Thursday, January 22, 2009

Barbarian crossing…

A longish while ago, in a galaxy far, far away, in a land where I had disposable income…I bought a Viking Hat kit. (Along with perhaps a Dale of Norway pattern book or two.)

As is often the case with these things, the kit went into the “pending” file…and then a few other things piled on top of it…and then volcanoes erupted and created new land forms…and then the super-continent broke apart and there was upheaval and stuff, and things that used to be on the bottom went to the top and there were some shawls knit and some sweaters cranked out and sock after sock after sock…and then there was some kind of earthquake or something and lo! The kit was pushed to the surface again!

So I knit it.

Viking Hat

This was a really fun project. It went fast, and has produced a hat that is good and warm. Since the barbarian I intend to give it to lives in the Arctic Lands of the Sierras, good and warm is highly desirable.

Since the horns are created separately and sewn on, you can also just leave ‘em off…if, you know, your resident barbarian is trying to go incognito and such. Personally, if I did them again, I think I’d make the horns a little bit bigger. But then, I long ago gave up such things as dignity and pride.

I’m back to working on the Old Lady Jacket Rustic Jacket, but I confess I’m having motivational issues on it. SEE, the sleeves? They’re, like, enormously wide? I mean, really, they are…designed for lots and lots and lots of freedom of movement.

Which, taken all by itself is a good thing. Who likes a jacket that binds your arms to your sides? Nobody. So the fact that these sleeves are kind of extra wide at the top and going into armholes that practically go from shoulder to hip isn’t such a bad thing. It’s a jacket that would go over a sweater. Good thing.

The bad thing is, they’re done in double moss stitch, which I have decided is a kind of knitting purgatory. Yards and yards and yards of knit, purl, knit, purl, knit, purl…yarn forward, yarn back, yarn forward, yarn back…yawn…I’m about an inch from being done with the first sleeve, BUT THEN, I have to do the other sleeve.

And it’s taking for-ev-ah.

And I’m just sort of in an instant gratification kind of mood lately.

But I’m also in a finishing things up mood. First of all, I have no available #6 needles, because they are all attached to in-progress projects. Secondly, most of my canvas bags (which are supposed to be for shopping) are likewise unavailable because they have been pressed into project storage.

And thirdly, finishing up projects that are already well underway should be fairly close to instant gratification, shouldn’t they? I mean, when you’ve got the front, back and most of one sleeve done, you’re practically there, right?

…except for that conflabbed double moss stitch thing, with the k1-p1-k1-p1 on and on and on

But! Nevertheless! I knit on bravely! Because I need my needles and my bags back, and also I would like to get this finished before it becomes shorts and tank top weather again.

…but I think I will make a point of avoiding things with moss or seed stitch bases for a while…

8 comments:

Crowzma said...

I feel your seed-stitch pain. I've been making my niece an afghan - simple project, no? 5 cable panels framed by six k1, p1, k1, p1 seed stitch panels. She wanted it big enough for her double bed.

I'm not the world's fastest knitter, but I knit virtually every evening and can easily knock off a pair of socks in four evenings. But this seed stitch thing? It's becoming my life work, I think.

Stick to it. The jacket will be worth the effort.

Dysd Housewife said...

Now see.. I knew there was a reason I crochet instead. LOL I can do a whole mile a minute afghan by the time you finish a sleeve!!

natasha the exile on Mom Street said...

I don't knit.

But I shop! Does that count?

And dude, my son NEEDS a viking hat. Suits him to a "T".

I thought originally that a fish hat was the way to go, but for this particular pillager, it's gotta be the horns.

Firegarnet said...

I've got 5 more rows to finish a project up. 273 stitches per row of seed. And it is taking me forever. And ever. I feel like I'm the slowest knitter ever when I work on it. Bah.

Anonymous said...

My purgatory is garter stitch at the moment: a should-have-been Christmas gift for mom, except for that whole pneumonia thing. Regardless, I did find a solution which makes it all better: my beloved recorded books. I load the iPod and can stare without seeing the stitches while I'm in Hawaii, or Scotland, or the back streets of Boston. Good luck - you can do it!

MadMad said...

Oh, it is very cute! But even better is your description of the seismic shifts that occur in one's knitting stash: brilliant! That is EXACTLY the way it works!

Anonymous said...

You crack me up. I want a hat like that for my youngest....he really is a Viking sort of kid. Too funny.

Lydee said...

that hat is a crack-me-up!!!