New Designs from Mistakes

Sprang designs can be full of surprises. Sometimes it’s because the rules of sprang create unexpected textures. Other times it’s because we're learning and making mistakes. But not all mistakes are failures; sometimes mistakes result in fun new patterns. Here are three projects that were initially deemed failures but turned into interesting new designs.

This white pouch was an early experiment in rows of S and Z. I had no real plan other than to try a variety of S and Z stitches and see how they went together. It ended up a combination of interlacing and interlinking, with threads taken two at a time near the middle (bottom of the image). 

But it wasn’t the rectangular pouch I’d been hoping for. One side was longer than the other, and the middle was narrower than the top. After getting over the initial disappointment, I decided to turn it into an envelope pouch. Instead of hiding the seams, I nalbound around the edges in a contrasting color, and then braided the extra ends instead of hiding the knots. It’s been transformed from a failure into a one-of-a-kind creation.

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When I was first figuring out diagonals in S and Z I tried to make a symmetrical* chevron as in the second photo, but ended up instead with the asymmetrical design in the first photo. When I realized my mistake I gave up on the diagonals and started vertical columns of S and Z instead. 

I now prefer the asymmetrical design, and appreciate the bulge at the bottom where the vertical stripes create wider cloth than the diagonals.

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This purple lace was deemed a failed experiment and resided in the reject bin for over a year. I was experimenting with sprang lace labyrinths and wanted to create a solid row of interlinking between horizontal rows of holes. I wrote a pattern that I thought would give me what I wanted, but instead gave me holes with no solid line between them. NOT what I was looking for. 

Last fall, after making several lace hairnets, I was looking through the reject bin and realized that this test scrap was the right size to turn into a hairnet. I just needed to sew up the sides and cinch the loops at one end. Now this hairnet has found a new home, and is much appreciated by its new owner. 

These are just three of many examples of new patterns emerging from what I initially deemed mistakes and failures. When viewed with a new perspective, mistakes can inspire new designs. 

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*The pattern for this chevron does look symmetrical. One of the oddities of S and Z motifs is that the cloth doesn't match the pattern. So symmetrical S&Z patterns do not always result in symmetrical motifs in the cloth.