When Less is More ....

If you've looked at the pattern for Squeeze Me you'll see that each section has a DECREASE by Knitting 2 stitches together to make a single stitch.  BUT, did you know that there are several options for Decreasing and that there are reasons and choices for considering them?

HELP!

in the early days of knitting i learned to decrease out of necessity - - i simply had too many stitches at the end of the row, and rather than rip them out i just decided it would be better to knit 2 together and eventually get back to my initial stitch count.  Pure genius on my part - - or atleast so i thought!  But over the course of time i've discovered positive and legitimate reasons and examples of decreases as part of the design process ... decreases that compliment and mirror one another, decreases that are functional AND decorative at the same time!   Who Knew?

The K2tog direction is probably the most common option to consider when decreasing stitches .. and depending on where it occurs, the yarn you are using and the frequency with which it is called into play, it will serve the purpose of combining stitches in a most average sort of way.  HOWever, have you ever looked at a sweater with raglan sleeves set in - - you know, the ones that have sleeves that look like a sweatshirt rather than a dress coat?  Or what about a V-neck cardigan or sweater?  Clearly each side of the neckline is loosing stitches and yet the knitting seems to lay consistently and complimentary to the slant of the line.

Knit 2 Together (k2tog)

Once again, call out your good friend the K2tog and use That decrease for anything that requires a RIGHT slant.  [This is the point at which you grab your knitting, cast on 10 stitches and work in stockinette for a couple of inches and then TRY this out to see what i'm talking about!]  Now, do you see it?  By inserting your left needle into TWO stitches and knitting/treating them as you normally would a single stitch, the 2nd stitch is actually the one that shows or is distinguishable and is leaning towards the Right! 

slipping KNITwise

But now you have to think about the other sleeve, the other side of the neckline .. or even the other side of the heel of a sock.  Meet the Twin:  SSK.   If you'll slip the next 2 stitches on your left needle individually to the right as though you were going to knit them you will find yourself ready to create the slant.    It's important to slip them KNITwise soe that they will lay smoothly when this is all said and done.  Knitwise would also indicate that your yarn stays in back and well as the needle motion being 'front to back'. 

Left needle is inserted
into both stitches

Once slipped, insert your LEFT needle into the FRONT of the 2 slipped stitches.  You'll notice that your right needle tip is sticking out the back of these 2 stitches and is just waiting for you to knit them together.  See it?  And once you've complete the step, you'll see that these 2 stitches are now leaning to the LEFT.  You can breathe easier now because your neckline won't be wonky, your sleeves will feel MUCH more comfortable because they are set in equally and your socks will no longer look like spirals or tube socks, but have simple little heels that just  hug your feet and remind you all day long that you followed the instructions and that it actually worked!  

i LOVE to learn new things, especially when i can see how it works - - how it affects things - - just exactly how, when and where it is applicable and/or justifiable for me to go to the trouble of learning AND remembering it!  Decreasing my stitch count seems easy enough to understand .... however, transferring that thought process over to myself personally is a bit harder to swallow!  Based on the size of my clothes lately i most definitely need to be applying the "Less is More" option to my diet and food choices!  Not much fun, but seems like my wallet already knows the less is more theme and new larger clothes would only eat into my yarn budget, so ... diet/decrease here i come!  How can i apply that same mindset to my spiritual walk and inventory as well?  Less of Me?

In order to achieve less of me it would mean allowing More of Him!  and just what exactly would happen if i acquiesed to such an idea? Perhaps my Decreasing would be mirrored by His Increasing Presence in my every day, in my every step, in my every stitch.  Perhaps my decreasing would allow Him to minister in and through me to others . . perhaps my decrease would be just the thing He's been waiting for so that He can spend time with me and i can actually sit STILL and know that He is God .. to HEAR His voice and be fully aware of His heartbeat as His love grows within me and Increases and blossoms and blooms and soon becomes evident to others that i belong to Him.

John 15:4-5 reminds me  "Remain in Me, and I will remain in you.  No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine.  Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in Me.  I am the vine, you are the branches.  If a man remains in Me and I in him, he will bear much fruit;  apart from Me you can do nothing."

I guess you could say that a good decrease is like a clinging vine . . you can't really tell where it stops and starts but the blending process leaves a beautiful and fragrant finished product, well thought out, skillfully executed and pleasing to the eye .... and the heart of the Lord!

you say poTAYdo, i say poTOTo .....

have you ever been told that "you're not doing it the right way" when it comes to how you knit?  perhaps you hold the yarn in your Left hand and you 'pick' the yarn as you knit, thus making you  a Continental knitter versus someone who holds the yarn in their right hand and 'throws' the yarn, which is indicative of an English knitter.  Both have their merits and clearly personal preferences exist everywhere, but the bottom line is that it boils down to what feel right for you and achieves a uniform stitch.



There are multiple ways to increase your stitch count while your knitting ... there is the option to Make 1 by knitting into the front AND the back of the same stitch, or you can simply us a backward loop to add a stitch (which is good for buttonhole rows).  you can pick up the loop on the row below to add an additional stitch or even use the horizontal bar between stitches as the base for creating another stitch.  Each has their own merits and each has it's own pitfalls as far as degree of difficulty or the "hole" that may be left when it's all said and done.  Decreases - well there's more than one way to accomplish those as well.  Life isn't always a Knit 2 together scenario!   (who knew!)    you may find that a SSK - slip, slip, knit - will provide a more appropriate and discreet slant in  your knitting....  so many choices, so many options .... and all are "right" at certain times and places!

i have learned that there are very few absolutes when it comes to knitting other than making sure the stitch is correctly and consistently situated on the needle.  other than that, it really does come down to what feel right to you ... what will result in you calling your knitting adventure 'FUN' and not frustrating!  there really are a growing number of things in life now that provide an incredible range of interpretation, whether it be styles of knitting or styles of fashion, menus of food or playlists of music, choices for television viewing or volumes of reading .... and yet, there is one thing that i have learned is non-negotiable: The Love of God! 

"I (Jesus) have loved you with an everlasting love; 
  I (Jesus) have drawn you with loving kindness."  
[not really seeing any 'variation' options in His promise as He stated here in Jeremiah 31:3]

In Your unfailing love You will lead the people You have redeemed.
In Your strength You will guide them to Your holy dwelling.
[from those early days in Exodus until this very morning, His love continues to lead me .. i am one of His redeemed; one of His children who He guides/knits and calls to Himself].

Hebrews 13: 8 states it perfectly:  Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever! 
not really any room for interpretation ... now .. is there?

It doesn't matter to Him which style i choose when i knit as long as i know that i know that i know that I am His child ... a child of the King.  Loved and adored despite my past.  Period. The End!

"overlooking" doesn't make it go away . . . .

Somewhere along my journey it was shared with me that small 'holes' in my project were simply Amish in nature.  When asked what that meant, it was explained that the Amish culture requires them to leave an imperfection or two in any project they are working on - - a quilt, a garment that is sewn, a sampler that it stitched, etc. - -  because only God is perfect and therefore their work shouldn't compete with Him. And perhaps that philosphy may work on a swatch or in the WAY early stages of learning to knit but ... i have found that when i try  to make a mistake 'be okay' by ignoring it, rather than returning to correct  it ... i worry about it ... and i go back and look at it every couple of rows, like i think it may mysteriously melt into the symmetry of the rest of the knitting.

Result?  there's STILL a hole in row 14 of my scarf despite the fact that it is now 6 foot in length.  And somehow that hole now seems to be 5" in diameter .... and 3 rows tall ..... in fact, it's now screaming "hey look everyone!  she can't even knit a row without making a mess of things!" ..... despite my valiant attempts to play it off as a way to 'loop the scarf through and hold it in place' (albeit an awkward placement!) ... there is just NO JUSTIFICATION for an obvious mistake that i should have gone back and corrected before trying to "Hope it would go away" by just conveniently overlooking it!  ... "oops!" is really not a good word in knitting circles, i'm just saying ......

i could try and pick up the stitch, row by row, for all 16 feet of the scarf (which is exactly what it will seem like once it's all said and done!) ... or i could FROG it! ..... you know ... Rip it!  Rip it!  Rip it!   down past where the original stitch was dropped and relax and enjoy the knitting process again! Bottom line:  paying attention and double checking much more periodically makes for a much happier knitter when it's all said and done .... there's NOTHING WRONG with ripping out and starting over, if need be .... mutliple times even! .... and the freedom that comes from ripping back - - maintaining a closer perspective as you are knitting ... sure makes the end of the project a better reflection of the time that you spent.

in fact ....walking with the Lord, each and every day, is much like that knitting process!  there are always messes that i make of things when i fail to acknowledge His leadership and pattern design for my day ... for my hour ... for my every step!  and at the end of the day i could approach Him and simply say "ooops!" but i don't think He's much on my Amish approach to daily living and blatant, obvious holes i may leave ....  when i maintain a closer fellowship and communication with Him, which may even mean Ripping Things Back to clean up the mess i've made, or to learn a lesson from a specific incident or individual, or simply and continually consulting Him on how to Handle a situation BEFORE messing it up - - i.e., which 'decrease' would be best suited for this opportunity, or would He choose a different 'stitch' at this juncture that would highlight Him better at the end of the day .... Because of His faithfulness, He has demonstrated, time and again, that I can trust Him ... He can (and does) read the pattern that He has selected for me ....

  "Therefore we do not lose heart ..... For our light and momentary troubles

are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all.

So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. 

For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal!"

Rom. 4:16-18

  "A man's steps are directed by the Lord."

Prov. 20:24

 "Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; 

in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will direct your path."

Prov. 3:5-6

He doesn't try to overlook the messes i make or try to justify the imperfections i leave behind ... He has ordered my days .... His atonement for my sin Requires me ... NO, it COMPELS me to check with Him as i'm knitting each step ... so when it's all said and done i will hear Him say ... Well done, my child!