Stornoway Front Yoke: Photo Finish

At *LAST*...

It was a like a big race (thoroughbreds, swimmers, hurdlers, or similar) coming down to the finish-line: would I get to the end of the front yoke on my Stornoway before the 1st cone of yarn ran out, or would it be the other way around?

Of course there were no thundering hooves, no crowds of loud spectators on the scene, no running commentary being broadcast to the world. Just me and my needlework. But these are the small domestic dramas that shape a knitter's life.

For a long time it was too close to call. I had expected the cone to run out sooner than it did, but it kept unwinding, and the knitting went on and on. The suspense was palpable. I honestly couldn't tell how things would work out until I reached the very last row on the second side of the neckline and realized that the allotted task and the available material were on track to line up almost perfectly. As it happened, I got to the end of the knitting with just a few yards of wool to spare.

Here are the customary photos, including a wide shot of the entire front and more of a closeup on the neckline. The modified shaping came out really nicely, IMHO. I even used ssk's for the decreases on the second side, to mirror the k2tog's on the other side. Nobody slants the wrong way!! Just for fun, I'm also throwing in a picture that shows the empty cardboard cone with the little coil of leftover yarn next to it. As usual, click on any one of the images to get a closer look.

It feels good to have reached this point, after all the build-up in my mind. I am looking forward to starting the back yoke now, and the second cone, although the sudden necessity of lugging around that much more yarn has had a noticeable impact on both the bulk and the heft of my knitting bag. >>Ooomph<<.