I like the notion of, “if you can’t see it from a galloping horse, leave it.” I’ve always thought this to be a funny quote and though I usually fix a mistake if it bothers me, I have left a few. And I stopped pointing out my knitting mistakes unless I’m in a conversation with another knitter who might know a fix.
The metric of "visible from a galloping horse" is a little too lenient for my taste, particularly since I'd be likely to have my eyes squeezed closed while hanging on for dear life. But good for you that you've found a level of comfort with some imperfections in your knitting.
I would never point out mistakes, but I am very guilty of pointing out my own when someone compliments something I have made.
Why are we so hard on ourselves?
I am at the advanced beginner stage, completely self-taught using books and YouTube videos, and making many mistakes. I have learned so much about knitting and mistakes:
1) Wine and knitting do not go together.
2) Don't knit when I am tired.
3) Do a practice swatch of a challenging stitch (looking at you Brioche)
4) Check each completed row before moving forward (I hope someday to eliminate this.)
5) Train those around me with a hand signal to not talk while I am counting.
It's great to get a the perspective of a relative beginner! Sometimes those of us who've been knitting for many years forget that our wine-drinking, chatty ways may not be conducive to other people's productivity.
Leonard Cohen sang: "There's a crack in everything. That's how the light gets in". Mistakes are part of the signature of hand-made items, and as such show our creativity! I did not notice your missed row, and surely would not take it out.. But since Mercury is indeed retrograde now ( Nov 9-29) this just made me laugh at the synchronicity. Your cowl is lovely!
I try to resist the urge to point out my own mistakes to people, but it's hard sometimes! And I struggle to tolerate mistakes. When I was a "younger" knitter, I was very relaxed about it, but unfortunately, the more experience I have, the less grace I give myself. I've been known to drop down and fix a cable 5 crosses down, then knit the cable back up, which is a lot of trouble. I don't know if I would cut off a section to fix an error & graft, like Andrea Doig, though. That might be a bridge too far for me! ;)
I've been known to do major sweater surgery if it's a glaring error, but not for something small and unobtrusive. And isn't allowing yourself more grace a perogative of growing older? I urge you to be gentle with yourself.
Love how both the cowl and the holiday sweater are coming along! No worries about the skipped row. None! The pattern covers it's absence to all but the Knitting Police! :-) I like your Emily Post style of accepting compliments of almost any kind, with a simple thank you and pleasure. This pointing out of mistakes seems to be a female thing. I don't see men coming out and pointing to a spot they missed when mowing the lawn!! :-) So let's get over ourselves and learn to move on. Life is short. Let's make the most of it!!!.. Think about great paintings, do we go over every inch and look for flaws! Hell no!!! Now, I will admit to giving gift items a higher standard and try to keep that in mind while knitting said item. Still, I am mindful of how most non-knitters will not even see the missed row in your cowl as an example, without it being pointed out to them, and even then would not be concerned about it in anyway! Learning to be as kind to ourselves and we are with others ... comes with age, if we are lucky!!! Thanks for the Paul Simon link!!! He certainly is a keeper!!
If I notice an error like that so far along that I don't want to rip it out I try to turn it into a design element. Then it's not a mistake anymore. In this case I would leave out the knit row on the opposite side of the next matching pattern section. I really hate my mistakes but I don't point them out.
Unless it is a very glaring mistake, I usually like to leave it in. I think irregularities are fundamentally a testimony of our humanity. Your cowl is beautiful!
It was so nice to hear I wasn’t the only one leaving a stitch or two mistake. I’ve only been knitting for nine years and lack confidence. I recently chose to leave the goof on a scarf (not a gift) because that area will be tucked under my hair. Important article to read! Thanks!
I’m one of those knitters that has to point out their mistakes, I’m not sure why I feel the need to do that, but I pledge not to do it anymore. In fact I just finished a vest which I wore to work and received lots of compliments and I didn’t point out any of my mistakes… progress 😊
If it bothers me I fix it. If it doesn’t, I don’t. I have been known to rip back many rows, but there is a time and place for that. I certainly don’t point out flaws to anyone, most won’t notice! @Jayna used that fun phrase…”if you can’t see it from a galloping horse…” 😁 I about fell of my chair laughing the first time I heard that! It certainly makes its point.
I'm an imperfect perfectionist. If I make a mistake, I feel compelled to fix it, even if it means frogging and starting over. I feel compelled but I don't always follow through. The first thing I consider is whether the knitted item is a gift. If it is, then I'll get a layperson's opinion on whether they can spot the boo-boo. If they can't, then I swallow my desire for perfection and continue knitting. If it's only takes them a second to find it, then I have to consider whether it's a BIG boo-boo ... like a visually disturbing mistake or one that I can claim (lie) is part of the pattern ;-)
When the item is for me or I haven't decided whether to give it away, I'm more lenient. Yet, it can be a learning experience to frog and start over. It just depends on so many factors, time being a big one. Your reasons for not frogging the cowl are excellent. A point my husband often makes is that a boo-boo also makes the knitted item unique and thus more precious.
I often remind myself of an experience I had a few decades ago: I had stopped by the apartment of a coworker, a woman probably ten or more years younger than me. She knew I was a knitter so she showed me a sweater her mother had knitted for her. She pointed out the large holes in the armpits of the sweater, probably made when the sleeves were joined to the sweater body, and complained that her mother hadn't cared enough to close up those holes. I responded that at least her mother cared enough to knit her a sweater. But that experience has stayed with me and is probably one reason why I feel anxious about mistakes when I knit gifts.
My heart breaks for the mother of your co-worker, who spent money and time knitting a sweater for her daughter which was not only unappreciated, but displayed as an example of her mother's lack of care. What a sad story.
I teach a lot of people to knit and "coach" a lot of people who are very good knitters. We have the mistake discussion often. My oft-repeated comments are: "Your standards are your own" and "No one will see that mistake unless you are sitting in front of me in church and it's a REALLY BORING sermon and I start to count the stitches in the back of your sweater." I have knitted hundreds of garments. I can count the ABSOLUTELY PERFECT ones on one, maybe two, hands. We are not machines, we are humans. For many of us, the joy is in the process, not in the pursuit of perfection.
I like the notion of, “if you can’t see it from a galloping horse, leave it.” I’ve always thought this to be a funny quote and though I usually fix a mistake if it bothers me, I have left a few. And I stopped pointing out my knitting mistakes unless I’m in a conversation with another knitter who might know a fix.
The metric of "visible from a galloping horse" is a little too lenient for my taste, particularly since I'd be likely to have my eyes squeezed closed while hanging on for dear life. But good for you that you've found a level of comfort with some imperfections in your knitting.
I always say "from a prancing pony"!
My grandmother said "a dark night on a galloping horse"
Now I’m picturing you on a prancing pony 😉
I would never point out mistakes, but I am very guilty of pointing out my own when someone compliments something I have made.
Why are we so hard on ourselves?
I am at the advanced beginner stage, completely self-taught using books and YouTube videos, and making many mistakes. I have learned so much about knitting and mistakes:
1) Wine and knitting do not go together.
2) Don't knit when I am tired.
3) Do a practice swatch of a challenging stitch (looking at you Brioche)
4) Check each completed row before moving forward (I hope someday to eliminate this.)
5) Train those around me with a hand signal to not talk while I am counting.
6) My local knitting group is too chatty for me.
Thank you for sharing your perspective!
It's great to get a the perspective of a relative beginner! Sometimes those of us who've been knitting for many years forget that our wine-drinking, chatty ways may not be conducive to other people's productivity.
A hand-knitted project is unique, if it has a mistake in it then it’s beyond unique.
Well said. Thank you!
Leonard Cohen sang: "There's a crack in everything. That's how the light gets in". Mistakes are part of the signature of hand-made items, and as such show our creativity! I did not notice your missed row, and surely would not take it out.. But since Mercury is indeed retrograde now ( Nov 9-29) this just made me laugh at the synchronicity. Your cowl is lovely!
I love that Cohen quote. Thanks for sharing it, and for your kindness.
But I'd frankly rather not know about Mercury in retrograde—it can seem like a self-fulfilling prophecy.
I try to resist the urge to point out my own mistakes to people, but it's hard sometimes! And I struggle to tolerate mistakes. When I was a "younger" knitter, I was very relaxed about it, but unfortunately, the more experience I have, the less grace I give myself. I've been known to drop down and fix a cable 5 crosses down, then knit the cable back up, which is a lot of trouble. I don't know if I would cut off a section to fix an error & graft, like Andrea Doig, though. That might be a bridge too far for me! ;)
I've been known to do major sweater surgery if it's a glaring error, but not for something small and unobtrusive. And isn't allowing yourself more grace a perogative of growing older? I urge you to be gentle with yourself.
No pressure, no diamonds.
I'm just kidding. You're right, of course, but its hard for me to ease up on myself.
Shine on, Kathleen!
Love how both the cowl and the holiday sweater are coming along! No worries about the skipped row. None! The pattern covers it's absence to all but the Knitting Police! :-) I like your Emily Post style of accepting compliments of almost any kind, with a simple thank you and pleasure. This pointing out of mistakes seems to be a female thing. I don't see men coming out and pointing to a spot they missed when mowing the lawn!! :-) So let's get over ourselves and learn to move on. Life is short. Let's make the most of it!!!.. Think about great paintings, do we go over every inch and look for flaws! Hell no!!! Now, I will admit to giving gift items a higher standard and try to keep that in mind while knitting said item. Still, I am mindful of how most non-knitters will not even see the missed row in your cowl as an example, without it being pointed out to them, and even then would not be concerned about it in anyway! Learning to be as kind to ourselves and we are with others ... comes with age, if we are lucky!!! Thanks for the Paul Simon link!!! He certainly is a keeper!!
Enjoy the Paul Simon film!
If I notice an error like that so far along that I don't want to rip it out I try to turn it into a design element. Then it's not a mistake anymore. In this case I would leave out the knit row on the opposite side of the next matching pattern section. I really hate my mistakes but I don't point them out.
Mirroring the error to make it a design element is a good idea.
I agree with you on your cowl, no one will notice!
Unless it is a very glaring mistake, I usually like to leave it in. I think irregularities are fundamentally a testimony of our humanity. Your cowl is beautiful!
I love that view of irregularity! And thank you for your kind words.
It was so nice to hear I wasn’t the only one leaving a stitch or two mistake. I’ve only been knitting for nine years and lack confidence. I recently chose to leave the goof on a scarf (not a gift) because that area will be tucked under my hair. Important article to read! Thanks!
Let your nine years of experience give you confidence! And good for you for giving yourself permission to ignore the goof.
I’m one of those knitters that has to point out their mistakes, I’m not sure why I feel the need to do that, but I pledge not to do it anymore. In fact I just finished a vest which I wore to work and received lots of compliments and I didn’t point out any of my mistakes… progress 😊
Congratulations on wearing your vest proudly. 🌟you get a gold star for not pointing out your (surely insignificant) mistakes.
I think it’s beautiful…and makes me think of Brenee Brown’s The Gifts of Imperfection. We cannot wait to see it finished! It really is lovely!
Working with your yarn is always a delight 🩷
That makes my heart smile…💕
If it bothers me I fix it. If it doesn’t, I don’t. I have been known to rip back many rows, but there is a time and place for that. I certainly don’t point out flaws to anyone, most won’t notice! @Jayna used that fun phrase…”if you can’t see it from a galloping horse…” 😁 I about fell of my chair laughing the first time I heard that! It certainly makes its point.
Most of my knitting mistakes, as long as they are not too glaring, become “design features”.
Good for you. I like your relaxed approach.
I'm an imperfect perfectionist. If I make a mistake, I feel compelled to fix it, even if it means frogging and starting over. I feel compelled but I don't always follow through. The first thing I consider is whether the knitted item is a gift. If it is, then I'll get a layperson's opinion on whether they can spot the boo-boo. If they can't, then I swallow my desire for perfection and continue knitting. If it's only takes them a second to find it, then I have to consider whether it's a BIG boo-boo ... like a visually disturbing mistake or one that I can claim (lie) is part of the pattern ;-)
When the item is for me or I haven't decided whether to give it away, I'm more lenient. Yet, it can be a learning experience to frog and start over. It just depends on so many factors, time being a big one. Your reasons for not frogging the cowl are excellent. A point my husband often makes is that a boo-boo also makes the knitted item unique and thus more precious.
I often remind myself of an experience I had a few decades ago: I had stopped by the apartment of a coworker, a woman probably ten or more years younger than me. She knew I was a knitter so she showed me a sweater her mother had knitted for her. She pointed out the large holes in the armpits of the sweater, probably made when the sleeves were joined to the sweater body, and complained that her mother hadn't cared enough to close up those holes. I responded that at least her mother cared enough to knit her a sweater. But that experience has stayed with me and is probably one reason why I feel anxious about mistakes when I knit gifts.
My heart breaks for the mother of your co-worker, who spent money and time knitting a sweater for her daughter which was not only unappreciated, but displayed as an example of her mother's lack of care. What a sad story.
I teach a lot of people to knit and "coach" a lot of people who are very good knitters. We have the mistake discussion often. My oft-repeated comments are: "Your standards are your own" and "No one will see that mistake unless you are sitting in front of me in church and it's a REALLY BORING sermon and I start to count the stitches in the back of your sweater." I have knitted hundreds of garments. I can count the ABSOLUTELY PERFECT ones on one, maybe two, hands. We are not machines, we are humans. For many of us, the joy is in the process, not in the pursuit of perfection.
Ok, now I'm laughing at the mental picture of you sitting in church counting the stitches on the back of the sweater in the pew in front of you!
Thanks so much for sharing your experience and encouragement.