Starting again, and again, and again.

Yesterday, over lunch, I picked up the Clapotis scarf (such as it was) to try on the Addi circs and see if the knitting went any easier. Nope. I discovered a few things on the way.

1. Stitch markers made of rubber tend to hang up on the needles.

This pattern makes use of umpteen markers and, being made out of soft rubber, they do have a tendency to "stick" to the needles. The markers are larger than the needles, so it's by no means either an interference or even a close slip fit. (For a definition of mechanical fits, you can go here. Yes, this is my Engineering background coming through.) Basically, it's just friction doing it's humble job. What that translates to is me having to constantly push the yarn around on the needles, which, when using this non-stretchy cotton fiber, leads to inconsistent gauge. Uck.

2. The size 8 (5.0mm) needles are too big.

Originally written for a worsted weight fiber, the Posh is closer to a DK weight and I should have just gone down a couple sizes. Yes, I know, I should have swatched. Arguably, the TWO TIMES that I restarted this pattern counts as swatching. :-)

3. I need to pay closer attention.

On both starts, I ended up with the wrong number of stitches at the end of a row - specifically, one too many. In the increase section, you add a stitch at the end of each row, with the purl being the "evening-off" row. That means, you have an odd number at the end of a knit row and an even number at the end of a purl row. For whatever reason, I kept getting an even number at the end of a knit row as I was placing the next pair of markers. Crazy! I could have just worked past it (skip the kfb and just knit both) but that would have been wrong. I am sure I'm just not counting correctly. That's fixable.

4. Lace needles are likely better than standard Addis.

I've got a set of #6 lace needles on the way, so there's no reason why I can't just leave the ball of Posh where it is and wait for them to show up. That's why I'm back at zero on the Clapotis.

What that ALSO allows me to do is restart on my Grasshoppers! I'm going down a size and will likely use the new Addi lace needle on the instep to see if it makes a difference. That'll be a problem for the leg, but there it is. Mmm. Socks.