who?

It's a hat with owls! Yay!


This is for my brother, whose mangyle will never be done. Certainly not for christmas. He always sends me pictures of owls, so i figured he'd appreciate it. Anyway, just for PoorLuci, here's what I did:


Who?

Materials:
1 ball Nashua Creative Focus (I used half)
size 6 circular needle and dpns (or however you want to do it)
stitch marker
4 small buttons for eyes (optional, you can use more, less, or none at all)
sewing needle and thread

Sizes:
infant (child, adult) Note about sizing: I've only tested the adult size, please let me know about any problems with the smaller size and I'll be happy to fix them.

Abbreviations:
C4F: slip two sts onto cable needle and hold in front, k2, k2 from cable neeedle
C4B: slip two sts onto cable needle and hold in back, k2, k2 from cable needle

Owl Cable pattern:
(multiple of 11 sts)
Rounds 1-3: *p3, k8, repeat from * to end
Round 4: *p3, C4B, C4f, repeat from * to end
Rounds 5-11: same as round 1
Round 12: same as round 4
Round 13: same as round 1
Rounds 14-15: *p3, k1, p2, k2, p2, k1. repeat from * to end
Round 16-17: same as round 1
Round 18: same as round 4
Round 19: same as round 1

Directions:
Cast on 92 (100, 112) sts, join in round and work in 2x2 ribbing for 1 inch.
Switch to stockinette and work for 5 rounds, decreasing 4(1,2) sts evenly spaced in row 3. 88(99, 110) sts.

Work 19 rows of owl cable pattern over all sts.
Knit 1 or more rows and increase 0(5,2) sts. 88 (104, 112) sts.

Continue in stockinette stitch until work measures 4.5 (5, 6) inches including ribbing or to desired length.

Decrease as follows: (nothing mysterious here, just like a regular hat)
*K 9(11, 12) k2tog, repeat from * to end.
K1 round plain.
K 8(10, 11), k2tog.
K1 plain.
Continue decreasing in this manner until 40 (56, 64) sts remain.
Then decrease every round (no plain rounds) until 8 sts remain. Cut yarn and pass through remaining sts to fasten off.

Weave in all ends and block.

Sew buttons over the purl sections within the cable pattern that form the owl's eyes. I only did 2 owls, but you could do as many as you want. To be sure that the thread doesn't pull through, tie a nice big knot.

Pattern and photos © Sara Amoroso, 2008-2009. Permission is given for personal use only. This pattern or items made from it may not be sold.

stashy

Just for the record, I haven't abandoned de-stashing. But yesterday an exuberant mood, sock inspiration, a long-lingering gift certificate, and a fair bit of luck combined to get me a great amount of yarn for very little cash.
First, I went to Northampton Wools. I had a $30 gift certificate from when I left my last job. I'd been in there before with the intent to spend it, but didn't find anything that grabbed me. However, this time I laid hands on some lovely Manos Silk Blend. The three skeins only cost me $31.20, because there's a sale going on. I paid the balance in quarters and dimes. My aunt has always loved Nothampton Wools, and it's a local legend, but I'm not as fond of it as others. I find that the people are a little chilly, and it encourages me to leave quickly when I do go in there. It's a shame, because it's a neat little place.

Still seeking sock yarn, I went down the street to WEBS, where their Valley Yarns (house brand) of Franklin sock yarn is my easy favorite. It's hand dyed by an employee, known as the "Kangaroo Dyer," and all the colorways are awesome. I thought I would get the "frog in a party dress" colorway, but ended up grabbing "miami vice" instead. It's going to become socks for a friend who, upon becoming an Army JAG, has to wear combat boots and digital desert fatigues every day. I'm hoping that a secret color riot on her feet will give her a psychological boost as she confronts what seems to be a rather difficult environment.

I also got a skein of Artyarns Ultramerino 4 in coloway 106. I'll be pairing this with some stashed purple Jawoll to make the Fred and George socks. I like the almost-the-same-but-not-quite aesthetic. The skein is mostly greens, with a little yellow, but the purple shots make me confident of a match.

But the greatest coup, by far, was courtesy of the Kangaroo Dyer, who, I will emphasize, is a lovely, generous, enthusiastic person. She spotted me snapping up the Franklin and we got into a conversation about her colors. She showed me some of her new experiments, including a really spring-timey one tentatively called "peeps." There was also a beautiful blue skein that was brighter than her other blue colors. She was showing me a new laceweight tencel, then gave me two skeins to try out! I can't believe it! I'm planning to make myself a Shetland Triangle because I was so sad to see the first one go, even to my mom. The yarn is so beautiful and soft, and it shines like silk. I'm so excited that I can hardly bear it. When I wound it this morning, it was very fine, and seemed quite strong.

On other fronts, I've finished one Rainbow sock, but will probably second-sock it for a while because I'm, once again, sick of Sockotta. The cotton content makes it a little joy-less to knit.

destashy!

I'm quite proud of my new leftovers vest. No new yarn was purchased to make this somewhat eccentric fashion item. I set it aside for a while; as you can see, there are some (ahem) gauge discrepancies in the lower portion. However, they disappear when I'm wearing it, so I'm not one to fuss.

There is one issue, though: odor. My friend Janice, who gave me lots of yarn to use in this project, stores a lot of her things in mothballs. I let the yarn out-gas in my unheated hall closet, hoping the cold, fresh air would do it some good. (Yes, I know things evaporate better at higher temperatures, but it's winter!) It helped, but when I blocked it, the smell of mothballs wafted up from the sink, probably activated by the heat. I tried to neutralize the smell of naptha with a touch of fabric softener, but like the klutz I am, I dumped a bunch in. :( Now it smells a bit strongly of softener. I should rinse it again, but it took forever to dry, and I'm enjoying it (at short stretches) for now.

on the difficulty of photographing one's own feet

Argyle socks are done! And socks are always the most difficult thing to photograph. They always look best on feet, and I usually take my pictures during the day, when the muddy winter light is at least present, if not flattering. That means I'm stuck trying to take pictures of my own feet. The easiest place to do this is the stairs, because that removes some of the contortions, and there's a window right at the bend where the stairs are widest. But my stairs also have horrible brown mottled carpets that look mostly inoffensive in person, but ghastly in pictures. I suppose I could drape them in something, but today I just ended up using my favorite photo background: the goosedown. It's puffy!

So for some project details, here goes. The pattern is Argyle Sock by Edie Eckman. It's put together as a lesson with clear and complete instruction. Despite the wailing and gnashing of teeth that seems to accompany argyle, I didn't find these that difficult. Of course, I did duplicate-stitch the lines. Knitting them in seems to increase the complexity by many fold. The yarn is Brown Sheep Nature Spun Sport for the MC and CC, the lines are purple Dalegarn Baby Ull and Valley Yarns Franklin in cancun. Done on size 3 dpns and a short circular for the flat parts. I would not recommend this for anyone who doesn't like sewing in ends. Also, I might use a DK weight if I were to do these again. The fabric is certainly not a sturdy as my usual socks, but I imagine they'll hold up to normal wear. If not, they were quick and fun enough to make that I wouldn't cry to do it again.