Learning

Tonight I learned a new, and very important, knitting stitch. I learned the "tink". To tink, you first need to know knit. From Answers.com:

knit (nĭt)

v., knit or knit·ted, knit·ting, knits.

v.tr.

1. To make (a fabric or garment) by intertwining yarn or thread in a series of connected loops either by hand, with knitting needles, or on a machine.
2. To form (yarn or thread) into fabric by intertwining.
3. To join closely; unite securely.
4. To draw (the brows) together in wrinkles; furrow.

v.intr.

1. To make a fabric or garment by knitting.
2. To become securely joined or mended together closely, as a fractured bone.
3. To come together in wrinkles or furrows, as the brows.

n.

1. A fabric or garment made by knitting.
2. The way in which a fabric has been knit: a loose knit.

Tink, however, is too technical for Answers.com, so I'll attempt to define it here:

tink (tĭngk)

v., tink or tinked, tink·ing, tinks.

v.tr.

1. To unmake (a fabric or garment) by untwining yarn or thread in a series of connected loops either by hand, with knitting needles, or on a machine.
2. To form (yarn or thread) from fabric by untwining.
3. To unjoin carefully; divide securely.
4. To draw (the brows) together in wrinkles; furrow.

v.intr.

1. To unmake a fabric or garment by knitting.
2. To become securely unjoined or unmended together closely, as a fractured bone.
3. To come together in wrinkles or furrows, as the brows.

n.

1. A fabric or garment unmade by tinking.
2. The way in which a fabric has been tinked: a loose tink.

Okay, that was silly. "Tink" is "knit" spelled backwards. And that's the exact process. You very carefully undo your stitches, one by one, in order to undo a mistake. I got to tink somewhere around 175 stitches. Whee. Luckily I was able to guess the method, because neither of my knitting books thought to include the instructions... probably too advanced for one, and too basic for the other. Or maybe they just assume we're perfect. (Yeah, right.)

My mistake wasn't anything that would cause structural failure of the garment... just extra texture. For some reason, probably because I was trying to knit quickly while watching TV, I switched knitting/purling halfway along a row. Actually, I think I started wrong, then at one stitch, noticed I was about to make a mistake, switched to the correct method, and didn't notice I had done a half row wrong. I finished that row (which looked normal from that point), continued with the next, noticed that I was (again) doing the wrong stitch, "corrected" myself, knit a bit further, and then realized the two most recent rows didn't match the rows underneath. I stretched my arms out, and discovered that, for half a row, I had decided to knit on the wild side. :P I might have left it if I knew the sweater would fit me... it would be an amusing bit of texture with a story. But the sweater may be too small for me, and I'm not sure how pleased my cousin would be with crappy knitting. So, I had to undo nearly two rows.

Very educational.

Why was I trying to knit quickly while watching TV? Well, I was supposed to do my Canadian taxes tonight, but I wanted to relax for a bit. I decided to let myself knit until 9:00. I also wanted to see how far a single ball of yarn would get me, because I'm a bit worried I won't have enough. See bookbookbook, page 12: "The chances of running out of yarn on a project are directly related to the difficulty that you will have getting more." Given that this yarn came from Scotland, as part of a kit, and the yarn has no ball bands, lot number, or even yarn name... you can see why I worry. So, since I was nearing the end of the ball, I wanted to see if I could finish the ball before 9:00.

I would have, had I not had to tink ~175 stitches.

I refused to put down my knitting until I had tinked and reknit those stitches. I have now finished the ball. It is now after 10. Have I done my taxes? No. Will I do them tonight? No. I'm going to bed at a reasonable time tonight. Taxes aren't due until the end of the month anyway. I wasn't going to mail them tomorrow... the post office lines will be dreadful. So, I have plenty of time before Monday to whip up my Canadian taxes. (Famous last words.)

I still intend to buy a new mattress this weekend: based on past years, I shouldn't owe any taxes in Canada. All of my income is in the US, which charges me more tax than Canada would. Plus, I bought a small RRSP to take care of the Canadian interest I earned. (Not necessarily the best financial choice, but at least I have more money locked away until retirement.)

As to the yarn question, I stitched 100 stitches for 23.5 cm. I'll estimate the yarn requirements for my Weasley tomorrow. I'm going to bed.