Until last night, all the cables (& four sets of needles) from my interchangeable needle set were in use and/or just chillin' in my project bags. So, last night I put away the needles I used in my socks & the vest. Why? Because I started the edging on the vest and I needed a size 5 circular. So far so good. After I finished edging the first armhole, I had a "d'oh" moment and realized that I was supposed to use a needle two sizes smaller for the edging and that I hadn't used the bigger needle size recommended in the pattern. "Oh well, it looks fine."
Brain taking a minute to process... "wait, did I go a size up or a size down? I can't remember." I open up the needle case and see I had put away size 6 needle tips. Cool, went a size down. Then I felt a sick feeling: something was wrong. I pulled out my needle sizer and yes indeed, I had two sets of size seven needle tips and no size six tips. It's all coming back to me: when I broke my needle/cable last month I just glanced at the pattern, saw the size seven recommended needle size and ordered sevens. FRACK!! This explains why my gauge was much larger than the swatch I made for the vest. I just assumed that I counted the swatch stitches wrong because I'm challenged that way and forged ahead. Why didn't I take time to think it through!!! LAME!!
So, now I have to place another order with Boye to replace the needle tips that were actually broken and I'm pretty pissed at myself for being so absent minded. But, on the upside, while all my cables were out in projects this past month I had been thinking that when I placed my first order I should have ordered some extra cables for when I'm rocking multiple projects. So, I supposed it's not a huge tragedy that I have to place another order, since I probably would have done so eventually anyway. But still, I'm pissed.
Also, this explains why when I swatched my sassy stripes sock my gauge was a little tight on the fives but huge on the "sixes" (which were actually sevens). Which is why I went with the fives but went a size up, which is partly why the sock is too big.
I'm telling you people, I have the worst knitting luck known to man.Labels: Back to School Vest, Boye needles, From Hell, Sassy Stripes Socks