I have been fighting with my firestarter.
It's been calling my name for quite some time and I have cast on (and frogged) more times than I can remember.
I started with this yarn - and got so confused with the cable directions. I asked the wonderful Designer and she helped me a lot - but for some reason the mental blank stayed. I now think it was the length of the arrows leading up into the next box that was confusing me. I mean, I watched you all from afar - posting your progress - and kept thinking that if I had tackled the Bayerische Sock then cables shouldn't confuse me so much.
I think that written instructions really helped click it in but my confusion came from which direction the stitches ended up. I don't even know if this makes sense to you at all.
So - after swapping yarns again I am taking a little break for a couple of days....then I will pick it up again.
But I will still be checking in on you'all.
8 comments:
so the cable chart threw me for a loop (no pun intended) when i started on this as well. here is what helped me the most: the cabling action happens on the row the arrows are coming out from (i.e. the tail on the arrow touches the row where the action happens) and the row where the action happens ends up looking like the row pictured above. so if you have an arrow coming out of a block and going to the right, it is a stitch that travels to the right above a purl stitch. if you have two arrows coming out of a block crossing, that is a cable with the arrow on top being the stitch that stays on top. if that doesn't help, the youtube videos listed in the pattern are great as well.
I'm no stranger to cable patterns, but a total stranger to the charting Yarnissima uses.
I made a bunch of gaffes until I got it down. Don't give up.
agree, the chart is difficult to follow and I do not like the toe start. however, don't let the pattern beat you. I am about 4 pattern repeats into the first sock. It is as lovely as the pattern looks and once you do it a couple time, seems to be not too difficult. Unless, of course, I am doing it all wrong....
the charting she uses is the same as the ones in the book: Überlieferte Strickmuster aus dem Steirischen Ennstal by Maria Erlbacher, it is a series of three books on traditional german travelling stitch and cable patterns. i don't know if the charting notation is from Erlbacher or is traditional.
If you are on Ravelry, you could probably find the Firestarter thread on one of the forums where a knitter (tanasay) wrote out the cable cross portions of the chart out line by line. That may help you.
If you're not on Ravelry, let me know and I'll ask Tan if I can share her info with you.
The cabling chart was foriegn (pun intended) to me too - I am used to different symbols - but once I got it, I was like "I coulda had a V-8" - made sense! So keep at it!:)
Thanks all - I think I started that Ravelry thread through sheer desperation - and as mentioned got a great long-hand version written out which really made sense...but it was the end stitches that confused me.
I'm glad to read all these comments. I've been feeling really inept. I've knit a lot of cables and socks! But these are killing me. I feet like throwing in the towel(actually, throwing my my needles)! I have been so fustrated. I will try the Ravelry thread. I may switch yarns too. I'm using a really nice Indie yarn by Neighborhood Knits. But maybe Wollmeise will help?
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