I promised myself I wouldn't post anything more to any Sock Wars boards because they were beginning to make me (more) crazy. I can, however, release my frustration here.
rant on
Gauge: To knit the socks for the war, you need string and pointy sticks that will get the specified gauge. That's it! It doesn't freaking matter what size needles the partially knit socks you receive are knit on. Each knitter is obligated by the war rules to knit to gauge. You put their work on the needles you used to get gauge and away you go. You don't NEED their needle size. You don't NEED to swatch with their yarn. Who cares if they knit them both at once???
*Swatch in the round with the yarn you've chosen. If you don't get gauge, repeat from * with different needles until you do. The End.
Pattern: To knit the pattern for the war, you're obligated to follow the pattern AS WRITTEN. The stuff about embellishments means you can add beads or intarsia in a message in a contrasting color. It does NOT mean you knit toe up if the pattern is written as cuff down. It does NOT mean you can get all cutesy and use your own personal heel technique. The point is that everybody does the same pattern the same way. If you are afraid that the pattern will use a technique you don't know, go learn it. Sheesh.
rant off
6 comments:
Hi Paula - I read your blog on my bloglines and always enjoy what you have to say. And I'm glad you are ranting - I honestly did knit the last pair of socks with the needles I used to get gauge and the second sock was an INCH SHORTER than the other one. I wanted her to have socks that matched and I had to CHANGE THE NEEDLE SIZE TO DO IT. What else could I have done? I was happily knitting away and dang if I had the same number of 4 row repeats and it was still shorter. Really, if you have some hint for me, I would appreciate it; I really am trying to learn all I can about the craft and any ideas I glean from others are welcome. You can respond to me on Ravelry - mamasockster so we can take the discussion offline. BTW, I agree with ALL of your comments. Thanks!
Hi Leann, check Ravelry for what little I had to add to what you said.
There is one thing that I didn't take into account while ranting. As the Yarn Harlot has said, swatches lie. Even so, if someone swatches, the difference between their gauge and yours is not a whole inch of pattern.
i thought i was the only one getting annoyed. I'm trying to stay away from the boards on ravelry b/c it's pissing me off!
rant away!
LOL Allena, you sound just like me. I think I'm going to set an example for those squirrels and shut up and knit. I reserve the right to come here and rant, however.
Oh no! I got fed up after the first sock wars and never signed up again...I knit my first pair of sock wars socks really quick and sent them, and then never got sent back my target's pair. Not to mention I never got a pair of finished socks.
To add insult to injury, my target said she didn't like the socks I'd made her! Grrr.
Did you have better experiences with the last couple sock wars?
Shauna, I know you weren't alone with your frustration with the first war. I mean, they had something like 800 people in that one and only 160 or so in the second.
The second one was better, but still had troubles like yours. My recipient didn't like his socks AND his displeasure with them was part of the Wall Street Journal article about the wars. I'm between jobs and was unwilling to spend the money (and time) to replace the soft pink yarn I'd chosen for HIS socks.
This one should be okay (fingers crossed). New rules have been added to keep the war going. If you send socks and your target doesn't send them on, they've got three days to report in. If they don't, they get kicked out. If the socks meant for you don't show up for some reason, there's a bunch of people who've volunteered to knit replacements. At the very least, everybody should have a pair of socks.
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