I started a tank, abandoning all other projects in progress. It was ill-advised and has caused a slight bit more trouble than it might be worth. The tank is a two-tone stripe-y kind of deal but the patterning is reversed from front to back. Cute, right? Totes. However, I wanted to make it in the Cascade Ultra Pima Cotton yarn I already have. Unfortunately, the quantities given told me I’d need more yardage of any given color I have.
I decided to add a third color stripe to make up the difference in yardage. My chosen colors were Teal, Cool Mint, and White. I really wanted to use the Teal and Mint but I only had one Teal whereas I had two of the others. Teal became the accent color that would get me through the end. I worked up the first panel and got half way through the second panel before I decided to experiment. I frogged the active panel and restarted using only the Teal and Cool Mint. If my calculations were right, I’d only need four skeins worth of yardage instead of five. I’d be able to save the White for another project and get away with using the Teal and Cool Mint to get this tank done. I’d have to buy one more skein of Teal to finish the tank but, I’d have to buy one more skein of yarn for the pattern reserved for the White, regardless, so I didn’t feel too bad about adding to my stash. Lots of frogging and math later, I discovered I was right. I scoured my favorite websites (and even gave it a week to see if quantities improved) until I found the right combination of available yarn that would require the least amount of additions to my stash.
What started as a quick side project turned into a perfectionist nightmare. However, during the time I was knitting and frogging, I put the finishing touches on the Katniss Vest. I still have a second sock to finish, a cowl to work, and some brain matter to sew on a hat, not to mention the new tank to finish and at least three other projects in my mind. This tank has been a little reminder that instant gratification isn’t always the way to go. It would have been better if I finished all my WIP’s first.
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