The 10 1/2 Hour Sweater

I needed a project. I was spending too much time in the evenings reading nonsense on my phone or watching nonsense on tv. It's been years since I knit a sweater, for myself or anyone else. I used to do a lot of knitting. I just sort of stopped. So, I decided it was time to knit a sweater for myself. I wanted something big and cozy and cheerful; something I couldn't just buy at the store or order online. 

I scrolled through Ravelry and wasn't inspired and then remembered that Lion Brand Yarn had free patterns. I found a pattern for a pullover with a simple cable twist on the front that seemed like a fun, quick knit. It called for super bulky yarn and used size 15(!) needles. (As a brief aside, I learned to knit on size 10 needles and they seemed huge to me then. Size 15s border on ridiculous in my mind.) The pattern called for Lion Brand's Homespun yarn, but I chose to use their Wool Ease Thick and Quick (80% acrylic, 20% wool) in a beautiful variegated color palette called Astroland. I did some comparison shopping and ended up ordering six skeins from Michael's. Four days later, a box of yarn appeared on my front step.

A box of potential.

I started knitting right away. After doing a test block, and confirming that I'm a tight knitter, I chose my size and started at it. I finished the back of the sweater the first evening.

Knit, knit, knit.

The back took nearly two full skeins. Logically, the front would take a similar amount. That would leave two skeins - one for each sleeve. I began worrying about what would happen if the sleeves needed more yarn. I didn't want to run short. So, the next day, I went to our local Michael's store to buy one more skein. The original six skeins had to be ordered because, while our local store did have some in stock, it didn't have enough. When knitting with solid color yarn, one must consider lot number so the color is consistent. With the variegated yarn, I didn't think that would be as much of a concern. As it turned out, of the two skeins of Astroland available to purchase in person, one was the same lot number as the yarn I had ordered. Confident in having enough yarn, I spent the weekend knitting. By mid-afternoon three days after receiving my order, I had all the pieces of my sweater knitted. 

All the parts.

I hate sewing pieces together, so the back and the front and the sleeves sat for an additional day before blocked them then sewed them together. All told, it took me 10 hours and 31 minutes to make my sweater. (I actually ran the stopwatch on my phone while I was working on it so I  could see how long it would take.)  

All done and so cozy!

As it turned out, I didn't actually need that extra skein of yarn I bought while in a bit of a panic. I even had some of two other skeins left over.

The remains of the project.

The label on the yarn showed how many skeins were needed for certain things -  2 for a scarf, 7 for a sweater (even though I only used 6), and 1 for a hat. So, I made a hat. I didn't time this one but I finished it in an afternoon. The claim that one skein made a hat was strikingly accurate. When I was finished, I only had about 6 feet of yarn left.

One skein, you say?

Yup, one skein!

And, because I had a little more of the sweater yarn left over, I added a big pompom to the top.

Cute and super warm too.

My new sweater was a great, quick knitting project and the bonus hat was a lot of fun too. The only problem is that now I want to knit something else! 

Back When I Was a Creator of Fantasy

Many, many years ago, my father made me a Spanish hacienda-style dollhouse. At that time, miniatures were very popular and everyone in my family had either a dollhouse or a model train set. My grandmother's was a Swiss chalet. My sister's was southern-style with tall columns on the porch. My mom decorated shadow boxes, rather than a full dollhouse, with colonial-style room settings. My preteen self enjoyed the south-western aesthetic - earthy pastels, terracotta pottery, geometric rugs, bleached cow skulls - so the hacienda was perfect. I lovingly painted each room the perfect color and constructed a little kiva fireplace all by myself. I probably even made some furniture for it out of balsa wood, but I can't remember. At that age, I lost interest in things rather quickly. I gave up on furnishing the dollhouse and it sat untouched for I don't know how long. Then, one unremarkable day, I was struck by inspiration and the hacienda became a fantasy realm filled with fairies, gnomes, dark hooded figures, mermaids, and other mystical creatures.

My hacienda fantasy dollhouse.

By my mid-teens I was deep into fantasy and my forgotten dollhouse was the perfect place to create my own magical world. The entrance hall and living room was the realm of the fairies - delicate, handcrafted felt creatures with butterfly wings made of painted feathers that were easy to find at the local craft stores at the time. All the figures were, in fact, handmade by me of felt. Felt was cheap, easy to get, didn't ravel when cut, and was very easy to hand sew. The white unicorn liked to hang out in the fairies' living room when it wasn't just chilling on the front porch.

Where the fairies are.

The kitchen was where the dark hooded figures gathered to perform rituals. They did more conjuring than cooking in there so they never bothered with getting any major appliances. The dark unicorn enjoyed spending time with them.

Not sure what they were up to but none of the other residents seemed concerned.

Upstairs, the gnomes took up residence in one of the bedrooms. Theirs was a wilder setting, closer to nature, as they liked it. There was even a small stream running though that was likely a leak from the adjacent bathroom.

The yellow cootie was not a pest, it was a pet.

The gnomes' favorite food was acorns. While none actually grew in the house, they would magically appear in the fairies' living room. The gnomes would take turns venturing to the first floor to collect them. 

Just stay out of the fairies' way and you'll be fine.

The mermaids lived in the bathroom, as should be expected. They are the only residents with actual faces. Markers don't do precision work on felt, so I decided to keep the rest of my little creations expressionless.

The water bill was huge at this house.

The second bedroom was an arid place filled with sand and warm stones. A serpent moved in with its hoard of priceless (plastic) jewels. It never troubled anyone else in the house as long as they didn't get too curious about its treasure.

Careful little fairy! Look but don't touch.

There was a slight infestation of tiny red bears. They may have come from under the stairs but no one knew for sure. They only lurked and watched so all the residents decided it was easiest to just let them be.

Like an endless game of hide and seek.

I remember having such fun poring over the walls, shelves, and bins in craft stores searching for the perfect thing that would make my fantasy hacienda more complete. I intended to collect old bark from my dad's sawmill to cover the roof. I don't remember what my plan was for the siding. As usual, I lost interest. This time, the dollhouse sat for 30-ish years gathering dust. It's still at my parents' house. I was there this week. I don't think I'll revisit the old hacienda but it did make me wonder when I stopped creating things. I do some knitting and sewing now and then, but nothing like when I was a teen. Maybe the practicality of adulthood took over. I need to see about changing that.