Cottage Cardi

Oh, the story of this one... I started the Cottage Cardigan at the end of July and didn't finish until mid-September.  This is a very long time for me.  The pattern is simple and elegantly written.  The yarn was lovely once I got to know it.  It's Brooklyn Tweed Loft.  But my hands!

When we got back from Spain my hands and wrists were really bothering me.  But it started much earlier.  In March of this year, I was on a dig site for the weekend and strained my wrists.  I didn't think about it then and just kept knitting... Then weeks went by and they were still sore.  So I took a break.  Not knitting is hard for me.  I do it in class, while watching tv in the evening with the family, waiting for kids in pick-up lines, and at events.  Pretty much always.  But now, my wrists were sore, my pinky and ring finger were often numb.  It's bi-lateral.  A nightmare in the making.

It got better.  I tried to avoid holding things in certain ways, putting pressure on my wrists the wrong way.  It became a challenge to figure out all the triggers.  I did a little research, but mostly carpal tunnel came up and that didn't match.  It would flare up. I would be careful.  By August I was really worried.  I went to see the doctor who suggested it was cubital tunnel and suggested rest, stretches, and topical anti-inflammatories.  Two weeks after that it was getting better, but not if I wasn't resting.  Writing, gripping, typing, and even sleeping were problematic.  My elbows ached.  I went to see a specialist.  I went to see a nerve person for a nerve study. I knitted for maybe ten minutes a day after the first two weeks.  The upshot was to live with it or have surgery.  I'm living, at least for now.  There is no evidence on the nerve study of damage yet.

The point is, I had to slow way down in making this.  And that's a good thing and a painful lesson.  This semester I am taking ceramics and book arts, both of which are diversifying my making significantly. I'm doing different motions with my hands, wrists, and elbows.  I think it's helping.  I still get the creativity out of me.  And now I (finally) have the most perfect cardigan for the Fall. 

PS- if you are looking for those K pants, the blog is here.