War Wounds & Hair Today, Gone Tomorrow

What have I been up to, you ask? Well, less than usual I guess. First off, I will warn you this is an animal intensive post. So, why have I been up to less lately? Well, last Saturday morning as I was in the glow of just waking up when one of my dogs got spooked and started freaking out. Of course, this just got the other one started and next thing I know, I've got two dogs snarling at each other on the bed with me. I reached out blindly with sleep glazed eyes and managed to stick my hand directly into a mouth. Ouch! Those little teeth are sharp. Anyway, it all resulted in me with a giant finger for a few days, which makes knitting less than ideal. It didn't stop me though as you can see above. I was determined to get some wristers finished for my new step-daughter (that still sounds weird) and a little thing like a giant finger was not going to stop me. The good thing is I realized I really only use that finger for tensioning so it wasn't too bad.

On to the results. I based my wristers on the Leftover Mitts I found through Ravelry but I used the leftover Urchin yarn in combination with a solid corresponding black I had. Since I had the two colors, I just didn't start the cable until row 15 in the pattern and then I worked one extra twist in the cable pattern up the arm. I'm pleased with the results and so is Jess. (Try to hear Madonna's Vogue as you scroll through these photos)

I've also been working on some dishtowels I am trading for necklaces and earrings sets. I love bartering.

Other than those two things, I've made some progress on a pair of socks but I don't have any photos.

So what else has been going on? Well, my cat has been slightly traumatized. You see, he is very furry...

Or should I say "he was very furry..."

Or he could just be an alien...

Whatever he is, the other cats aren't sure what to think. Thank goodness this only temporary. He'll be back to normal before we know it. For now, he'll just have to deal with the furmiliation.

Who Woulda Thunk?

So, have you ever had a weekend where you know you're going to learn some amazing new things, but you really don't expect it to be about knitwear and yet when part of it is, it is so cool. OK, I know that was the run-on sentence from hell, but I've had one hell of a weekend. This weekend was spent meeting my step-daughter for the first time and she's 16 years old. Wow! Now I'm not going to get into my personal business on here so let's just say there were some circumstances that kept her out of the lives of my partner and me for the last 13 years but things have changed and she spent the entire Labor Day weekend with us.

Now, I can safely say I have a lot to learn about being a "mom" to a 16 year old. I did learn a few things this weekend though. I learned:

1. I really prefer music where someone plays instruments, not a computer
2. I didn't really like the fashion of the 80's in the 80's
3. Blue eyeshadow can actually look pretty cute on some kids
4. High school Algebra is a lot harder when you're 40

Well, I think you get the picture. But there was one thing that I was really surprised to learn and thus the reason I write this post. So let me take you back in time a bit...are you hearing Scooby Doo flashback noises? Good, we're almost there.

Seriously though, a number of months ago I decided to make the Urchin Hat by Ysolda. I love the look of it on the Ravelry project page and the construction looked interesting since short rows were pretty new to me so I decided to give it a go. I bought some Debbie Bliss yarn from my LYS and cast on. The hat went super quick and I loved it until I realized why it was going so quick; it was way too small.OK, time to try again. This time I want found some Rowan yarn called Spray from Webs and that was my next mistake. I loved knitting the hat but the yarn was way too bulky and the whole thing ended up much to stiff to be very wearable. Bummer.But alas, I am not one to be so easily deterred. As I said, I really enjoyed the knitting of the hat and I knew if I just found the right yarn, the hat would be great. So, back to Web's sale yarn to find some Rowan Chunky Print. I really like this yarn. The colors are pinks and charcoal greys and I just loved it. I got started right away on the hat and I think it was finished in maybe two nights. As I finished sewing in the last end, I placed it on my head and really...nope.

It sorta sucked. I loved the color and the look of it but it was just not working for me. I put it in a bag and really didn't think much more about it until this weekend.

This weekend Jessi asked me to see some of my knitting, and who am I to say no. I pulled out the bag of finished stuff I have in the corner and I came across the third knitted Urchin. I held it up to Jessi, she put it on her head and viola...something I never expected...it just looked darn cute on her. (ignore the 16 year old expression of near tolerance)
It really did look great on her and I really did learn something; sometimes you just have to find the right head for the hat.