Swatching

I’ve been doing a lot of swatching this year. That’s a nice way of saying I’ve started many more projects than I’ve finished, putting a positive spin on my numerous false starts and calling them well thought out experiments. After all, swatching is a responsible thing to do, whereas cultivating a collection of unfished projects is not. So rather than cast on, I decided to "swatch" for this quick crochet summery cover-up (garnstudio crochet waistcoat). Just to keep my fingers loose while I figure out what to do with the sleeves on the crochet top I’m working on (the rowan linen-print one, but that’s a story for another post). 

On the third row, a feeling of deja-vu began to set in as I watched the double crochet clusters topped with chained loops take shape.

I guiltily dropped the hook as I remembered another false start swatch, sitting in my workbasket: Jolly-Rancher a crocheted skirt, with a suspiciously similar cluster pattern.  Although, after a quick comparison, not the same…  I don’t know why this was such a relief. I got pretty far along with this swatch, then decided I had too many repeats for the fit I wanted (I’m holding a scrunched portion of the skirt behind my back for the picture) and never got around to ripping and repeating. 

Another day, another stitch swatch.