I have been working on The Batwing Thing – a sweater with
sleeves that widen from the cuff (at the elbow) to the entire waist-shoulder
width.  Like triangles.  It has been a rather intuitive design
project.  I started with a basic idea and
yarn and body measurements and have been rather making it up as I go along.

To our knitting students, we frequently say (regarding
knitting – tho it may have other applications) “There is no right or wrong,
only predictable results.”  I do not know
what to say of the results of a project in which there are few predictions!  I mean, is it coming along all right?  And how would I know?

I have two nearly-completed sleeves with some color work
going on (intarsia) and am about to start a Batwing Lace motif section (the
lace being an afterthought – since I realized we were using this particular
pattern in our lace-knitting class and it seemed to fit the theme of the
sweater!). 

I had to order more yarn and there is a slight difference in
the  two multi-colored Many Glaciers
skeins – so I am now working one skein in stockinette and the other in a
stockinette punctuated with garter “dashes” 5 stitches long to sort of camouflage
the difference. 

I had not predicted having 5 balls of yarn and a sleeve and
(from the sleeve) a 6^th ball of yarn hanging from the sleeve I am
knitting (the 2 sleeves are connected by the first skein/ball of Many Glaciers
since I have worked them both it — one from the inside end and one from the
outside end).

But Sarah says I am never happier than when I have 3 or 4
balls of yarn hanging off my knitting, so I guess that is all right.

Then, when I had everything laid out (so I could untangle
the yarns), I realized that the whole piece has a definite Arts and Crafts
Movement feel to it!  The colors, even
the intarsia patterns.  I love Arts and Crafts stuff!  And yet I swear I did not have it in mind
when I started out.  Predictable?  Unpredictable?  I often feel that God is at work in my
knitting when things “just work out.” 
Kind of an affirmation of my creativity. 
A sort of Divine Delight.  Sometimes
when I need it most (perhaps when there are 6 balls of yarn and 2 sleeves
strangling each other in a project that seems a little crazy?  or when I am feeling that perhaps plunging my passion in a craft might be a little crazy, in and of itself!).