I am trying to make a diamond-shaped lace pattern for a sweater, and I am following the directions verbatim and counting each stitch as I go along. Yet, my laces are not lined up and I’m running out of stitches! Wity YO’s and everything!
Does this sound like a typical beginner error or am I really screwing up here?
Thanks!
A typical beginner error is in how they do YOs. Many do a wrap and knit a stitch for the YO, when it’s just the wrap around the needle adding a stitch, not using up one in the process. That causes you to run out of stitches at the end of the row.
I don’t know if you do this but…
One thing that helped me A LOT, in lace patterns, was to use stitch markers so you don’t have to recount all your stitches if you loose your place in the pattern. Also… IF you DO make a mistake the stitch markers will help you to find them. If you know that each repeat of the pattern will give you 8 stitches and you have one section (between the stitch markers) that has 7 stitches and another has 8 then you know the error is in the section with 7 stitches (cause your missing a st).
Example, showing how to place the stitch markers (so you don’t have to recount). Below is a lace pattern that repeats 3 times
Row 1: K1, K2tog, YO, K2 add stitch marker
K1, K2tog, YO, K2 add stitch marker
K1, [B]K2tog[/B], YO, K2
If you loose your place at the [B]K2tog[/B] you don’t have to count from the beginning of the row you only have to count from the last stitch marker. Before I did this I drove myself crazy constantly counting 50 or 60 stitches. Especially if you have a pattern that repeats - 10 times.