should i rip out my knitting or not?

Question

its my very first non-scarf knitting and im almost done but i made a fatal error :( :(.... i dont know whether to rip it or not!! ripping it is going to break my heart but i think there's no other way!! and if i rip the yarn out and knit it again wont the yarn be ruined and messy??

Answer 1

Last question first: The condition of the yarn after frogging/tinking/unkintting/ripping out will depend on the yarn, how textured it is, how delicate it is, and so on. Most yarns can be ripped out and reused with no ill effects, but not all. And you didn't mention what yarn you're using.



First question: It's hard to say whether or not to rip out or how much to rip out without knowing (1) what pattern you're knitting (2) where the error is or (3) what the error is. It's possible that you can repair the error without ripping it out.



If, for example, you dropped a stitch in stockinette, you can just ladder the stitch up to your last row worked. That stitch will be tight, but eventually the fabric will absorb the stitch without it being noticeable. If you made an error in an intricate cable pattern or lace pattern, you may not be able to make an invisible repair.



However, you may not need to rip and reknit the entire project. I have taken a free needle and, in a row below the error, picked up every stitch, from right to left, to provide a "stop" for the rip-out process. Then I ripped out just the rows that include the error. When doing that picking up, I like to use a circular needle so it doesn't matter if I selected a right-side or wrong-side row, I can begin reknitting at either end of the needle. Then identify where you are in the pattern and start from that point (rather than ripping it all out and starting over).



If you do decide to rip out, remember--you're in good company. Every knitter rips out sooner or later, some of us more often than others, even when we're experienced (ask me how I know that).



Addendum: Zoomy appears to be a heavy bulky-weight smooth yarn. It should do well if you rip it and re-knit the pattern. Advice on rewinding the yarn after ripping: If you have a ball winder, use it. Otherwise, wrap loosely over four fingers about 10 turns. Rotate 90° and wrap loosely about 20 turns, keeping the fingers of the hand holding the ball between the ball and the yarn to keep it loose. You want to be careful NOT to put tension on the yarn as you wind it. Continue until all the yarn is wound. Here's a YouTube video on how to wind a center-pull ball: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nx8kfwPCnJM .

Answer 2

If you decide you really do need to frog it (rip it, rip it) make a ball of your yarn as you go. Don't wind it too tight, but make it just tight enough to stay put. Before doing that, however, make good notes!!! Measure it, see what didbn't work, and figure out how to fix it when you re-knit it.



Do you need to change the needle size? If so, knit a small swatch with your Zoomy yarn and the new needles. See if it measures up to what's on the wrapper. Threw the wrapper away already? If so, go to www.coatsandclark.com (they make all the Red Heart yarns) and use the in-site search box to look up the gauge on Zommy yarn.



Do you need to practice your tension first? If so, use scrap yarn.



Do you need to count better next time? If so, write notes as you go to keep your count even.



Most Red Heart yarns can be frogged once, some even twice, with no ill effect. When you knit it, the kinks and wiggles won't show. Trust me. I've frogged almost as much as I've knit!

Answer 3

Honestly, there is no point in keeping it when it is not right. I know you put a lot of work into it, but you need to be sure you are doing it correct as you go along. If you did your gauge swatch, and you have the correct tension, and have not lost or added stitches, then it is all correct. If you make a mistake, correct it immediately... it is not going to fix itself!!



But part of learning is that we need to rip out a few things. No one ever makes it perfectly from the start to the end.



If you are using quality yarn, it won't hurt it to rip out many times. I've never used RH (it's awful ackRlic) so can't tell you how it would hold up. Seems it's plastic, so nothing will hurt it.. except heat.



If it's wrong... then why keep it? Rip it out, and start over. That's all you can do. And get some good quality yarn as well.

Answer 4

Rip it out and start over. The yarn will have kinks and curls from being knitted but it won't affect it's use again. Actually I ripped apart a sweater some 10 yrs ago and wound it into several balls of yarn and it still shows the kinks from it's original shape but I know from doing the same to many other knitted items that when I knit it up again the kinks will disappear.

Answer 5

Rip it out and start over. The yarn won't be ruined. In the old

days they did it all the time after wearing it for years and

made something else of it. Being out of proportion and the

dimensions all wrong are you relaxing and just knitting.

Be consistent with your stitches. Loosen up and relax when

you knit. One min. you are tight with the stitches and the

next you are loose. Ripping out the stitches and doing it

over a few times will give you practise and that sounds like

all you need. Try not to take too long to go back to working

on it. Sometimes when you put a project down and don't

pick it up for awhile will make your stitches different also.

Keep working on it.

Answer 6

It sounds like you didn't knit to gauge and, sorry to say, you should pay the price and rip it out and start over. Let me make a suggestion, if this is a sweater, start over with a sleeve and use that as your gauge swatch. You can safely change needle sizes within the sleeve and not have it matter much.



As for the yarn, wind it into hanks, tie these in quadrants with some string and put them in a sink of warm water for a little bit. Then put them into a lingerie bag and spin the water out in the washer's last spin cycle. Then hang them to dry. Yes, you'll have to rewind them and reknit your piece but that's part of knitting.

Answer 7

No, I have never knitted anything out of steel wool. I think the most interesting thing I ever knitted was when I lived in San Fran. I had a neighbor that showed me a picture of a penis warmer and asked if I could do it. I decided to give him props and make it at least six inches, and tried to just increase for the rest of the package to what I thought was normal. And I made a cute little drawstring to keep it tightened up. I asked him not to model it for me. He was very happy with it.

Answer 8

If you can find a way to fix it, go for it. If you cannot, rip it. Ripping it isn't that bad. It feels bad the first time (especially on a non-scarf project) but in time you learn from it, honestly you do. I have ripped quite a few things and as I took it apart I figured out where my mistake was and kept a watchful eye out the next time. Everyone has to rip at some point,so don't feel bad.

Answer 9

DONT DO IT..

i worked hard on my first one that i thought looked sloppy, and i had to start over