A lightbulb moment

I have been working on two projects to take to my niece and nephew in Florida at Halloween.  I found an awesome chart for an Imperial Storm Trooper, so I am working on a black hat for Ryan with Bernat Glow in the Dark white yarn from last fall.  Its going to be so cool, even though I have run out of the white yarn and I'm only halfway through the storm trooper part.  (No worries just yet though, I have a lead on some from a coffee cuff that I made for my dad last year.  He doesn't use it, so he doesn't mind if I frog it.  Yay Dad!)

Shannon's hat is going to be the Hello Kitty Hat and hopefully she is going to love it.  I seem to have a big problem trusting that knitting designers know what they are talking about, when they say to only cast on 76 stitches for a child's hat.  Being me, I cast on 87 instead.  And guess what?  Its too big!!!  Its even too big for me.  I am, seriously, rolling on the couch laughing as I think about what a dope I am to not follow the directions. I mean really, what are they there for???

I am already halfway through the decreases, so you know the light is at the end of the tunnel.  Once I determined that it was going to be too big for a five-year old head, I thought how much I would hate to frog it.  Ok, its just a simple acrylic hat in stockingette, but still, that was a few hours work.



(Isn't my fall teapot cute?  Its not a very large teapot so the hat probably appears even larger than it really is.  My teapot is holding my caramel candy corn at the moment.  Yumm!   But ... I digress.)
Anyhow, I was thinking about how sad it would be to frog the hat, and then I thought, "duh - finish it and give it to charity."  It was a total lightbulb moment for me!  So that's my plan.  I'm going spend maybe another 30 minutes and then find some place to donate it.  That makes my heart happy.   The next time I think I might frog something, I am going to try really hard to remember this is an option!

Think Pink - Knit Pink!

Its October again, and there are pink ribbons everywhere to remind ladies (well, mostly ladies) to get their yearly mammograms and to do monthly self-exams.  We lost my mom to breast cancer almost 4 years ago, and I sometimes have a hard time getting through October.  On the one hand, it all reminds me that she's gone and on the other hand, I love that we spend a whole month reminding women to take care of themselves, and I love that so many companies take the opportunity to donate part of their profits to cancer research.  (My shop does too of course - 10% of the purchase price of all our pink ribbon products goes to the Susan G. Komen Foundation.)

I have been eyeing the Star Crossed Slouchy Beret pattern for some time now, but kept finding other projects to cast on.  The temperature dropped down to 40 degrees during the day this week, and its been drizzling non-stop and I really wanted to wear a hat!  What else could I do but cast on for a pretty pink one with my MMMMMMalabrigo worsted in Cactus Flower?



I love the pattern - the cables are graceful and each row is easy to memorize.  The hat works up so quickly, I think it would make a great last minute project a night or two before you really need to be gift-giving.  I used size 10.5 needles on the band to get started, and then switched to size 11 so I don't have exactly the same proportions.  The pattern called for size 10 and then size 11.  I finished it at work today, and will probably wear it home and then block it later.  My Buddha at work graciously agreed to model for me - at the moment I look like a giant pink headed mushroom wearing it!  I think I messed up some of the cables, but I can't really tell.  These photos don't do justice to the color either - it is beautiful!



This is the first time I've used Malabrigo before, and oh my gosh, it's so soft and lovely.  I have done two projects in different alpaca yarns, but this feels even softer.  I really wish I had started knitting a long time before my mom was diagnosed - all I ever knitted for her was a scarf out of Homespun.  She loved it though, and wore it daily.  I wish I could have made her a whole wardrobe of Malabrigo hats.  And maybe pajamas too - it is so soft, and the weather is so yucky here today that the thought of pj's made from Malabrigo is just heavenly.  Ooh - maybe long underwear?!?!?!

So, two thumbs up on this Finished Object - I knitted it to completion in a little over 48 hours.  Yay.  I'm not sure what I will do with the left-overs. Perhaps a coordinating cowl?

AND GO SCHEDULE YOUR MAMMOGRAM OR DO A SELF-EXAM!  Please.  It can save your life.