Ribbit ribbit.

I was going to wait until I had pictures, but the way the week is going, things are not looking promising, so I'm posting anyway.

I frogged the mystery stole back to the first beaded row. I ran a lifeline through the 2nd setup row, which is beaded at ever other stitch, and then I pulled the whole thing out. I put the row back on my needles and picked it back, removing that last set of beads (that part was painful). I'd finally been to 7beads.com and ordered the Montana luster beads that I should have ordered when my instinct told me to way back when. This time instead of placing the beads on the stitch right after it was knit, I am placing the beads before I purl the stitch on the following wrong side row. I am, overall, a much happier knitter. I greatly prefer the look of the beads, the fabric is much more even and neat, and I am knitting along more speedily and peacefully than before. The stop and start process of putting the beads on was driving me crazy before, but somehow it is much more palatable to stop and do them on a wrong side row full of plain purling, than it was to try and do it on a lace row. I felt a little nagging guilt because the designer has said repeatedly that she feels the fabric looks better if you place the bead as you knit the stitch so that the stitch can stretch to accomodate that bead - but either this, or something about the process of stopping to put on the bead, just made the fabric around the bead look loosey goosey and awful. Just goes to show, I guess, that knitting is always subject to preference and personal style. Clue 2 has been released and I think it is lovely, so I'm looking forward to it. The difference in how I feel about the project really is amazing, and I have to say...

I'm glad I ripped it out. I'm glad I started over. I'm glad I did it my way.