Happy ending

Ah, that's much better!

Knidiot

Um, yah , so , uh.... remember the part where I said I followed the pattern to a "t"? Remember when I went on and on about gauge lying?

Well.... Turns out not so much to a "t". More like following the pattern to an "f" (which is what a teacher would grade me if I was marked on these kinds of things, which thankfully, I am not). The liar was not gauge, but Yours Truly when I convinced myself that I have the ability to follow a pattern properly.

Sorry gauge for slandering your name all over blogland.

So what happened is that the pattern is written for two thicknesses of yarn: chunky and worsted weight. And I know you probably can see where I'm going here. At a very crucial and early point in the pattern, I stopped following the worsted weight directions and instead followed the chunky weight directions.

I know, I know, I'm a ding-a-ling.

I've riiiiiiiiiiiiiiped back, and am now (hopefully) back on track. But lets not assume anything till the darn thing is successfully pulled over my coconut, ok?

(Maybe I was knitting the hat to fit the size of my brain....)

What the heck happened here?

There's a long, rich tradition of blogging about the angst-ridden subject of gauge. How it sucks to swatch when you just want to start the "real" knitting, and how it can be a Everest-scale test of endurance: choose right needle/yarn, cast on, knitknitknit, cast-off, wash, pin, wait to dry, measure, cry cause it's not right, repeat.

But the hardest lesson a knitter learns is that swatches are liars. Boldface, misleading, deceitful, dishonest, untruthful, mendacious, insincere LIARS.

Like all of you, I have wrestled with my own gauge issues. I've done some "iffy" swatches that resulted in sweaters that were a smidge too long, or sleeves that need to be turned up. I've even blatantly skipped the whole swatching thing because I knew it would be a waste of time. Most often I've run into "too big" or "too long" garments because I'm a loose knitter.

But THIS is a first!


Now I know I have a bigger-than-average noggin, but this is ridiculous!

WTF? I did everything I was supposed to: I used the recommended yarn, I got gauge, I followed the pattern to a "t". Then I thought if it's not me, maybe the pattern is wonky. I checked Ravelry to see if other people had ended up with lilliputian hats, but no, I'm the only one. Everywhere people are sporting lovely, normal-sized Foliages and I'm left with a fancy grapefruit cozy.

Harrumph!

Must be my punishment for neglecting you guys for so long... You probably noticed that I fell off that daily-posting wagon HARD!!!

Oooooooops!

Uh Oh! I dropped the ball. Last night I got home very late and just crawled into bed without thinking. Crap, I FORGOT TO BLOG!!!

Part of me is disappointed. I was halfway through this NaBloPoMo thingie and was managing to pull it off. But a big part of me is very relieved. Blogging everyday is super hard! Especially when there is zero natural light to speak of.



Dark
Dreary
Moody



These photos where taken at noon. And it's a SOUTH facing perspective!

How can a girl take enticing photos in these circumstances? And like most of you, I am on a very tight holiday knitting deadline. Blogging everyday sucks up a lot of precious knitting time.

I appreciate all of your encouraging words along the way and I will make an effort to blog more often than I used to (say, every 3 or 4 days?) There's still a lot more of my old knits to show you, and some favourite things I still want to talk about.

Nubbly and flecked, yum!

These mitts combine two of my favourite things in knitting:
flecked yarn and nubbly fabric.



I love any stitch pattern that yields a uniform but still textured fabric: garter stitch, seed stitch, basket weave, reverse stockinette... It creates an interesting surface with dimension, while still being even enough to show off the colour and fibre qualities of the yarn.

I knit these reverse stockinette stitch mitts a million years ago with thick Lopi yarn. As with many Lopi yarns, the colour blend is beautiful, with its flecks of purple and red on a rich orange background. But they're also pretty scratchy. I usually wear thin gloves underneath.

A honey glow

Apologies to my vegan friends, but I just adore beeswax candles. They're purported to having air-purifying qualities, and indeed, they impart a delicate yet intoxicating honey smell in the room. Unfortunately we don't have a fireplace, but these natural candles are certainly the next best thing. They create a warming glow on cold nights. Perfect to knit by.

These people make the best ones that I know of. Worth every penny, and if you take care of them properly, they last quite a long time.

A few of my favourite things...

I've decided start a series of posts showing you some of the little things that brighten my everyday.



Brewing a "cuppa" in my favourite teapot. Especially while cuddled up on the couch watching Corrie on a cold Sunday morning. Pure bliss.