Testing.......and oooopsing.

I volunteered to test a crochet pattern.  I'm not going to post much about it until the testing period is over, this is just the beginning of my process.  The first version of the pattern was HORRIBLE (I wondered if the designer had posted an incomplete draft) and there is a newer version that still has some issues but seems to work.

At first, I thought I'd made a cardigan in green with some matching buttons, because I am just working from stash this year.  I didn't plan to keep it, but would donate to the orphanage or another cause.  Then I realized I didn't have enough yardage, and in rummaging found a hank of Cherry Tree Hill yarn that coordinated well.  Since the dyer has retired, I didn't want to donate something with CTH yarn in it!

 

I got gauge in both directions, with a hook just one size smaller than the designer used.

Then I realized I have a non-cardigan version of the pattern, and I have more than enough pullover styles.  Also, because I overheat easily, I prefer wool sweaters to be cardigans.  This would definitely be something to donate.  So it was back to stash-diving.

 

The Peer Gynt was given to me by somebody when I worked at Lands' End.  She knew I did charity knitting and crocheting and wanted me to use it for a good cause.  This would be a perfect purpose - but it wasn't quite enough yardage.  Further stash-diving turned up a lone hank of Donegal Tweed.

Once again, gauge achieved with a hook one size smaller.  Same hook.

But when I went button-hunting, I wasn't quite happy with options for six buttons that coordinated.  I found a set of five, though that I like and don't like.  Translation:  I think they are really cool, but I don't want to wear them.  Perfect, again, for donating, right?  But since they are black and white, I thought I should swap out the accent colour:

And yet..........

Then I noticed the pattern sample sweater had only three buttons with a henley style front.  I have three buttons that would work for such a thing, but not with black or purple.  Really, I wanted either light grey or beige or more cream as the accent, to do something more simple, because some of the orphans want plainer sweaters.

One final dive, and I found a single hank in the yarns that I keep for dyeing purposes:

While I made these changes, I was chugging along because clearly the Peer Gynt was the main colour and anything else just accent stripes.  In the beginning, even with the improved pattern, I struggled.  I asked if there were further changes and the designer kindly asked what specifically was the issue.  Meanwhile, I decided to frog and restart.  And as I did, I discovered the issue:

Yep, user error.  Apparently I'd skipped a stitch, which of course kept throwing off subsequent rows.  I'm now back on track (and told the designer I managed to solve it) and hopefully the rest will go smoothly.  I've gotten the rhythm of the pattern and am rather enjoying it.

In other news, I finished the Patons Lace scarf, so that's another UFO completed.  That makes an even dozen items (counting pairs of mittens as a single item) that I have finished this year, so far.