To frog, or not to frog...

[BonBon Member Find all posts View Profile Close BonBon]

Sometimes a design, a yarn, a pattern, or a fit, just doesn't work out. It can be VERY hard to decide whether or not to frog a project that you've sweated, fretted, and cried over.
Okay, maybe that's a bit dramatic, but you know what I mean. You found a pattern, shopped for yarn, couldn't wait to cast on, and then.....Ugh.

Let's (gently) help each other let go of those projects that just aren't right. I think it's likely that we all have a project (or 2, or 10 )

hanging around that won't ever be completed.
Post them here, and let the community encourage you to keep it or frog it.
Tell us why you are reluctant to riiiipppit, riiiipppit. Maybe there is sentimental value that you just can't let go of, or you're frustrated that you spent SO. MUCH. TIME. on the project!

I'll go first...

This is the Acacia Reversible Pullover (hopefully the pic is there, some folks have commented that they can't see it). It was my first sweater, and I never completed it. It was frustrating because it was knit in four pieces and seamed together. I'm not gonna lie, my seams were terrible, and not for lack of trying! I seamed and re-seamed SO many times.

I also don't like the way the sleeves attach to the body. There is no flow, they look like what they are, two tubes stitched to a rectangle. Ugh. UGH I say!!

The collar was bugging me too. So, in my INFINATE novice knitter wisdom (lol), I decided to try to make it a turtleneck. I think we all see how that turned out...

Here is why I kinda want to keep it. This was my first attempt at a sweater! I like to pull it out every once in a while just to see how much I've progressed as a knitter. If I finish it, I will likely never wear it outside of my house, and that's a real shame because the yarn I used is scrumptious!!

So, to frog, or not to frog? That is my question! Comment below.
Gently! Comment gently below

Who's next? C'mon show us your WILPF's (works in limbo pending frogging)

[Bella Rose New Member Find all posts View Profile Close Bella Rose]

Oh, I wish I had seen this earlier...Im famous for getting halfway done, then frogging . Or worse, an entire project, then deciding I didn't like it, and spending way too much time frogging it to death. I suppose its because I am sort of a perfectionist, but its actually a curse. I finally started a piece Ive been dying to do, worked on it about a week, then snagged a ONE stitch with my nail. It kept bothering me..instead of just removing to the point of the "icky" stitch, I started over again. ...UGH...

As to your project, the picture wasn't showing at the time Im writing this...maybe its my curse eeking thru the computer!!! LOL

[BonBon]

Lol, I know what you mean about 1 stitch bugging you to death. Been there!
Oh no! The picture isn't showing?! Hmmm. I wonder what's up with that..

[Hellokitten Expert Crafter Find all posts View Profile Close Hellokitten]

I have no qualms about frogging once I've made that decision. Sometimes it's just that a sweater doesn't look good on me, and then I'll donate it. Out of sight, out of mind.

I'm kind of a minimalist. I like to keep things simple. Keep only what I will use, that sort of thing.

I did keep my very first knitting project. It's a horrible, wonky red scarf on fingering yarn and size one needles. From the 1950's. Memories. Hey, don't laugh, I was five!

[BonBon]

Oh pleeeease show us the wonky scarf!

[dekpass Find all posts View Profile Close dekpass]

I’m not terribly sentimental. I don’t mind frogging if something isn’t living up to expectations. If I won’t use it and can’t think of someone who can, I won’t keep it. I want less useless stuff in my life, not more. But I know others are more sentimental, so I try to be understanding. Different strokes for different folks, eh?

[Guest Close Guest]

I've become so good at frogging that I rarely think twice about it anymore. Yes I have unraveled many nearly finished sweaters. About 6-7 last year and a couple this year.

[BonBon]

I'm good at frogging to fix an issue up to the halfway point. After that, the issue is part of the project FOREVER! Lol.

[love2knit Member Find all posts View Profile Close love2knit]

When in doubt rip it, rip it aka frogging. If you are like me I am bull headed and plow through it, and never like it/wear it because I see all the boo's. So now instead of trying to fix it I either unknit it to the boo boo or just start over. Then I like the project so much better.

[Guest Close Guest]

My daughter gave me a pattern and the yarn to go with it - I made it and it really does nothing to flatter me so it lies in my drawer and I feel guilty every time I see it. But, but ... it's from my daughter ... it's a pattern she picked .... how can I do anything at all with it? (Mom guilt)

BonBon

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BonBon - I can't see it either - just the little square with an X in it, but it might be my computer - I used to get that at times at R.

If I liked the yarn (!) I'd consider frogging and making something else - but it's a variegated green that pools something awful so not sure what else I could make out of it.

[BonBon]

Hey! Will you do me a REALLY big favor? Would you refresh your screen and see if the picture shows up now? Thank you, thank you, thank you!!

Nada. Nope. Nothing. (Apparently I need at least 10 characters in a comment!)

[BonBon Member Find all posts View Profile Close BonBon]

I have tried and tried to make sure the picture in the original post shows up. I'm not sure why this has been such an epic issue
I've posted pics from the same computer, the same file source, and using the same method many times on this site. Apparently the computer gremlins have decided today is not my day. Ack! Technology
Please "raise your hand" if you can see the gray sweater in the original post.

[BonBon]

@annekepoot
Whew! I don't know what I did (if anything) I just posted, deleted, posted, deleted like a mad woman trying to get that to work. I was always able to see it, so it was really frustrating trying to figure out what happened!

[BonBon]

@love2knit
I'm sure it would help to block it. But those weird tube arms....ugh. I'm not sure there's hope for them.

[Amore]

See it, saw it from the first.

[Amore Member Find all posts View Profile Close Amore]

Recombinance is a basic strategy of this universe. The beauty of yarn is that (up to a certain point) it can be reworked, like pie dough. Swarfy, who works exclusively in metal, envies me that reworking ability.

If something just isn't working, I send it back to the yarn field of all possibilities. But I never, never frog at night. Dawn's bright light suits me better for new beginnings.

[FrogQueen Member Find all posts View Profile Close FrogQueen]

I have no clue what you're talking about.

[BonBon]

Lol! Got it

[Amore]

The Queen of the Frogs most assuredly knows of what we speak!

[patty Member Find all posts View Profile Close patty]

I would pull it out and start over. You could try it in the round instead of pieces or sell it to someone.. I once fell in love with a sweater but didn’t want to do it at the particular gauge. I wanted something bigger 4.5 to 5 stitches to the inch. LYS helped me pick out yarn and away I went. When done, I tried it on and was horrified. I looked like the Michelin Man. I asked my husband who said it was fine, and then I took it to another yarnstore. Tried it on and asked for opinions. Everyone agreed I looked like the Michelin Man. I took it off and someone actually frogged it for me while I was looking around the store.

[BonBon]

Now that's what I call good customer service

[knitterlady13 Find all posts View Profile Close knitterlady13]

I have no problem frogging. Sometimes I'll finish something and then decide I don't love the FO for me or find it's not flattering to me. In those cases I usually donate the item, but will sometimes frog. When I haven't finished yet and am just bored with the project, then I'll frog and use the yarn for something else. I used to try to finish everything, but life is too short to hate the project you're working on. I learned my lesson with a Hypernova scarf. Great pattern, but a scarf on tiny needles takes a LONG time, especially when it's super repetitive. I did finish that, but finally gave it away because I just couldn't look at it anymore.

[lovestostitch Expert Crafter Find all posts View Profile Close lovestostitch]

My decision to frog or not frog depends on the value of the yarn and what's wrong with the project. If I used really nice yarn and I hated the finished item, I would frog it so I could reuse the yarn. If I made something out of inexpensive yarn and there was nothing wrong with it though I didn't like it on me, I would give it away to someone who would wear it.

[BZYktr Member Find all posts View Profile Close BZYktr]

I once knit a shawl - little house on the prairie simple stockinette shawl - for my then 7 year old granddaughter. Now, this was all stockinette with a simple ruffly border and yet when I was blocking this shawl there was ONE PURL stitch right in the middle of the shawl. How is that even possible! I was going to start over but my daughter wouldn't let me. She reminded me that neither she nor her daughter would worry that it wasn't perfect and that this was after all for a growing child and had a limited life span anyhow. So I didn't frog!

[Amore]

but . . . but . . . but that one imperfection kept the shawl from challenging the perfection of the gods (Navajo), which thereby made it perfect in its execution. And you could always challenge someone unfamiliar with knitting to find the one reversed stitch. Make a game of it. ;-)

[lovestostitch]

If you are like me, you did that purl stitch when you were nodding off while knitting.

[FreedomLover Expert Crafter Find all posts View Profile Close FreedomLover]

I love your daughter!