feel as if I'm overcomplicating the instructions. Then I try to rewite it but it still doesn't sound right. I should just take what I have and let some of you test it but being a perfectionist, I find myself hesitating. Argh!

 

I'm working on a 12" square for a comfortghan and it's just taking longer than I thought, what with finding the right pattern for it and the mistakes I've made. It's going to a good cause so I won't give up. I'm just feeling frustrated with it.

[mariyel]

Let's see. Knots in yarn, a pull skein that won't :grumpyand finding a mistake 6 rows later, yeeesh!

[fuzzy ferret]

When following a pattern, especially for clothing my gauge is always, always, always off. Always.

 

 

I'm so glad i'm not the only one that has this problem. I try different hooks, etc. and I still cant get the darn thing right. Would drive a person to drinking! *LOL*

 

Krystal

[bythehook]

Oh, that's so nice to hear. I'm glad I was able to help inspire you to try different projects. Thanks for sharing that with me.

(p.s. Dot-- off topic but I just make the connection yesterday between your username here and your site. Your shawl pattern was the very first thing I ever attempted that wasn't simple sc or dc, and was one of the inspirations to get me to venture out to more complicated projects. )

[kazily]

So many vents, so little time lol! Many of the things already mentioned are on my list incl...

 

having to hunt for my hook when it falls out of my project

 

Finding lots of knots in a brand new skein. I thought they were supposed to be full skeins not 4 or 5 pieces tied together.

 

A big one lately...making something original on the spur of the moment but not writing any pattern notes! When I start I don't "know" it is going to become anything lol!

[pinknightmare]

When using a "Pull Skein" I hate it when everything is going along great and all of a sudden the yarn gets caught. You look and as you tug a little more, this big huge knot of yarn comes out of the middle of the skein and before you can move on you have to sit there and unravel it! HELLO? I'm using a center pull skein! If I'm pulling from the center it shouldn't be coming out in knots!

i second that it just happened to me last night! so now of course i have to ball the darn thing up if i can get all of those knots out? is there a mean nasty,knot elf or what?

[Tracy1cg]

I do the same thing with picking up the tape at the wrong end!

 

I also have a habit of loosing my stitch markers in the sofa, never to return, or at least not for another two years. I have an awful lot of stitch markers, somewhere in this house.

 

Today I had to frog FOUR rows of the afghan I'm working on. Just when I was getting going I noticed I was missing a stitch, the problem went to four rows up and I hadn't noticed it until then! I probably could've just increased one and knowone else would've been able to tell, but it would have irked me.

[terrybb]

My pet peeve is when I'm sitting on the couch crocheting with my feet up on the coffee table and along comes my favorite cat who lays down on my legs and starts purring - I love a cat in my lap - but she only does this when I was already thinking it's time to get up to go to the bathroom. Now, if I do get up I'll disturb her and she probably won't come back and if I don't get up - well, eventually I'll have to get up.

 

terrybb