I grew up in the '50's and '60's--you know, back in the last century. It was a new time for girls and for the first time in history (or so they told us), women could be any thing they wanted to be. I was a pretty good student, and so it was assumed I would go forth and do Great Things. I could become an engineer and design new things, I could learn to fly! Oh, the list was long and impressive. No more careers in nursing or teaching for the new women. So I took math classes. Algebra I and II, geometry, and "advanced math", a would-be trigonometry class. And then . . . I became a teacher.
All those math classes (and more in college), what need did an elementary teacher have of them? Well, I do use geometry in my quilting. And just this week, algebra came in very handy. How you ask? Well, I'll tell you.
I loved the doll hat pictured in my last post so much that I immediately set about to make another. (And I really wanted to try out a pom pom maker.) I found some left over lilac yarn and churned one out in short order. But now my doll needed a sweater to match! I had downloaded a simple cardigan pattern from the Norwegian lady and liked the looks of it, but it called for finer yarn than I had. What to do? Then I remembered that a blogger I follow who knits had recently mentioned that any pattern could be knit in any yarn. Hmmm... She also suggested that a knitter knit a test swatch with recommended yarn and needles to be sure it comes out true to size. (Here is where I confess I have never done this. Apparently I like to live dangerously, at least in my knitting.)
After a brief pondering, I choose a needle size and picked up my yarn and knit a swatch. I knew from the pattern directions that 30 stitches was supposed to equal 4 inches. My swatch came out five and a quarter. Algebra to the rescue: 5.25x=4, x=4/5.25, x=.76. Yes! All I had to do was multiply all the stitch numbers in the pattern by .76 and I was ready to go. Did it work?
Why yes, it did!! It fits little Amalia like a glove! And that pom pom? Perfection!
Who says we'll never use algebra in our regular lives? Not me!! ♥
I wish I'd been good at math. It still scared me a bit. I was excellent at English though. The hat and card I are adorable. You have a great blog.
ReplyDeleteI kind of look at Math as being a detective, looking for clues to "x". :-) Thank you for stopping by and for your nice compliment.
DeleteGood for you! Mr. Chase and Mrs. Towles would be proud. And the end product is totally cute!
ReplyDeleteI don't bother with a swatch either. I just start in, and if it's not right, I start again. I was amused responses to a survey question -- "What knitting rules do you break?" Many said they didn't do a swatch.
And -- your blog is a lovely place to visit.
Good ol' Mr. Chase and Mrs. Towles. They did try hard to teach us math, bless their hearts.
DeleteYes, swatching always seemed like a waste of time, but in this case, totally necessary. I'm still amazed that it worked, but I guess I shouldn't be. Math rules!!
I have a totally different view of math and science than I did as a young person. Wish I'd paid more attention to the scientific method.
DeleteI do struggle with my gauge. I tend to work too loosely.
Keep up the good work. Can't wait to see what you make next.
Science and I have never been close friends except for biology. I actually likes math quite a bit.
DeleteI think my knitting is pretty right on because things tend to fit as they should, but redoing patterns is absolutely a new endeavor!