Crowning Moment

Coronet she is done!
Really I had finished it sitting at the gate in Orlando waiting to fly home, but I had once again packed my scissors in my checked baggage, so I couldn't wrap it up.
Instead I switched to working on my Arrgyles.

It's Too Big
But back to the hat.
I worked the crown for the 8.5 inches called for in the pattern, but after working through the second decrease row I tried it on and realized it was going to be too big/tall.
To have the top of the crown snug I would have to pull the brim down to my nose. To have the brim over my ears I would have had a lot of excess fabric over my head. It would have been baggy and unattractive. And, considering my rejection of the green fuzzy hat for flopping in my eyes, we've established I don't like over sized hats.

Fixing the Fit
So I pulled out 12 rows, which dropped me down to about 7 inches from the bottom of the cable band, and started the decreases from that point.
I settled on this number by counting the number of rows required to make all the called for decreases and found it about the same as the excess number of rows I had.
I also switched up two of the decrease rounds called for. It was progressing with fewer numbers of knit stitches between decreases, then suddenly had a row that was all decreases, then went back to knit stitches in between. Although I trusted it would work out properly, I was concerned the all decrease round would disrupt the line of decreases, so I kept the progression up and had two all decrease rounds at the end.
I think the way the pattern was written probably had something to do with the multiple sizes, but I didn't think to hard about it.

Hats are Good
Coronet was a quick knit, took me about a week, and I think I will enjoy wearing it.
I can see the appeal of making hats. They are small, like socks, so they are portable and easy to finish.
However, unlike socks, they don't have the excitement of the heel turn and a girl can only wear so many hats in one season, whereas she needs to wear socks almost every day.
Which means hats will be those rare as needed projects, unlike socks which are all the time projects.

Three Miles. 12 Hours

How can I miss my puppies when I have little reminders of them all over my clothes?

According to my little pedometer I walked 2.7 miles yesterday and burned over 200 calories. Which might make up for that mini Snickers and mini Twix I ate, but probably not the cheesecake petite fore (sp?)
Boss Man and I conferred, agreed we were both exhausted and skipped the event last night. Which turns out to be just as well because I passed out around 6:30 pm and slept until 8:30 pm when Hubby called to see what I though of the Obama spot. Then I passed out again until 5:50 am. So I guess I was really, really tired.

Coronet continues
Despite that, Coronet is around 6 inches now. I took some pictures in the hotel mirror, not that you can see them at the moment. Actually, I fell asleep with my knitting on the bed but moved it after Hubby called.

Breakfast Horror Story
This is not for the faint of heart!
I went to the deli, which has such good cold sandwiches, to get an egg sandwich for breakfast. I was suspicious because I couldn't see a griddle anywhere. Turns out I was right to be concerned.
She pulled out two slices of white bread, got an already fried egg from a chaffing dish, and ran the whole thing through the pizza oven/giant toaster thing!
Authentic NY Deli it was not.
It was edible, but not something I want to repeat.
However, I have to say the greasy little potato pancake hashbrown thingys it came with were delicious.
Hopefully I'll have better luck with lunch and dinner.

Raveler in the Wild
I keep forgetting to mention I brought my Felted Ravelry ID Bag as my carry on luggage. While Boss Man and I were waiting for the shuttle to bring us from the hotel to the airport a lady asked what the "agm" means.
Turns out she is on Ravelry too! I didn't get her ID, but we had a little knitting chat.
I debated using my bag for my conference gear as a conversation starter, but it is on the heavy side, so I went with the bag they provide.
Still, first time my bag and I have been commented on out in public.

I Miss My Puppies

Well, totally underestimated the availability of the e-mail kiosks. Or maybe it is just that the first general session is going on right now and I'm blowing it off. ha!
I miss my Hubby too, but the puppies are the ones who sleep on top of me at night. If Hubby slept on top of me I'd be crushed.
So it wasn't a good night of rest. Hopefully I'll be more tired and more used to the room tonight.
Oh, the night light didn't help.
In the bathroom is a hairdryer. On the hairdryer is a little orange light. When I turned out the light on the night stand the orange light lit up the whole front half of the room. It was actually rather freaky. I even got up and tried to hang a towel over it to block it a bit. Didn't help much. And of course the air conditioner kicking on and off all night didn't help. I wish there was a way to travel and still sleep at home.

Swag
I didn't tell you about the adorable teddy bear I snagged on the floor yesterday. He's palm size and had on a little t-shirt. I almost wonder if it would be possible to knit him little sweaters. I was very bad, I just walked by the booth and swiped one without making eye contact. hehehe.
I also got an adorable little pedometer. Those people I talked to, but I'm actually meeting with them so it's all good. Based on the numbers from last night I walked about a mile and a half yesterday. I reset it and put it on before I left my room this morning. I'm already up to half a mile and the day has only just begun.
Ok, I should jet, I have a meeting at 9:30 and I haven't had any tea yet.

Knitting
And Coronet is moving along. I worked on it last night as I watched "It's the Great Pumpkin Charlie Brown!"
The crown isn't working up as quickly as I expected, I have a few rows, but the whole thing is around 4 inches and the goal is 8.5 before the decreases start. I attempted to try it on and the fit seems like it will be good.

Toothpaste Weirdness

Ok, I just had to stop and share this since I've never seen anything like it.
Hubby and I recently switched to Tom's of Maine toothpaste, for no better reason than we are lazy and it is the brand that Trader Joe's carries. It's nice toothpaste, not as sweet as your major brand names ones, so it does take a use or two to get used to it.
Anyway, the tube feels metallic.
I just pulled it out of my suitcase to freshen up before hitting the floor. The tube felt cold. Mind you, I've been on the ground again for four hours by now.
When I took the cap off a whole bunch oozed out. I mean a big ol' glob that actually made me feel like I had wasted toothpaste (not that I'd try to save it out of a hotel sink).
But, really, to have toothpaste come shooting out like that? I have to assume it is from the difference in pressure that it has been subjected too.

In Knitting News
I've finished the cable band for Coronet. Finished knitting it on the plane, but couldn't go any
further since my scissors were in my checked bag. While lounging in my hotel room I kitchenered it (and did a rather good job, if I do say so myself) and picked up stitches to work the crown. That took about five attempts before I was satisfied.
I have the camera with me, but I don't have the cord or a way to download, so you'll just have to wait.
Oh, and the room is pretty nice.

A Line Has Been Crossed

After dinner last night I tossed aside the sock I was working on and pulled out the stuff to make Coronet. (It's a Knitty pattern. I put a link in a previous post about it.)
I haven't gone very far over the line, I didn't actually cast on or anything, but I pulled out the Denise tips I would need and I have the pattern, yarn, and needles with me just in case an opportunity to knit comes along.
The line I'm attempting to cross or not cross here is casting on for a new project when I still have so many others to finish.

Maybe a Toe Over the Line
Well, ok, I sort of cast on.
The pattern calls for a provisional cast on. The cabled band is knit flat, then grafted shut, then stitches are picked up along the side to work the top.
The other day someone pointed out that Judy's Magic Cast On(that is a link for the Knitty article, first thing that popped up) is a provisional cast on. This had not occurred to me since I've only used it for some sock toes, you cast on and work in a circle. Well, this person pointed out that you can cast on and just work one side.
What? No waste yarn to worry about pulling out? Sign me up.
My question is do I really have to graft, or can I three needle bind off? But my aversion might be because I selected this pattern when I was still a newish knitter and hadn't memorized the kitchener stitch so the idea of it scared me. Ah, how these impressions linger. My first attempt to kitchener a sock toe shut, which I believe came before I found the hat pattern, was such a disaster I ended up doing a three-needle bind off instead.

But I Crossed Right Back
I only "sort of" cast on because after I got the stuff out I practiced to make sure I can do the cast on without directions. If I hadn't remembered the steps I would have had to fish the directions out as well. But I did remember the steps, although I had trouble remembering which stitches were the twisted ones.
However, I pulled it all out. My intention is to cast on to the 16" cable (or whatever length that short one is) and one of the 5 1/2" inch cables. I'll have my working stitches on the longer cable to knit the band and put the other stitches, for the grafting, on the short cable with the button ends.
Of course my test ended up the other way around. Now I know I have to have the longer cable on the bottom when I cast on. So I'm all set when the time comes.

Swatch? What Swatch?
Well, aside from swatching.
I do want the thing to fit after all.
Can't decide whether I should swatch ahead of time or wait for the plane.
I didn't swatch on the train this morning because I wasn't on the train this morning. Just didn't do enough prep last night to leave the house on time this morning. Which is also why I didn't get further than a practice cast on, because you know once I start I'm gonna keep going.
I should probably swatch over the weekend so I can be sure of the needle sizes to bring with me. That would stink, get on the plane and have the wrong needles. ick.

Elephant Pictures

Ok, it's not the best picture in the world, but I'd like to remind you I was on a moving train.
I couldn't get a window seat, but I sat near the door so when the train approached the elephant area I moved to the vestibule.
There are other pictures and versions in my Flickr photostream, but I posted this one because you can tell they are elephants. (That picture is on Flickr. Clicking it will probably be the easiest way to get to my photostream.)
Looking back, I probably should have held the camera up to my eye, and maybe zoomed in (which is alway tricky). But I had it at my waist as I was trying to be sort of inconspicuous. When we approached the elephants I just kept clicking the shutter.
I haven't decided whether I should try again tonight.

A Case for Coronet
The fuzzy green hat has reached its end of life, I think. I wore it yesterday and it is now so stretched out it keep flopping into my eyes. Very annoying. Its current condition is probably due to age, but could also be attributed to the fact that at the end of last season instead of putting it back in the storage bin in the attic like a good like crocheter, I left it hanging on a hook by the back door.
Oops.
I do have the red elf hat to fall back on, but I really have to be in the mood to be stared at the wear that one. And, since it is a little small, it doesn't cover my ears very well. And winter hat wearing is often about keeping my ears warm.
Which is all tilting the scale in favor of taking Coronet for my trip next week. I'll be looking at two three hour flights, I should make good progress on whatever project I take. The other project in the running is my Arrgyle socks.
Oh, who am I kidding? I'll probably end up taking both. They both fit the main requirement of a good travel project: portability.
They both blow the easy or uncomplicated requirement out of the water. One has a cable, the other has bobbins (or, technically, yarn butterflies). At least neither has a complicated chart. Ok, maybe the Arrgyles do, but it's only one page.
That could be an interesting poll. Top features/requirements of a travel project.
Well, I won't be packing until Monday, so much can change between now and then, there is no point in speculating.
And, yes, like a good knitter/crocheter, I have given more thought to which project to pack than to what clothes to pack (aside from the need to do the laundry).

Sky Picture

And here is a gratuitous picture of the sky yesterday morning at my transfer station. The black lines are the power lines for the electric trains. I've seen better skies, but I had the camera with me and I understand posting sky pictures is fashionable.
I would have posted this yesterday, but as I mentioned yesterday, I didn't have the cable with me.

Must Resist Hat

Must stay focused on stealth sock!
Yesterday morning Hubby said the car said it was 41 degrees Fahrenheit. This morning my car said it was 39 degrees. Now, we're pretty sure the cars exaggerate on a regular basis, but when I was standing on the platform waiting for the train I could believe it. And I thought to myself, "I want a new hat."
I have made myself two hats, which I usually rotate. I made them both when we were living in New Hampshire.

Hats Off To Me
First there is my fuzzy green hat. It is crocheted out of Lion Brand Chenille Thick and Quick in the forest green color. I believe it is a modified version of the hat that was on the ball band.
I ended up with this yarn in this color because one year my mom wanted a fuzzy green scarf for Christmas. This was before I became a yarn snob. (Not that there is anything wrong with Lion Brand, but I think I would consider more choices now.)
I had a skein leftover, which was enough for the hat. It's
warm and I usually get lots of compliments when I wear it.
But since I made it in 2001 or 2002 it is starting to get a bit floppy and stretched out.
I tried to get a picture of me wearing it, but Baru kept attacking me and Hubby was watching the debate. So I stuck it on a cantaloupe.


The other hat is what I call my elf hat. I like to wear it when I'm feeling whimsical. It is knit out of Lion Brand Chenille Thick and Quick, Jiffy Thick and Quick, and a third yarn I can't remember because I'm at work and the information is at home. This was also a free Lion Brand pattern. It is actually part of a set which includes a scarf, mittens, and bag. I think it was called the Zig Zag Set.
I never made any of the other pieces. I don't think knit mittens would keep my hands warm enough, the bag was vaguely interesting, and I have plenty of scarfs. Add to that the Chenille is even worse to knit with than it is to crochet with and it just wasn't going to happen. I don't think I actually got gauge on this project, at least not on the brim.
Another impediment to achieving gauge was that I was a fairly new knitter and the size US11 needles I was using were either from my mother-in-law or a yard sale, so they are long, plastic straights. ack.
Baru continued to involve himself in my activities with the camera and hats. Or maybe he just wants the cantaloupe. He likes cantaloupe. But then Baru like most everything you can eat. (This picture is actually a better representation of the color of the Lamb's Pride than the solo shot.)

Hat I'd Like to Know Better
The hat I'm resisting casting on for is Coronet from the Winter 2003 issue of Knitty.

Now back during my glorious month working at Patternworks I picked up the yarn to make this hat. It was going to be my first cable project (I skipped ahead and make that Karabella scarf #KK239 [that link should take you to the pattern page on Karabella, don't know if it will stick/work] instead for Hubby).
Don't know why I've been slacking, other yarn and patterns caught my eye. I already had hats. I learned how to cable.
But now. Now my ears are cold and I'm thinking it's time to finally cast on four plus years later.
But I have to finish this sock pattern first!
(This also is proof that a yarn diet can be good for me on many levels.)

Gratuitous Baru Picture
Hubby postulated that the reason Baru (and Samson, truth be told) kept bothering me is because they wanted me to take their pictures. He thinks they've already become accustomed to the camera and that if I have it out I will be trying to corner them.
If he's right, then they could make all our lives easier by standing still when I aim it at them!
(His tongue isn't orange. He has a squeeky basketball in his mouth.)