I finally finished the first men's chemo hat I cast on, that's what I did. I'm not a very fast knitter and I'm not a very project monogamous knitter either.
The crocheted one which was the third one was slightly problematic. I started it, frogged it, restarted it using a different pattern, refrogged that one, re-restarted it using yet another pattern, re-refrogged that one, finally started it again with my old-standby pattern and a one size smaller hook and finished that one at work on Tuesday, which took up quite a bit of my time as you can imagine. That's it below in all its chamo-y glory.
So last night after supper I reloaded my 2 chemo hap project bags (one crochet & one knit) with new man-approved yarns (I ran them by Durwood) and plunged in again. I'm determined to crochet a Zac Brown Band-style beanie, even though that's one of the patterns I tried before and ripped out, but I think I figured out what I was doing wrong. It's the brown blob on the left. So far, so good.
I found a similar rib-knit hat pattern to the original one that calls for a bigger needle (I'm really a big yarn/big needle girl) and cast that one on in the black. When I was digging for yarns for the hats I found a tiny scrap of a black, white & gray yarn that I slapped in after the first few rows just so it isn't solid black. I know, I know guys like solid black (boring) hats but this is just a little bit of interest I don't think they'll mind, do you? I promise I'll do an all-black one next. Men need to get with color, all this blue, brown, gray, forest green, and black is just plain dull. Dull, dull, dull. Perk it up, guys, walk on the wild side. How about a nice rust?
I got my teeth cleaned in the afternoon too but there are no photos of that. You're welcome.
On Sunday when I was moving all my knitting clutter out of the living room I realized that I stopped knitting my daily rows sometime in late October. It made me feel like a slacker, so I brought it to work with me yesterday and knitted a few rows. I clipped the last variegated, autumn-leaf-colored yarn and brought some solid gold yarn today to represent the last few weeks of all-yellow leaves. There's not a lof of the gold left so I'm going to knit with it to the end, there are still a few maple helicopters left hanging so it's a valid color choice, and then splice in another brown.
I rolled it out to take its picture and measured it, and it's over 100 inches long. It's Week #46, only 6 more weeks and then I can bind off this beast. Put it behind me.
Aunt B had an interesting suggestion to turn up the ends to make pockets so that I can wind it around and then shove my hands into them. It might work. Way to think outside the box, Aunt B!
But closer. On our drive up to Kugel's Cheese Mart in Lena on Saturday I knitted on the final miter of the Hubbard Grand-Baby Blanket and got almost done, so I finished that last corner last night while watching the Firefly 10 Year Anniversary special. Which was kind of lame; I enjoyed watching the marathon of episodes all afternoon and evening much more. Now all that the blanket needs is edging. The pattern says to pick up stitches on each side separately, knit an increasing strip of edging, bind off, and then go to the next side. Seems kind of odd to me so I'll be thinking about what to do. Maybe just crochet a few rows. The second ball of yarn ran out before the end of the last miter. See the lower right corner? I just grabbed the third ball and kept going not really looking at the color progression. I kind of like it. "One of these is not like the other..." Sing it with me!
I had hopes of finishing another chemo hat but I kept crocheting and then frogging (ripping out) what I had done and starting over. I think I'm on the third pattern and the fourth hat with this yarn. Good thing it's acrylic or I'd have worn it out by now. I had hopes of making a Zac Brown Band-type beanie and found a pattern. That was try #3. Evidently the band has coneheads. I'm back to my original standard crocheted hat pattern only I'm using one size smaller hook. I know, radical.
I only added one row to my knitted one; that's not going to get it finished anytime soon, is it? No. I also noticed my Maple Tree Scarf in its little plastic package when I was de-crap-ifying the living room this morning. It has become increasingly difficult to even remember to knit my down-and-back rows weekly much less daily. I've got it here at work with me and will be caught up by the end of the day. Cross my heart. I don't know what I'm going to do with it because it is so long and so thick, it'll be long enough to keep a giraffe's neck warm.
Durwood and I had an appointment with our financial advisor this morning early and when I left the building to come to work there were white specks of some sort of precipitation falling from the sky. Snow-ish sort of stuff. Yikes. I'm not psychologically ready for snow although we did get the tuned-up snowblower back from the fixit shop on Thursday so we're good to go when the flakes really do fly. (better get gas)
I went along with Durwood for another radiology appointment on Friday (don't they have enough pictures of his insides yet? they take a new one every 6 month) and noticed for the first time that they've got a wicker trunk full of chemo caps for women and a small box of ball caps for men. Nothing warm and soft for a newly bald man's head, so I put out a call to the board members of Bay Lakes Knitting Guild right away, I plan to put it on the BLKG blog today, and now I'm telling you. I'm guessing that it's the same all over, everyone makes cute knitted and crocheted caps for women and the men are out of luck. I understand that some men choose to shave their heads (DS included) as a fashion statement so a man who has lost his hair during chemo doesn't stand out like a woman in the same boat does, but those caps are also a symbol of caring and hope and support. Men might pretend to be he-men but they do have feelings (I know they do, I've seen it) and the disparity between the sexes couldn't be more obvious. I'm asking all knitters and crocheters out there to do what guild member, Andy's doing and work up your leftover balls of yarn into a few caps for men. Swing by your local oncology clinic or wherever they're needed (like a VA hospital where nearly all the cancer patients are men) and spread a little yarn-y love. My plan is to have one always OTN (on the needles) or OTH (on the hook) so that when I need a little break, a little instant project gratification, I can work on a hat and therefore have a tidy pile that I can deliver once a month.
Think about this; making a few he-man chemo caps could be the one good deed that springs your soul from Purgatory and ushers it right through the Pearly Gates when the time comes... I'm just saying.
Lastly how about a gratuitous cute grand-dog picture. Here's Porter bored with all the football games and no one taking her outside to play.
After supper last night I trundled downstairs and finished that last damned paper pieced quilt block. I will not be making any more blocks with that technique. I'm definitely more of a random, free sewing girl myself, not one to be stitching small, odd-shaped pieces of fabric together--trim, fold, measure, unfold, pin, and finally stitch. Annoying. Can you believe that you sew the pieces directly on the paper pattern and then have to tear the paper off before the put the parts together?
One of the other people on the Craftsy Block Of the Month class site used a website to plan her quilt top so I went over there and plonked mine in, then I noticed that their toolbar had appeared on my screen. I didn't like that so I straightaway uninstalled it. I saved it but danged if I can find it. I'll go look again but I'm not hopeful.
*Finished Objects. I've been a good girl, not only making new things but finishing something that's been hanging around for a while. Longer than I thought when I checked the project file on Ravelry, seeing that I cast this on in October 2009. Holy bejeebers! That's way longer ago than I remembered, but a good thing it is that my knitting skills matured in the intervening time so that the pattern made sense when I picked it up again. That's a very good thing, since I rediscovered this pattern because I've got more yarn I want to knit it up in. Anyway, it's warm and soft and (I think) gorgeous. The pattern says to put on a button and an I-cord loop to use as a closer but I've got a curve of shell that I think I'll use as a shawl pin instead.
Yesterday afternoon I cast on another one of those tiny purse keyrings and I finished it this afternoon. This one went much easier because of all the snafus in the first one. It's even tinier than the first one. It's no picnic knitting with that thin, fingering weight yarn on US1 needles (think long toothpicks). The darned stitches like to slip off the needles especially when I'm binding off for the straps and inevitably I drop one and have the devil of a time picking it back up. You might ask why I keep knitting them if they're so frustrating and I don't have an answer, but I do have yarn picked out for the other two styles in the pattern. If any of you think of a practical use for them, let me know.
I've been almost monogamous (well, about as monogamous as I ever am with this kind of stuff) in my dedication to the Hubbard Baby blanket. I finished mitered square #2 at work on Thursday and cast on #3 right away. This is a great, simple pattern, perfect TV, waiting room, and knitting night knitting because it doesn't really require much concentration. As long as I keep repositioning my turquoise "right side" marker so that it's near where I'm working I'm good. I really like how this is turning out; I hope the grandmother likes it too.
I stopped by the library branch this morning to pick up a couple of books I had reserved and there on the "feature" shelf was this book, Knitmare on Elm Street, sitting there looking at me. Just looking at the cover made me giggle and when I flipped the pages and saw the pattern for a shrunken head I knew I had to check it out. There's all kinds of cute Halloween-y patterns in this book. I may never make any of these things but they sure are fun to look at.
I finally finished the first men's chemo hat I cast on, that's what I did. I'm not a very fast knitter and I'm not a very project monogamous knitter either. 
