grrrrr...

The yarn shop opened back up today.  Lucky for me, it is situated right next door to my bank, and I just so happened to need to make a bank run this afternoon.  After pouring over dozens of free on-line patterns, I had settled on a very simple hat pattern to get my feet wet on knitting in the round.  I popped in the shop prepared with my little list of supplies.  When I requested the yarn, the lady at the shop told me that the weight of yarn I chose is too heavy for the climate down here.  She scooted me off into the pattern room to pick out another pattern.  Okay.  After looking through everything, I settled on something that looked fairly easy and they happened to have the brand of yarn that the pattern called for.  Okay.  First warning sign - I hated the color.  I had no desire to make Ava a cotton candy pink hat, but I went along with it because this "new" pattern called for it.  Second warning sign - the pattern did not call for circular needles.  The lady assured me this was okay because I could knit it using two circular needles.  Hmm, I didn't quite understand this, but I was in a hurry, so I went along.  I made my purchase, spending way more than I intended, walking out of there with a pattern, yarn I didn't like, and 2 pairs of circular needles.

After inspecting the pattern, I realized that it called for another size needle other than the size I purchased.  Okay, so that's something else I'll need to get.  This is turning into a much more complicated project than I intended.

When I got home I googled using two circular needles because I couldn't wrap my brain around what the woman was talking about when she briefly explained it.  Okay, I think I got the gist of that, so then I decided to cast on.  Not only do I already hate the color or this yarn, but it feels horrible.  Does this not look like shredded up toilet paper on the needle?  How in the heck am I supposed to count stitches on this crap?  102 stitches at that!  This is not going well.  I need to go back to the beginning.  I should have held my ground on my original plan.  So what if the yarn is too heavy for this climate, I'm sure Ava won't keep it on her head anyway.  It looks like another trip to the yarn shop is in order.

Comments

[Mary-Heather]

OK... um, I hate to say it... but I don't think that is the best yarn for a beginner... and the clearest evidence of that is the title of this post. ;) You should only knit what you love... and I'm a little baffled as to why you need 2 circular needles (you can knit straight on just one pair; if the hat has a seam, I don't get why she sold you those).

As for the needle size, that depends on gauge... you may *always* need a different needle size than the pattern calls for... but at this point, the most important thing is for you to do what you like!!!

I say: set this yarn aside, and get yourself a nice soft wool or wool blend that you love - and that you can see! Make a basic hat using the technique you want to learn (circular knitting). You'll get something great!

[Sarah]

That sounds like some serious yarn store bullying! So not cool. Knitting is no fun if you don't like the yarn and/or pattern.

[rohanknitter]

Bummer!
It doesn't look like a good yarn for a beginner. (plus you don't like the color!) Personally I don't enjoy yarns like this. And if you don't like the yarn, the project isn't likely to get worked on! What kind of yarn did she tell you not to use?

[kathryn]

Ha! Shredded t.p.--exactly!

If it's a synthetic type of chenille, it doesn't feel all that great while knitting with it either. Kinda "squeaky"!

Go with what you love! I think you had the right idea to begin with. Maybe there will be a different salesperson on duty next time who will listen to what you want!

[Sarah Jackson]

That's a bad yarn store experience. Do you have someone local who is a knitter who can go with you to the yarn store who can tell the employees to leave you alone?

If you tell me what colors you like, I'll send the yarn I promised you. :)

[lla]

Hmmm - given our earlier "discussion" I almost hate to tell you this... I actually love Sirdar yarn. (that is the "snowflake", irght???) It is one of the only novelty yarns that I like to work with. And it washes well...

That having been said - I still say if you want to go back and return the whole shebang, I totally think you're entitled. The more I read about your trip to LYS, the more I think you got really crappy service/advice/etc.

[Danielle]

Gah! This is the only yarn I've ever thrown out, I think. I knit a kids scarf and hat with it, and it was really cute, but I couldn't stand working with it, so I got rid of what i had left.

[stacy]

dude...are you speaking in Arabic?

I am so not a knitter. :)

[kat]

Oh that totally stinks! boo hoo.
I hope the woman is there tomorrow so you can tell her how unhappy you are with the choices she railroaded you into! Not only did she waste your money, but more importantly... your time!

[Amy]

I can only echoed what the others have said. That clerk ought to be put in time out! Such bad advice. I hope this doesn't put you off knitting forever. I don't think a particular weight of yarn is necessarily inappropriate for your climate. You could buy cotton or some other nice breath-able fiber in a variety of weights and be just fine, I think :)

[Greta Adams]

i am probably the only one who like the color because i love pink and i don't discriminate on shades of it either :)

i know absolutely nothing about knitting so i can't help

[Barbara C.]

I'm sorry,
Barbara

[Amanda]

Fight the cotton candy pink yarn! Don't do it! :)

[lera]

Shredded up toilet paper? HA!!

I wish I could offer you some advice, but sadly, I have none to give. I can wish you good luck, though.

[Keri]

It kinda looks like cotton candy. And yeah, that yarn store lady should be shot! First of all, knitting in the round and knitting on two circulars is not really the same thing. AND she let you walk out of there with the wrong size needles?! Totally unprofessional. Hope she wasn't the owner! Sorry you got bad advice!

[Jade]

I'm not a knitter, but agree with you on the colour. Pink is not my thing to make for kiddos, when there is so much pink that you can buy cheap....if you're ever in need of pink, of course.

[Robyn]

Um, well. Ava will probably look nice in cotton candy? :0) Go back, exchange it or at least return the circular needle you don't need. Get a yarn you want. You can use a yarn that is different than the one called for in the pattern. You'll just have to do a gauge swatch to see how many stitches you'll need to match the original gauge. If you can't return the yarn, stuff it away in the back of your stash somewhere and maybe one day you'll think of a way to use it (that's what I do).

[Steph]

Two words: bail out. If it's that confusing before you even start knitting it then it's only going to get worse and put you off something you enjoy. I didn't sew a bag for 18 months because of the same sort of thing.

[homejewel]

I have that yarn. I love how soft it is, but it's a pain to work with because you can't really see the defined stitches. And heaven forbid you drop a stitch!

Hope you find a more suitable yarn.

[linda]

Have you ever tried knitpicks.com? Nice, cheap yarn, and online so I don't worry about someone following me and telling me what to do. My lqs carries yarn as well, but I don't mind buying from them because they don't follow me around either. Sorry about your frustrating experience. I would feel the same way.

[erin s]

Oh dear, how frustrating Beki. Stick to your guns and knit what you like, not what some bossy knit shop lady tells you to knit!

I have to confess...I do love the colour!

[sarah]

Hi, how wrong was she to sell you that wool, its no good for a beginer at knitting, you cant see your stitches and if you drop one youve had it and pulling it down, well it just gets tangled, i'd take it back to her and tell her you want to exchange it.But .... i do love PINK lol.
Sarah x

[Brigitta]

poor lass, that is not yarn for beginners, I would love it though haha, love the colour, love the structure, now why can't I find pink candyfloss over here???!!!! ;-) Put it aside girl and get something you want to work with. take care

[Debhogan]

As you've probably guessed by now that yarn is very difficult to use because you can't see your stitches.

Knitting with two circulars is pretty easy.

I find Sirdar patterns difficult to follow, even for a hat.

Debbie Bliss makes some great pattern books for little ones and for all levels of knitting. You can even pick those up at your book store. You may want to think about using a wool/cotton blend for the warmer climates.

Good luck - I think you'll enjoy the knitting. I spent yesterday afternoon knitting in the DMV waiting room while waiting for the Boy Child to get his license. . . . (UGH, not the knitting, the licensed TEEN BOY driver -- I don't know if it will be the insurance rates that do me in or the worry of another teen on the road.)

Good luck with the knitting.

[nicolette]

I bought the same yarn because I was supposed to use it for some pattern. I hated every inch I knitted. The lady in your yarn shop was too eager to sell, but if you aren’t happy with what you bought you won’t go back.
In my yarn shop you can exchange what you didn’t use within 8 days, so maybe you should go back and tell her you don‘t like it and take some time to look around and choose what you like. Yarn must feel fine in your hands, just like fabrics do. I hope you will enjoy knitting with plain needles and some wonderful yarn!

[Vmjess]

I am not a knitter but have to pop in and say I totally thought that was a big pile of cotton candy on the picture! I think you should take it all back and go back to your plan "A"!

[Lauren]

That stinks. She should have just helped you figure out a way to make what you wanted to do work. And definitely not work you over to get you to buy a whole new pattern etc. I hate that. On the pictures the yarn looks cute but definitely not beginner friendly.

[Sharon M.]

I can sympathize with you! I signed up for knitting lessons and the teacher "tried" to teach me to knit using size 6 straights and that beastly cotton chenille yarn, which looks exactly like the pink stuff in your picture!!! I left after a 90 minute lesson wanting to scream--totally discouraged and thinking I was a complete idiot!!! She was horrible and I never went back for the second lesson. My friend found a lovely lady the next week at a LYS who taught us both to knit--I was knitting in five minutes--I had a huge bag knit and felted in two weeks!! It was so great! I agree with the earlier post about knitpicks.com and I thought knittinghelp.com might help you, too. They have videos you can watch and listen to right online to teach, help and refresh your memory. Happy knitting--don't give up! :)

[Claire (not Bahrain)]

Beki... what have you done? If I were you I would take that whole lot back and don't go when you are in a rush. I never took to knitting and this yarn is probably a good reason why. Even though I do sympathise with you.

[Euphoria]

Poor you, it sounds like a mess from the begining!

I do think it's a super cute hat

[Melissa]

That would annoy me to no end! I hate it when people don't listen to me and try to get me to do things their way.
I don't knit so I have no advice, but I must say that that I think that soft pink looks great on infants, but isn't Ava older?

[Anina]

Oh no! That's really no fun. I've done the same thing in the past, so don't feel too bad. Maybe you could knit a little scarf out of the pink...
Go back to the store and get what you originally wanted.

[heidi]

thank you very much. this is why i don't knit. my brain simply doesn't work that way.

[Chara Michele]

Oh my that is frustrating!

Do yarn stores do returns? Could you return what you bought and buy what you originally wanted? I dislike pushy people trying to convince me of something I don't want... Good for you though trying to learn how to knit in the round! I still haven't figured it out:)

[amandajean]

oh, yeah, you really gotta go with your gut instinct on things like that...but it is sooooo hard to when a "professional" is telling you otherwise.

[Tinkerblue]

I can't knit, but I don't like the look of the yarn. I agree with you it looks like shredded toilet paper. Take it back!

[erin]

i feel your pain....

you could knit her a hat in cotton...that would surely be fine for louisiana. good luck!

[Michelle]

Another voice here saying return it all (or at least exchange it all). You need to like the yarn.

I'd also recommend something nice and smooth (whether it is worsted weight or DK weight) so you can see your stitches. My favorite way to knit-in-the-round on hats is with a 16 inch circular needle (switching to dpns when you must).

And while I love the Debbie Bliss designs for kids and babies, I've not heard great things about her patterns. Let me know if you want more info on knitting in the round or a hat recipe that doesn't involve a pattern at all.