Katrina Rib: Nearly There

I am very close to being finished with the Katrina Rib but you don't get any pictures because I'm not that nice. I knit for longer than the pattern suggested because I wanted it to be nice and long, and finally reached a point where the travelling rib maintained the 3x3 pattern around the body (to get back to a 3x3 ribbing point again would require another 24 rows, which would be too long and use too much yarn!). I didn't want to transfer to a cable and back just to try it on, so I decided to chance it and just bind off. After investigating a few stretchy bind offs (because nothing is worse than a tight-waisted jumper) I settled on Elizabeth Zimmerman's sewn bind off. This took about an hour. I was not amused. However, after trying on the jumper I do think that it was worth it. Unfortunately, I also think I would have preferred another inch or two in length - but I am NOT going to undo the bind off, and anyway, that would leave me at a not-3x3-around point in the travelling rib.

Upon doing more research I discovered that this bind-off isn't suggested for ribbing on things like jumper necks because you only stretch them to put them on and once they are on they relax again, and the sewn bind off does not allow the ribbing to pull back in. I'll have to keep this in mind and find a different stretchy bind off for necks and armbands if necessary although in this case it worked well.

I found this article about stretchy bind offs and enjoyed it, so I may use this as a jumping off point in the future.

Last night, I was only able to go to my local knitting group for about 45 minutes, but it was long enough to finish one of the cap sleeves. Unfortunately, I didn't pay enough attention and have forgotten how many rows I ended up knitting (more than the two the pattern recommended). Again, I used the sewn bind off for extra stretch.

I estimate I will be finished with this in approximately one hour of additional work but that wasn't enough to convince me to pick up the needles and get going tonight! Oh, well.

I have three other projects awaiting beginning (one for which I suspect I will need to purchase needles, one which needs some pattern writing, and another which I am not allowing myself to start until I finish the Katrina Rib) and three other projects on the needles (one which I think I have messed up enough to warrant ripping, and the other two are socks which always take me ages!). That's kind of overkill, if you ask me. Working right next to a nice yarn shop does not help, either.