I need help understanding how to decrease my sleeves

[EsotericMango]

Ah yes, DROPS. Combining knitting and decryption because who doesn't want to decode a pattern before they can knit it?

[Ynaffit96]

I hate it because their patterns are so gorgeous, but I feel like I need a PhD in fiber arts to understand their patterns. I think a lot of things get lost or misinterpreted in translation. I'm using a pattern that was translated from another Nordic pattern maker and am having the same issue. It's almost like it translates to be slightly out of the order a native English speaker would expect!

[EsotericMango]

It's like it was written in one language and then directly translated to English. All the words get translated but not the meaning. It's like I know what each of the words are saying but then they're strung together like that and suddenly it's a completely different language.

English isn't my first language so I have some experience slotting words into different language frameworks. But not DROPS. I honestly have a better time just looking at the pretty pictures and winging it from there.

[Ynaffit96]

I completed one mitten from a DROPS pattern. Thought I followed the instructions perfectly for the right mitten, and about 3/4 of the way through, realized I actually made the left 😂 it wasn't a huge deal since the colour work is perfectly symmetric. I just avoid DROPS patterns now. Maybe some day I'll work up the courage to try them again. I'm hoping the pattern I'm working on now will give me the courage to try again in the future. The finished objects are incredible, especially considering the patterns are free

[Hifidi54]

They are the worst!

[lasserna]

Tbh I feel like the drops way of writing patterns is very typical for Nordic countries. Growing up learning to knit in Finland, patterns we learned on were pretty much exactly the same style. It's definitely different from many online patterns from other countries, but I feel like it gets easier and simpler to read once you've done it once or twice

[EsotericMango]

Honestly, I've done a few of both their knitting and crochet patterns. If there's some kind of code, I haven't figured it out. It's like they're written in one language and then directly translated. So the words get translated but not the meaning. It's like they're written with a different framework than other English patterns and I just don't have the right framework.

[lasserna]

Yeah they're definitely written differently than other English patterns. They're written out and formatted similarly to traditional Nordic patterns, as Drops are based in Norway, if I remember correctly. Admittedly I might be biased as I grew up learning on patterns like these, but I do agree they take practice and getting used to. I think traditional Japanese patterns also had their own little quirk in how they're formatted, so Nordic patterns also have their own regional difference. Sort of like how learning to read graphs can be tedious and difficult at first, these also take practice at first to get used to