Manic Monday - Darn it all!

So darning is one of those knitting-related activities I've wanted to learn but I've been hesitant to do so. I know it will be really handy to know, but the thought of darning socks holds no appeal for me.

But a couple of weeks ago one of my new friends from my yoga teacher training class--did I mention I'm learning to be a yoga teacher?--asked me if I could fix a hole in her sweater. It was one of Wendy's favourites and she really wanted to keep wearing it. Although I hadn't darned anything before (which I told her), I agreed to take a look at it because I know what sweater love is all about!

Wendy brought me the cardigan and some matching yarn. Fortunately the sweater was a chunky knit. Unfortunately the hole covered two colours in this four-colour sweater. But I knew this was the best chance I had to learn, so I took it. (Some of the yogic philosophy we are learning includes ideas that things happen for a reason and difficulties are opportunities to learn. So my two worlds collided over Wendy's much-loved cardigan.)

I searched Youtube for videos on darning and finally settled on one from KnitFreedom with Liat Gat. Man that was a great video! You should definitely check it out if you are at all interested in fixing holes in knitted items.

So, following KnitFreedom's instructions, here is how I went about fixing Wendy's cardigan.

Original hole and Liat Gat's video.

Setting the foundation for new rows.

New rows  and stitches in place.

Finished!

I was thrilled with how it turned out for my first try! But more importantly, Wendy is happy with it: she is already wearing her cardigan.