if at first you don't succeed...

Last Friday I finished knitting my first ever jumper.

It was rubbish.

So rubbish that, thanks to some encouragement from my mum and nan, I (along with their help) unravelled the entire thing on Sunday.

So what was the problem?

It was gigantic.

Not kinda baggy. Not over-sized and snuggly. Just massive. Suitable for two if that's your kind of thing.

Yes, before you say it, this entire mess could've been avoided VERY early on but I, being the novice that I am, blindly followed the pattern thinking that it might just be a little big. I couldn't have been more wrong. I also nearly made a second stupid mistake: to leave it as it was. Having finally completed the monstrous jumper I genuinely entertained the idea of keeping it as a 'something-to-wear-around-the-house' garment. Unravelling the whole bloody thing (which took me about a month to make) was unthinkable. Thankfully my mum and nan persuaded me otherwise and I'm so glad they did because I really love the wool and I want to make a jumper that I want to wear.

Here's the ludicrous thing in case you're curious:

So my first experience of knitting an item of clothing has not been successful BUT I've learnt a lot from it: always check your tension, DO NOT round up when deciding your size (wool stretches over time afterall) and seek help from seasoned knitters because they know what they're talking about.

It might seem odd to share something on here that was a fail but, like life, there's a lot of mistakes to learn from in craft and who knows maybe this tale of fail will come in use to someone else. I think the most important thing I've taken from this experiment is that if at first you don't succeed, don't be put off. Try again.

The back is already complete on jumper take 2, and yes, it looks like a waaaaay better size. Hopefully (fingers and toes crossed) I'll have a lovely, normal sized jumper to show you soon.