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Yesterday afternoon, when Caleb and I finished the day of school, I started charting my new design in the computer*.  I like to work from a computer generated chart instead of my initial hand drawn one because then I can make any corrections or changes as I go.  Once I know for sure the chart is done right, then all I have to do is put it in the pattern with the rest of the directions.  This is how I’ve done all my designs.  Also, once I have made the chart, I print it out and work from the printout, using correction tape to keep my place on the chart - the same way I did before I got an iPad and Knit Companion.  I prefer to use paper because again, I can make notes, corrections and changes right there.  (Knit Companion allows you to make notes, but when I’m designing, I prefer to just scribble on my papers.)

So once I got the chart done and printed, I sat down with yarn and needles and started knitting.  I was happily knitting along on my second attempt (I didn’t like how I’d done a few things the first time, so I just frogged and did it differently) when Max woke up from his nap.  Max is two and a half now and while we’re definitely through the craziest of the kitten issues and he shows signs of real maturity, he still has his moments.  Max came to check out what I was working on and after a very polite knitting inspection, he began to circle in my lap in preparation for a nice sit down.  On his second circle, he noticed the chart.  Then he noticed the correction tape.  Then it was on.  Before I realized that he wasn’t making a third circle, he had leapt upon the chart, pulled the correction tape off, and was tearing off down the hall with it.  Obviously, he was neutralizing the threat that had been right there beside my knitting.  I had no idea I was in so much danger.  Since I’m human and don’t understand such things properly (clearly), I just got the tape away from him and put fresh tape on the chart to continue knitting.  Once again Max came to my rescue, saving me from imminent death, and stampeding down the hall with correction tape flying behind him, this time still partially connected to the chart page.  At this point I realized that if I was going to get this new design knitted at all, I wouldn’t be able to knit it with a paper chart and correction tape.  I went back to the computer, put the chart in PDF format and sent the thing over to Knit Companion.

As I was doing all this, it occurred to me that there was probably a reason I’m not doing very much knitting or designing with beads right now.

*Since someone might ask, I’m using Stitch Mastery charting software right now.  It lets me make the chart and it generates the written out version of the pattern from the chart.