Times I wished I said "NO FREAKING WAY"

I love being able to create. When I used to crochet, bags were my all time favourite thing to make. Now that I knit, hats are my obsession. I love almost every hat I see. I truly enjoy the process of making hats. Sure some take a bit longer than others but for the most part I rarely ever mind. I've been asked a few times whether or not I don't become bored with making hats....the answer:- HA nooooo. Do you get bored eating your favourite dish? Or wearing your favourite outfit? Exactly! That's how I feel about my hats. But every now and then someone asks me to step out my comfort zone and make them a scarf. Sighs...you probably already guess where this is going. I don't enjoy it.
A few months ago (feels more like a lifetime), I was commissioned to make a hat and scarf for a very nice woman. How could I say no? I happily agreed and settled on a colour that I knew she would like. I had no trouble selecting a pattern for the hat and in no time it was finished.




Unfortunately, the same did not happen with the scarf. Everything that could go wrong went wrong with it. The ball of yarn used for the hat was perfect but for the scarf the worsted weight felt more like either sport or DK. This would added a few more weeks of torture. The yarn wasn't complementing the pattern. I knew I had to change something. The only logical thing to do was to change the pattern to fit the yarn. So I did. Still couldn't get past a few rounds of knitting. I would be lying if I said I wasn't fed up with the whole thing. I even tried returning the money for the scarf. Ms. M wouldn't dream of accepting it. Instead, she said "you can do it"... Not the words I want to hear. Especially when I was thinking "I DON'T WANT TO DO THIS ANYMORE". I even found myself trying to come up with a list of people who I could ask to knit it for me. Hey, I was desperate. After, another few weeks or months had passed, I felt I needed to create my own pattern. I ended up working the yarn doubled to compensate for the thinness of it. It worked. Doubling the yarn meant that the amount purchased wouldn't be enough. Sighs again. By this time, I hated everything about the scarf, the colour, the yarn, the scarf, my needles...even the project bag it was kept in. I was over it. Way over it. Every night I begrudgingly knitted a row that took forever. Almost five hundred stitches every night. Fast forward a few nights ago....




I FINISHED IT. I finally finished it. After almost three months of ripping out and starting over I finished it. This is why I love knitting. Because despite the frustrations and setbacks and torture we sometimes put ourselves through, we stick with it because deep down we know the challenge will be worth it in the end. Giving up is not option even when it's the only thing that makes sense. This was my "make it work" moment. (I love Tim Gunn and Project Runway)



The moral of the story:- stick to what you love or be prepared for bumpy ride over the hill :)