I'm Going to Knit This, But ...

My sister used to tease me, because I would point to a picture or pattern, and then say, “I’m going to knit this! But …” Then I’d rattle off all the changes I was considering.

Different yarn in a different weight. Lengthen the body. Lose the tabs. Make the sleeves wider and shorter (or tighter and longer). Add pockets. Alter the collar. Change the primary or accent stitch. Use a different type of rib pattern. Work toward the general shape and style, but knit it sideways or in one piece or …

Well, you get the picture.

In the era known as pre-Ravelry and pre-internet (PRAPI), “mod” meant funky 1970s fashion, “FO” meant nothing, and “UFO” signaled an alien invasion, sci fi film – or both.

WIP is an oldie-but-goody; it’s always meant “work in progress.” However, only engineers and geeky types like me used it, until the interwebs caught on and changed the world.

What’s my point? Oh, yes. None of the knitters I knew (and there were only a few), looked at a pattern and said, “What if? What if I change this? What if I alter that? What if I add X or take away Y? What then?”

Today, in no small part due to the wonderful knitting bloggers and the miracle known as Ravelry, I now realize I’m not (and have never been) alone. All over the world, many knitters have always looked at patterns – in books, magazines, yarn stores and online – and said in a hundred different languages:

“I’m going to knit this! But … “