The Frogging of the Frog

In which I fail to make it look easy.  Not that any of you, Gentle Readers, thought it was easy anyway.  But apparently it's time for the other shoe to drop:

This would be the second time that I have frogged back the sleeve, which also requires removing the side shaping, and blah blah blah, it really sucks.

It's not that I got cocky.  I wasn't even a little bit overconfident.  In fact, I had begun to suspect that I was overdue for some kind of knuckle-rappery at the hands of the universe.  You see, I knew that this jacket was going to be trouble.  I managed to avoid making this pattern for more than a year because I knew it was gonna be Tricky.  And by "Tricky", I mean "Lock-yourself-in-a-dark-room, No-mommy's-not-drinking-alone-in-here" freaking complicated to figure out.  You see, the original Frog Prince wasn't even a sweater.  It was a boiled-wool jacket, with pieces of knitting appliquéd onto it.  It was a tailoring project that I set for myself one time, just to see if it could be done.  And it could.  And I was glad when I had done it. 

But then I wore it out in public, which, it turns out, is where they keep the Knitters.  Knitters have crossed rooms, crossed traffic, and crossed the boundaries of personal space to ask me about it.  And when I say "Ask", I mean "Gimme!  WANT!  Need-that-pattern-right-away-or-I-will-die-and-it-will-be-on-your-head-missy!"  Not wanting to be responsible for the demise of any fellow knitters (bad bit of Karmic debt, that), I eventually admitted to myself that I had to make a Frog Prince Pattern.  Which required that I make a Frog Prince Sweater.

So it's not the body knitting that has me flummoxed, but the shaping of the sleeves.  The original jacket had a set-in sleeve with a very traditional, high armscye and a saucy, gathered cap.  Fine for the body and drape of boiled wool, but not worth a damn for a knitted sweater.  No, the sweater needed a dolman sleeve in order to be cunningly worked in the direction I had in mind, while still incorporating the sassy gathered sleeve caps of the original. 

Nothing to it.  Until I realized that I have never knitted a dolman sleeve before.  The first version came out all Kimono.  The second was decidedly Batwing.  I have moderate hopes for the third incarnation, but I have to admit it feels like I'm starting to lose ground.  Remember back when I smugly proclaimed that the project was still full of promise because I hadn't jacked it up yet?  Well that ship has sailed, I'm sorry to say.  I'm quickly falling out of love with the Frog Prince.

Still, he's kinda cute.  Maybe just one more kiss.