The Crappy Crafter

This is what I feel like lately.

I'm in a funk of sorts. Maybe because it's April. Maybe because it's Easter. Maybe because I really want to go swimming and it is still too cold to go. Maybe it's because the weather is changing and my knee hurts.

Nothing I'm doing is turning out and I'm in a funk.

The brown sweater still needs re-blocked from the disastrous blocking of 2009.

In addition to the other previously documented issues I stretched it within an inch of its life according to the schematic only to discover the schematic is WRONG and makes the sweater entirely too long. I'm so hoping I can scrunch it back up into cuteness again.

The striped sweater?

Remember when I said I thought the shoulder caps looks a little narrow?

They are.

I don't even know what to do. There are so many things I hate about this sweater I don't know where to begin. It really deserves its own FO report.

The whole affair is disheartening.

My White-for-the-moment raglan was cruising along until I hit the sleeves.



They actually look pretty cool in the picture. But in real life? Not so much. A little too long, and there's an obvious line where I switched needle size. I also don't think I needed to decrease the sleeve at all at the top. I need to rip and re-knit.

Disheartening.

I tried knitting a sock just to take a breather.

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Loving the pattern. It is described as knitting sorbet, palate cleansing. And it is. But I'm hating the way the yarn is knitting up. It looks better in the picture than it does in real life. And upon further reflection I've decided it doesn't look all that good in the picture. I will frog.

Disheartening.

So I turned from knitting to sewing. I finished sewing my prototype skirt according to the pattern directions, which included a machine sewn hem. I never sew machine sewn hems.

And now I remember why I never sew machine sewn hems. Why on earth did I do that. I know better. I KNOW hand sewn hems are easy and look so much better. Now I need to rip and re-sew or I will never wear it.

Disheartening.

So I turned to the smocking tutorial. Just a tiny scrap of fabric. The directions are flawless. An hour or so and I should have an easy win to cheer my mournful inner crafter.

Not so much. I think my upper threads are too loose and my bottom threads are too tight. This takes finesse and practice. Of course I didn't get it right on the first try. This was fine and I just need to fiddle with it some more. But I really needed an easy win not just a "fine".

I'm in a funk. Life is not particularly easy right now. Don't misunderstand me. I have a great life. Just some parts are hard right now. I really need my hobbies to be easy. I want to just follow a pattern someone else wrote, let someone else do the math, and have it come out beautiful. I need an easy win.

I know.

I'm being childish.

It's time to put my big girl panties on and fix all this.

Or maybe I'll cast on a hat. Surely I can still knit a hat right?