It happened again this week. I’ve been working on a cardigan for a few weeks, the Radvent Cardigan, and the pattern includes a new technique to me: the Turkish cast on. The designer, Ambah O’Brien, did a lovely thing by including a link to a tutorial right in the pattern. Right where you need to do the cast on to go from the sleeves to the body.

[Quick sidenote: I love it when designers include links to tutorials! Whether these are tutorials they made themselves or these are links to other makers or designers’ tutorials. It is fantastic. And such a help and service to your knitters. Thank you!]

The link was in the pattern and the tutorial was very clear. All good things.

But where did it go wrong for me? The first time I actually tried this new technique was when it came up in my pattern. I didn’t try it in advance, I didn’t practise it in a swatch or with some leftover yarn. Nope, right there and then. I just went for it. It’s what I do every time there is something new to me in a pattern.

And I have no excuse. I knew this technique was coming up and knew that I didn’t know how to do this cast on. I had read the pattern from start to finish before I started knitting my cardigan. So I knew. No surprises there.

But still, I did not practise it beforehand. So when it was time to do this Turkish cast on in my project, I finally clicked on the link and read the tutorial (yes, that’s right—not only did I not practise this technique, but I also hadn’t even looked at the tutorial yet!) and tried it straight away in my more-than-halfway-done project.

Did I do it incorrectly the first time? Yes. Did I do it incorrectly the second time I tried and had to tink 134 stitches? Well, yes, I did. Did I do it right the third time? Yes.

I got it done. But it took me longer because I did it wrong the first two times and actually knitted 134 stitches before realizing I did it incorrectly that second time. So I had to tink a bit. . . And though it worked out the third time, my tension isn’t great. You can see it in the middle of my project in the picture below—as well as an unimpressed puppy.

It looks okay though. And I’m sure it will “block out.” And if it doesn’t, I know I’d be the only one to notice it. (Just don’t look too closely if you see me wearing it!)

So all in all, I’m not too fussed about it. But I can’t believe that I did it again. Just dived into a new technique in the middle of a project before practising it first. It’s strange to me because I am not like that in other things in my life. If anything, I tend to overprepare. But with knitting, I just dive right in.

And will I do the exact same thing in the next pattern that has a new technique? Well, yes. If I haven’t learned to practise new techniques beforehand in the ten years I’ve been knitting, it’s highly unlikely that I will change my way. . . Even if it might mess up weeks of knitting!

Ah, the joys of learning new things!

Pattern: Radvent Cardigan by Ambah O’Brien

Yarn: Myrtle Yarn’s 2023 Coastal Yarn Advent.

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