Friday, August 3, 2007

Gauge, again--a cautionary tale

Dear readers: here is a little summer interlude in the nature of a cautionary tale. TECH- knitting's summer break has allowed time to knit on a big project--a sweater. The body is made with a circular needle, but the arms with dpn's. I forgot, but now remember (the hard way!!) that gauge can change EVEN when you use the same size needles. Knitting with dpn's requires the gauge to be tight enough to prevent the needles falling out of the work, while knitting around with circulars does not present the same issue--you can knit a lot looser because the circular needles aren't going anywhere. Moral of the story: Check your gauge when you switch from one kind of needle to another, regardless of whether the two needles are the same size. That way, you can avoid being an idiot like me--who had to knit a three-armed sweater.

--TECHknitter