So Much for Loving the Making Up Bit

I was so cocky last week, so confident that making up my jumper would be a breeze, a zen-like way to spend a sunny weekend. Well I should have known better. It all started off OK, the weaving-in took some time but I got into a rhythm and I had finished it all by the end of Saturday. Then, of course, there is the neck. Now most of the time this is fairly straightforward, you pick up and knit the required number of stitches on each piece of the neck and then follow the pattern, after joining the right hand shoulder, of course. It was the right hand shoulder that undid me. Maybe its because I'm left handed, I don't know, but I often find myself picking up the stitches the opposite way that the pattern says. It said "join the right shoulder seam". I held the pieces in front of me and chose the right shoulder as if I was wearing it, you with me? So if you are looking at it it would be the left shoulder. I joined the seam (very neatly too if I may say) and then looked to the pattern to guide me. This is when I realised that I have done the wrong shoulder and I have to reverse my picking up of the stitches. That's fine though, not a problem, it's still the same amount of stitches whichever way you pick 'em up. I merrily did this in reverse and then followed the pattern to knit a rib neck, excellent. Now this neck had decreasings in it to help shape it and of course they are set so that they fit in with where the bends should be. I finished the five rows and had then cast off before I realised that as well as reversing the picking up of the stitches I should have reversed the decreasings too! I ended up with bends in the middle of the front and back of the neck. I have to say that I did contemplate leaving it as it was (not for very long but the thought of ripping back, well you know how I feel about that!!) but I then saw the error of my ways, ripped it back and started from scratch reversing everything. I usually never have problems with the left handed thing, more often than not I do things the "right" way. But I guess my left handed brain likes to have some fun with me sometimes, mess with my mind, if you will, and the result is me having to take a deep breath and just do it all over again.