Farfalle Victory

Well I've now finished 3 repeats of the Farfalle knot!! I have 2 more to go for the longer version. It was daunting to say the least, but once I finally completed one repeat, it definitely became easier. It does look beautiful, and was quite satisfying (eventually) when the pattern actually began to emerge. I would suggest that anyone doing the 5 repeats, run a thread of waste yarn after each repeat. That way if you drop a stitch or need to rip out you only have to go back as far as the waste yarn. I also found invaluable a knitting device I bought awhile back. It is a small easel that is collapsible but opens up (like a desktop easel) and comes with thin magnetic bars that hold your pattern in place and upright at eye level. The magnetic bar also serves as an immovable underliner for each row which you can slide up as you complete a row. I bought this on line someplace after seeing another knitter using it in a class. With the stitch schematic on this pattern it is very easy to lose your place. For those of you beginning this section, don't get too discouraged, I must have ripped out the first repeat at least 6 or 7 times, sometimes when it was almost finished. I also had to keep reminding myself, at least initially, to read in the correct direction, right to left or left to right. Susan in Sonoma