Twas the Night Before Christmas...

As you may recall from my last post, I was trying to finish the Hat from Hell (HFH). I was working to finish it quickly so that I could use the circular needles to make The Boyfriend a hat (that was the "secret present" I'm using the navy and grey Bernat yarn for). I worked like a fiend for about 3 nights to finish the HFH (and believe me, it wasn't easy). When I finished I checked the size of the needles the Boyfriend Hat called for and the size needles I had (you know, just to be sure). Lo and behold, the HFH needles are 3 sizes larger than the Boyfriend Hat calls for. The moral of the story? Check needle sizes twice, cast on once.

So, no big deal, I'll pick up the right sized needles later. For now I give you

The Hat From Hell in all it's glory (posed here on the Christmas tree to display it's size and bulk).

It's not a bad hat really. Very thick and warm. Here is yours truly trying to model the HFH while not messing up my super styled hair or looking like an idiot (neither really working out for me).

At least I have a hat for New York now. However, there was over 1/2 a pound of both the yarns I used for the HFH left over. And I never want to see them again. I'm thinking about shoving them in the back of the closet and forgetting about them. If you want the pattern go here (Just a side note: When you get down to 30 stitches I would switch to DPNs to finish. Using circulars the whole time is rather difficult but do-able. I used circulars throughout but found the last rows hard to manage.) The Autumn Scarf is almost done.

A newly shaved Persian cat covered in the scarf and the yarn I have left to finish it. I'm like a demon with the needles. I have the energy of 12 knitters. I can see the end of the project and it beacons me. I'm knitting with a new fury. I'm a knitter who isn't going to have time to bake mac and cheese and an appetizer for Christmas Eve dinner tonight if she doesn't get off her bum and go to the store, pronto. Oops.

My next post may be a few days in coming. I received a new digital camera for Christmas (The Boyfriend is in so much trouble) so I need to set that up. Plus the holiday dinners and presents. And then I'll be in New York. Look for me by the end of the weekend.

I wish you all safe travels and a very Merry Christmas!

Why I'm No Longer Allowed in Any Store That Sells Yarn

After I had a massage this morning I went to Wal-Mart for the first time in months (this should tell you something about the local Wal-Mart that I have to be completely and totally relaxed before I even think about entering there). I went to pick up this:

A birthday present for my aunt. What I came out with is this:

So I might have new thing for Bernat chunky yarn.


I have explanations for most of these purchases. The navy and grey are going to be used for a secret present. The size 6 needles, I am convinced, will bring me the utmost happiness and joy when I knit these bad boys

into a fuzzy, lace type scarf. The other Bernat yarn? I have no excuse for it except to say that I loved the color, they were both from the same dye lot, they were the last 2 skeins, and they were less than $2 each. I think they will knit up into a fab scarf.

Work on the preemie-baby-sweater-that-may-never-end continues. Here it hangs out in the specially designated "blocking sink" (isn't it nice that even though I have a tiny apartment I have 2 bathroom sinks so I can devote one solely to soaking my knit projects?!?!).

I started blocking the back and one of the front panels and then I ran out of t-pins (should have picked up that second box today at Wal-Mart).
You can see how the blocking changes the front panel's size. On the left is the right panel and the on the right is the unblocked left panel.

Finally, I owe the faggot stitch scarf, which I've renamed the autumn scarf due to the pretty burnt color, an apology. A few nights ago I cursed at it. I said not nice things to it. And it was all my fault. I was reading blogs while trying to knit. I wasn't paying attention. I may have missed one of the billion K2togs that happens in this scarf. And I lost it. It had nothing, I assure you, to do with the fact that it was almost midnight (ok, it had everything to do with that). After yelling and much sighing I began the process of ripping back to a row where I could actually see where the stitches were all the while praying that I wouldn't have to frog the whole thing (since that has already happened 3 times).

I find a row where I'm able to pick up all the stitches and then feel compelled to knit all the rows I had to pull out (somewhere between 5 and 10). As I start to knit I realize that the yarn overs are twisted in the wrong direction and the other stitches probably are too. But I press on fixing as I go. I do not end up knitting all the rows that I pulled out before shear exhaustion took over. I was a little upset that I could not finish one project perfectly, but then look at this:

Can you find the wonky row? Neither can I. And I've looked closely. Thank you autumn scarf for being so forgiving and hiding all my mistakes deep within your super soft rows. Never again will I be angry with you.