Need advice on tracking Aran afghan pattern

#1

Hello again to all the Knitting Queens (or Kings or various other royalty) on this fabulous site. I’m coming to you for advice on well…I guess on remembering a pattern.

I’m knitting this afghan for my mom. This is my first major project, everyting else has been hats, mittens and scarves.

So…I’m sure there’s an easier way to remember what I’m doing on each row instead of the obsessive compulsive way that I’m notching hash marks and reading each row a million times. I’m on my fifth repeat of the cabel panel right now and it’s just slow going cuz there’s not really a method to my madness that’s helping me recognize when I’m supposed to cable which way where and blah blah blah…

Anybody have any tips or tried and true methods? Is it easier to follow a chart and if so, got a site that will help me convert it? I appreciate any tips!

#2

I use a post it note to help me keep track. I think that I recall others using a metal back and a long magnet or something, I am sure someone else knows what I am talking about, that or I am going crazy :thinking:

hth :XX:

#3

I’m doing an aran and I changed the panel directions to a chart because I just couldn’t stand it. I have a computer program that I have to put each stitch on the chart, but the end result was worth it.

Jan shared this with me, but it didn’t recognize some of the crosses so I used my software instead. It might be worth a try.

For the cable part, I just write a list of rows, 1-8 in my case, and circle where I have to cable. I’m at the point when I know I have to cable on row 5, but when the twists are 8 rows apart, I have trouble telling when to do them, too. I mark off each row as I do it, and use a post-it note for the chart.

Worse case, you can chart on graph paper, which I’ve done. It can be tedious, but well worth it in the end. You don’t even have to use symbols–just k, p, cable f, b, you know–whatever makes sense to you. If the back is just knit the knits, etc, you don’t even have to include the even numbers on the chart