Mkazasquaw ([info]morgi) wrote,
@ 2008-05-01 06:07:00
Previous Entry  Add to memories!  Tell a Friend!  Next Entry
Current location:home
Current mood: confused
Current music:Charles in the kitchen
Entry tags:knitting

In purusit of gauge
So when I started the black and grey hat I did it on size 8 double-pointed needles, figuring gauge would be the same as on size 8 straight needles. (It wasn't.) When the hat started coming out obviously too small I cut it free from the skein and set it aside to finish later and then donate to charity or something.

I tried size 10 needles and the gauge came out too big. I tried size 9 needles... and the gauge was the same as size 10. I think. Black is apparently about the worst colour to use for a test swatch, because it's almost impossible to see the stitches, especially when you're holding a gauge measurer up to it.

I tried to find the original hat last night, to see what the actual gauge is (I never actually measured it), but I can't find it. I also can't find the needles it was on, though I did find the one stray one I thought I'd lost out of the set. It can't have gone too far--my current knitting stuff area is a cardboard box on a set of plastic drawers behind the couch. (I need to find something better one of these days.) I'm afraid Q*Bert may have dragged it off, but where to?

And I'm wondering... how big of a difference does one or two needle sizes make in the size of the finished piece? If I use the size 10 needles, will the hat come out humungo? How much smaller will it be on size 9?



(Post a new comment)


[info]madgraceflint
2008-05-02 03:38 am UTC (link)
My gauge is fairly unreliable-- same needles, same yarn, and I will often find myself with tightening and loosening in the same piece.

This is all to say that I don't really know. They say that knitting looser is easier on your hands though, so you might want to go with the smaller needles if it's a bit more comfortable.

Good luck!

(Reply to this)(Thread)


[info]morgi
2008-05-02 10:08 am UTC (link)
I knitted a little more on the test swatch yesterday and decided that the gauge was right, or as close as I was going to get.

I'm a crazy tight knitter--tension? what tension?

(Reply to this)(Parent)


Create an Account
Forgot your login?
Login w/ OpenID
English • Español • Deutsch • Русский…