ssk vs. k2tog*

Apologies in advance: this post may bore you all to tears. But I do need your help, so please persevere for my sake!

EW's comment on my last post made me realize that the blog might appreciate an illustration of the differences between k2tog and ssk, so you all don't have to learn the hard way like I did. Until I started working on designing a project that highly featured both, I'd thought that they were perfectly interchangeable. And, being quite honest, I probably prefered the motion of the ssk, even though it had more steps. I'd read the TechKnitter's description of the difference (basically, ssk stretches out the stitches so they are a lot baggier than k2tog) but I'd filed that difference away as something that probably wouldn't affect my knitting much. After all, there are a lot of ways to perfect knitting that I never bother with, so why should I worry if my left-leaning decreases were a little sloppy? But then I started working on desigining a wristwarmer pattern that made the differences between the right-leaning k2tog and the left-leaning ssk all too apparent, so I've now got photographic proof.














The ssk is on the left and the k2tog is on the right. You can see how the k2tog creates relatively straight lines while the ssk meanders in clumsy steps. Now, if the project only included ssks, I'm not sure that it would be as noticeable. But when they are right next to k2togs, I've found the difference to be unfortunate.
I've found a number of suggestions for better left-leaning decreases online, but haven't found one that works particularly well with this pattern. Many of those techniques rely on being able to pick up stitches on the side of the decrease, which isn't possible in this pattern because the decreases are surrounded by yarn overs. I'm still hopeful that TechKnitter's solution will save the day, but I haven't had much success with it so far. (I think I'm messing up the yank somehow....)

In the latest iteration of this pattern, I'm using slip, knit (sk), which I think is better, but still not perfect.














Here the sk is on the left and the k2tog is on the right.

So. I'm opening it up again: any suggestions for a better left-leaning decrease that can be worked between two yarn overs?

* RJ, decoding is available at the end of this post.

Scary, Sad Sea Creatures

Hello lovely knitting and crocheting people!

I have updates suddenly piling up and need to take pictures to share them with you, but in the meantime, here is a new friend, Mr. Ancient Sea Creature, yay!



I started making him as a belated birthday present for my sister (he's a nautie, and was one of the first patterns that I bookmarked for myself after I discovered knitty.com.
I've had this guy finished for a while, but I wanted to make him a buddy (wouldn't want to be the only nautie in the house, after all) and maybe a trilobite friend, but the second nautie was boring and black and the strands of shiny yarn I added just made him thicker and harder to work with.

I still plan on making a second friend, but there is so much knitting to be done, and so little time before school starts up again, alas!

In the meantime, a new online knitting magazine Twist Collective will create further distractions. It's probably the best knitting website I've ever seen. Gorgeous photos and a really functional layout. (I hate when magazine-like websites try to look like something on paper. So frustrating, and so not the point. This site has some really excellent programmers. I hate to say it, but they're probably mac users.)

More to the point, I seriously want to make all of the "That Girl" sweaters, as well as several of the Forest Fairy ones. Also, socks in cute shoes. I want it to happen.

All from me for now--I'll get pictures soon and post about my new knitting joy: Magic Loop!