Poncho Power!

The Solo Cropped Poncho is finished!
I wove in the end of the tail around 8 am yesterday.

Stats Recap
The pattern is 04 Cropped Poncho from Rebecca magazine #32.
Needles: US 7 & 8
Yarn: one skein of Solo yarn from Brooks Farm in TX. I had about 3 feet left over.
Modifications: I shortened the collar to 7 cm and the total finished length is about 34 cm (compared to the 20 cm collar and 50 cm length called for in the pattern).
I figured I would work until I ran out of yarn, realizing I would probably have to tink at least one row to have enough to bind off. I ended up have to pick out a row and a half. When it looked like I was almost out of yarn I started to bind off, but it was a mess with the YO. So I tried to work a row of K1, P1 rib to make things pretty, but at the half way mark (I had a marker in place) I realized I was going to be short, so I took out that ribbing and then a row of Fisherman's Rib. Then reknit straight K1,P1 rib and finally bound off using the Russian Bind-Off as explained by WendyKnits here. phew.

Public Reaction
It has been well received. I put it on and Hubby was all like "Hey there, pretty girl."
I wouldn't have thought a poncho was such a flattering garment it would get me extra kisses. (It probably didn't hurt that I had just washed my hair, so I was all shiny and fluffy along with my pretty red poncho.)
Of course, I had to wear it to the store so other crafters could admire it.
Cynthia said it was gorgeous, so I pointed out it was the yarn she gave me.
And other people during the day thought it was adorable.

The Right Pattern Makes a Difference
I had always figured I wouldn't knit a poncho, even during the height of the craze—what two years ago?— because I didn't want all that material all over me making me look like a piece of furniture.
Hubby had suggested once before that I make a poncho. We were out somewhere and another young couple walked by, she was wearing a woven poncho that looked good. But she was slim (like me) and the material was thin, so it wasn't all over whelming.
This poncho, however, being cropped and from a DK weight yarn, isn't overwhelming in size, weight, or warmth.

Have I Been Unfair?
I spent so much time complaining about the Fisherman's Rib when I started this poncho, that I wonder if I will scare other people away from the pattern.
I am only one of three people on Ravelry who have made it, and the other two didn't blog about it (or didn't link their blog posts to their project), so the only thing people have to go on is my early struggles.
Oops.
The stitch wasn't too bad, once I finally got the hang of it.
And I think the finished poncho will be quite usable. Since I'm off the train I'm back to my 45 minute plus commute by car. In the winter I run into the difficulty of wanting to be all bundled up against the cold, but then once the car warms up, my coat is all hot and restrictive (and I have a long coat to boot.) Yesterday when I left for the store I took my coat off, but I was still warm enough with the poncho on.
But at the same time, on the way home I had to stop at the grocery store. I had the poncho on under my coat, but I didn't get to hot.
So really, it's going to be rather useful in this weather, as well as in the office when the HVAC isn't to my liking.

In Other News
My poor, neglected little Christmas Cactus is blooming!
Really, you don't understand the adverse conditions this poor thing has to contend with. Unlike the dogs, my plants can't tell me when they need attention.
If your Christmas Cactus isn't blooming, you might want to evaluate the lighting situation. When I was at the paper in New Hampshire I used to do regular seasonal interviews with the owner of a green house in one of my towns (who also happened to be one of the selectmen). He told me that Christmas Cacti actually rely on the changing light conditions to know when to bloom. So if it is only exposed to artificial light its cycles can get messed up.