My Brand Of Crazy

 It was beautiful...but it just wasn't right.

 

You may remember that I started this beaded shawl several months ago, only to discover that I would most likely only be using about half of the skein of yarn.  This was a problem.  I loved the yarn, and wanted to use as much of it as I could.  However, I also loved the way it looked as I was knitting it, and I wasn't sure if I wanted to use bigger needles or not.  There was also the fact that I like my lace pieces to be as big as possible...I find them more wearable when they are bigger.

What to do....what to do....

 I finally decided. 

I had to take it apart and start over.

It can be tedious work, and it's work that tends to shock and horrify my non-knitting friends and family.  They think I'm nuts, and often can't imagine tearing apart something that was so lovingly created.  They think of the time and skill already invested, and they hate to think of that wasted.

But I was brought up in the 4-H tradition of doing something to the best of your ability, up to and including redoing it as often as it takes until each and every problem is fixed.  It's never wasted time if you learn something, and the trick is to remember that every mistake can be an opportunity to learn something new.

Even if that lesson is as simple as 'I used the wrong sized needle for this one.'

 

 I spent some time yesterday morning undoing all of my work, carefully picking out the beads and rewinding the yarn. 

 

My intention is to keep them paired up...I do love this color combination, and the yarn is special enough that it deserves to be matched with beads in order to make an heirloom quality piece.  I may or may not stick with the same pattern...I haven't decided that yet.

 

The important thing is that now I have the opportunity to start over and make it right.