A year ago this week, we got covid. On June 12th, Doug tested positive, on June 15th, he was taken by ambulance to the hospital, and on June 16th, I tested positive. The next few months were scary and rocky, and ever since then we have been slowly recovering. In reality, this means that some days I feel really good, and others I am really fatigued. It feels like we might be moving into a better stage though; my good days are getting more frequent and Doug is even better. In the meantime, we keep on carrying on.
Knitting is one of the areas where I am still affected. I tend to do most of my knitting in the evenings, and this year, I am often just too tired in the evenings to do anything, even something as relaxing as knitting. And when I do knit, I can’t put too much thinking effort into it. This means that I struggle to decide on new projects, cast-on something new, and especially, to read patterns. I think that the effort of working full-time at a demanding job takes up nearly all of my head space and energy right now (as it should, since it pays the bills) and I just need to go with the flow the rest of the time.
Since I finished my last project a few weeks ago, I can’t figure out what to cast on next. I’ve been doing a bit of swatching:
And I have once again pulled out the Koko Shawl. This is actually a really easy shawl to knit, so I am not sure why it is taking so long. I am knitting a few rows here and there. It’s starting to get long:
I am thinking of knitting a tee-shirt next, in a linen or cotton mix. Something super easy. I was planning on knitting Joni, below, and bought the yarn and pattern, but the pattern is 17 pages long, and my post-covid brain doesn’t want to read it.
Today I am looking at this kit to knit the Every Day Attitude Tee by Susanne Sommer:
If I could decide on which of the lovely colour combinations to pick, I might very well snap one up. What do you think? Should I go ahead and try to power through the 17 pages of pattern for Joni, even if my brain doesn’t want to? Should I grab one of these kits? Or do you have a suggestion for a really simple, non-taxing, but pretty, summer top for me to cast on?
The Havana blanket pattern was about 25 pages long but one of the simplest to follow…so have a read through and the moment you get confused pick something simple.
How about “Fragment”. It is a long pattern PDF, but it’s not complicated- you just have to learn the (unusual) pattern. It’s very thoughtfully written which is why it’s such a long PDF:
https://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/fragment-2
You can tell it’s good because so many people are posing in the garment: it fits so well.
I have so far avoided Covid, but menopause did the same thing to my brain. I had a pair of socks on the needles that I ripped out and restarted so many times I was convinced there was something wrong with the pattern. They have a textured alternative to rib which moves into different texture in the leg which doesn’t obviously line up with the top of the sock – neither of which is particularly complicated.
Well, I put it in the cupboard, and found them a few years ago at the beginning of the pandemic. I pulled them out and ripped through both socks with no trouble at all. I hadn’t noticed an issue with my concentration at the time, but obviously there was!
Do what works for you. One day – hopefully – you’ll pick up that complex pattern and power through it. Meanwhile, be gentle with yourself, and perhaps knit something simple with a gorgeous yarn that doesn’t need fancy patterns.
Best of luck!
I so love the white t, even with 17 pgs of direction
I think Joni would be nicer to have and the average difficulty rating on ravelry is not high.
I was super happy with Joji Locatelli’s Staple Linen Top. It knit up beautifully and will be less stressful and calmer for your covid brain. Luckily I was still able to knit thru my 2 bouts of covid last year. Take care.
I didn’t start knitting until I retired. Not sure I could have handled knitting lace patterns while still working. I didn’t work where it would have been ok to knit during meetings. I think a simple pattern is the way to go. Stripes would be easier than lace.
No suggestions except to echo the earlier comment to be gentle with yourself!
The Everyday Attitude tee in that colourway looks ideal to me. Maybe team with a little red necktie scarf or a red lightweight jacket. Very chic and a great cheer up!
I’m another person who has not had any lingering effects from Covid but who is suffering from menopause-brain. I too am finding that only the simplest knits will do. I still want to undertake the process of knitting, which is a huge source of calm and centering, but vanilla socks and garter stitch shawls are about my limit at the moment. Having said that, I am building up to doing a Tolsta Tee by Rebecca Clow. Full disclosure, I know Rebecca, who is very lovely. But the brilliant thing about the Tolsta is the number of variations people are making, with the basic pattern as a framework. Even if you don’t do any knitting, it is brain-soothing to browse through all the projects on Ravelry. Sending you and Doug much love for your continued recovery. X
A striped tee is an absolute classic and I am sure you would get a great deal of wear out of it. Additionally, knitting stripes is slightly addictive, leading to more knitting time. Best of luck with your recovery.
I really like that striped tee! I’m currently knitting the Ridgeview Tee by Kerri Blumer in the high hip length, and it’s a good pattern–I tend to like less rather than more instruction. I hope your health continues to improve!