Project #2 is Underway

So, I started my second project this morning. This time, I have an actual pattern (ooooh!) and I'm using circular size 11 needles and dark green Cascade Eco Wool yarn. The pattern is for a shrug/vest and it called for Baby Alpaca yarn, but at $15 - $20 a skein, that was waaay over my budget. The Eco Wool came in a huge 478-yard skein, which will most likely be enough to finish the whole project, and it only cost me $17, as opposed to 4 Baby Alpaca skeins at $60-$80. I love the dark, forest green of the Eco Wool, though.

Casting on 120 stitches, compared to the 24 I had to do for the scarf, was an adventure, to say the least. My instructor gave me stitch markers to place after every 20 stitches, but I'm so obsessive/compulsive about counting that I felt I needed them after every five! I made some mistakes on my first cast-on, so I had to rip out a bunch of them and re-do them. This happened several (I'm fuzzy on the exact number) times and it seemed to take an eternity to cast on. It got to the point where I was asking my instructor to inspect every 5 or 10 stitches so I wouldn't have to rip too many out. The knitting table at the shop was very busy today and lots of conversation going on, so I had to really tune out the distractions and pay careful attention to what I was doing.

Once my cast-on was complete and passed inspection, I could start knitting my first row. The pattern tells me to knit 2 and purl 2 until I reach 7 1/2 inches. Then the real fun begins. After I knit those first 7 1/2 inches, I decrease to 60 stitches by knitting 2 stitches together and then purling 2 stitches together for 16 inches. After that--well, I'll talk about that when I get there.

Compared to my scarf, which had 24 stitches per row, it takes a hell of a lot longer to finish a row of 120 stitches. The circular needles give me a lot more room for finished stitches on a row and ones that still need to be done. This project will be a challenge, but it will be a lot of fun. The ladies at Needles in the Haymarket are very supportive and want to help their customers succeed in their projects. I've made friends with some of my fellow knitters who come to the shop to knit and socialize. It's like the shop has a built-in knitting/crocheting circle.