now what?

Once again, it is the month of March.

For a select few of us there is March Sweater Madness. Started by Michelle of the SweetSheep Shop, this is my third year. Barbara is also playing (you need to see the sweater she started during the Olympics).

I started out with a bang on Drops 120-45, a lovely garter stitch cardigan calling for Fabel. According to the instructions, I would need 400 gm of yarn. Since I had a bag (10 balls=500gm) of sock yarn bought on sale I figured I was all set.

Never mind that I had a bit of problems with reading the instructions so that my first attempt got me here –

single increase on the end.....

Somehow I can’t figure out why it took me a full ball of yarn to realize why my knitting did not look like the Garn Studio picture. Perhaps I was out to lunch or engaging in wishful thinking.

Starting again,

double increase gets you a corner...

I finished the left front – including the lower back extension.

Forging ahead, I knit the right front and started on the lower back extension. Grabbing for a new ball of yarn…

Hummmm, why do I only have two balls of yarn left?

I counted ball bands. Yes, I had eight in the bag, proving that I had lost neither my mind nor yarn.

Admittedly, I have only six or so rows of garter left on the lower back so that should not take all that much. But that still leaves the complete upper back to knit. There is no way that two balls of yarn are going to be enough. The pattern said 400gm, which I have already used. I need another 100gm?

It is at this point I figure that something is not exactly straight up. I am using 3.00 needles and getting gauge just like I am supposed to. The fabric feels a bit dense, but I like the drape.

Just in case wastage is more than I thought, digging through the bottom of the yarn bag I can account for about another 10 grams of yarn. You know – that yarn cut from the beginning of the ball so that the pattern matches up? Doesn’t come anywhere near solving my problem.

What else? Reviewing the bidding
1) needles – 3.00 – check
2) yarn – 400 gm, I have 500 gm – check.
3) gauge – check

Drops patterns call for Fabel, I have substituted Fortisima Colori, also a sock yarn. Looking at the ball bands – it mentions gauge of 22/10 cm on 3-4mm needles.

Huh? That does not sound right. That would make it 6 ply, not 4 ply. I would not have done something that stupid, would I? Substituted yarn of 125m/50 gm for yarn of 210m/50gm in a pattern then expected 1250 meters to cover the same amount of area as 1640?

Yes. That is exactly what has happened. Close out yarn – no way am I going to be able to get more of the same dyelot, especially since I would need 4-5 more balls.

Now what?