Murder Cowl

So to preface this post: I don’t know how people are in love with designing. There are too many effing decisions to make. This cowl came about out of necessity. I saw a pattern that looked kinda, enh, janky but I’d seen it done in a magazine in a different yarn and it looked pretty hot. It turned out it was really the dude modeling it that was hot and not so much the pattern. Well crap, here I was left needing something and with a kind of lame (and totally humongous) pattern. I needed to modify and in the end just do my own thing. That’s how the Murder Cowl was born.

No stopping him, he’s looking to the future.

Also, can you believe how long that hair is getting? It’s almost like the Great Beard Experiment of ’08. Only hairier.

John’s parents got me a gift certificate to my yarn store last year for Christmas. So I figured, what better way to punish reward them than to knit them something from their gift, right? John picked out this yarn, it’s Elsbeth Lavold Silky Flamme- with accent marks. He picked out the colors. He just didn’t have any ideas for projects. Those skeins had about enough for a hat in them. But apparently his dad doesn’t wear hats but he will wear a scarf. (Sure, logic that works.)

I refuse to make any more scarves.

I mean, really, screw that noise. So a gaiter seemed like a good middle ground for everyone involved.

I asked Julie if I should do all the cables at the same time or if I should stagger them. She had the most awesome answer:

“You should stagger them. Because stagger rhymes with dagger and then it could be a murder cowl.”

Hell yes! I mean, there’s all kinds of strife and drama involved here. Multiple colors vying for attention. Staggered mock v. real ass cable. Nothing is going the same way, it’s all haphazard and willy-nilly. In all that chaos, you’d never know if someone got shanked. At one point I didn’t know if I was writing a cowl pattern or a scene from Oz. Either way: intense hotness.

If his dad wears this thing once I’ll consider it a success.

Two Cookies, no fat

You really can’t listen to anything I say. When I say I won’t post in November because I’m writing, well that’s a lie. Because once I announce anything to the World that automagically kills it. My life is amazing like that. I can’t post a book I’m reading on Goodreads or I suddenly become illiterate. I can’t tell you all about upcoming projects or I’ll probably accidentally set fire to all my yarn or something. *ohdeargodnoknockonwood*

I have a sweet internet buddy who I’m friends with on Ravelry. She made some super sexy mitts so I messaged her and when she messaged back she asked, still no wips?

Well crap, I guess not. Everything I’ve worked on has been dormant or it’s super quick and not really a work in progress so much as just happening. However I did finally bind off on a new sock and it was a new technique and everything. Elizabeth Zimmerman’s sewn bind off. Which I heard from Michelle, the sock queen, is a good way to bind off your toe up socks. Who knew?

Leaving me with two Cookie A. socks. Both without mates and they’re probably not going to get them any time soon. On the left is Rick, which I started this summer but got bummed out on. On the right is my recently finished Hedera. While I love the pattern and I love the Cherry Tree Hill yarn, I don’t think the two sit well with each other.

Plus the two together make me think of Christmas and the knitting I should do for that which makes me want to barf.

Also thanks a lot Fall for making the sun go away so early so I can’t get any good pictures outside anymore.

I did finish my first gift… but it’s for my mom and since she’s kind of picky about things, I probably won’t give it to her since it’s huge and she’s tiny and she probably won’t like it. FAIL.

Since I’ve never seen my mom wear a hat in the Winter, I decided to make her a head band. Well I restarted this sucker a few times because it was HUUUUGGGGGEEE. Even modified it’s still freaking gigantic. However, the Malabrigo was nice to work with, despite it being wool and the pattern is cool: Calorimetry. That is, if you’re into huge ass head bands. Which I think I kind of am. Huh.

ex-werewolves and murder bags

So, I don’t know if you’d call me a last minute person but I definitely seem to be lately. We knew our friends were having a party like a ridiculous amount of time in advance and we knew they had really planned out their costumes. However we didn’t decide what we wanted to be until Thursday of last week. Which basically left Friday to go out and get stuff for our costumes. Then I had to stitch up a mask and bing bang boom, we had Halloween costumes. Kinda.

John went as a werewolf that had turned back into a human. Or himself after he gets angry and takes it out on his clothes. I mean, really guys, he’s so very angry and serious because Halloween is definitely serious business.

Are you guys serious yet? Because he’d hate to have to go all werewolf angry on the cute floral pillow in the background that Jessica made. It was our friends Jessica and Joey who had the party and they went as Travis Touchdown and Sylvia Christel (from No More Heroes). So here’s a picture for reference.

Here they are:

I was loading my pictures into iPhoto and I realized that man, I really do suck at taking pictures lately. I didn’t have any of my costume! I didn’t take very many of the other people at the party. Mostly because I didn’t know them so I didn’t want a bunch of pictures of strangers. Especially photos of random strangers boobs. Because one girl who was there was all about showing everyone her boobs. Which, I guess that’s cool?

Pretty lame of me for sure. The next day I had John take some pictures of me though. I went as Dr. Henry Killinger from the Venture Bros. Here’s a reference:

Here’s me being a tool/dork/nerd:

There are some more pictures at my flickr. Hope everyone had an awesome Halloween!