Sleeves A'Dawning!

I really thought I'd get more done on Dawn while I was visiting my brother's this past weekend, but with three girls to look after, I didn't have much quiet time.

Besides that, Dawn requires my full attention. As many of you know, I sometimes have issues reading instructions. I tend to assume I understand the directions rather than reading and doing what they say as written.

Dawn is a pattern that is not having any of it!

Decreases for the neckline occur AT THE SAME TIME as increases for the sleeve. It's all very confusing [especially to someone who interprets instructions]. I knit and frogged and knit and frogged and knit and frogged. I finally decided to just put it away until I could have some uninterrupted knitting time.

So last night, I took the time and went line by line, doing what the instructions told me to do. It confounds the mind to realize that it worked! I only had to frog once when I missed an increase.

There were a few tools that helped me get through. First was the Stitch Minder application for the iPhone which I used it to keep track of increase and decrease rows. Priceless!

Another tool that is super handy are these colored stitch markers. Blue for decreases, pink for increases, and white for anything else. So when I did need to frog back, I knew exactly where the last increase/decrease/anything else was and could go forward without guess which increase/decrease/anything else it was.

Just one more decrease, twenty some odd rows and I'm at the shoulder! Not bad! Of course, then I have to knit the second side.

sigh...