Dofu Dofu Dofu

Fresh Honeydew Dofu anyone? Yummy!

Warning: This is a picture heavy post.

My Weekend

Friday:
Mix one part idiotic drivers with a dash of rain and you'll get an awful commute. Not only did these drivers make me miss my freeway exits (twice!), but the city streets weren't exactly refuge from them either. After surviving that ordeal, I helped a friend get her house ready for her son's birthday party(1), then had sushi with the DH. They raised the prices a little at our favorite place, but it was still yummy. At a local fabric store (H's) I stashed, much to DH's dismay. I really didn't mean to. I walked in just wanting to browse, but they carried yarn that J's (which is closer to our house) doesn't usually have in stock.

I bought yarn for another sweater(2), magic stripes sock yarn in purple and blue(3), metal yarn needles, and a pink scarf kit. I needed an FO fix immediately, since I was still working on Mariah's hood (mostly boring stockinette). I finished the crocheted scarf that night due to that FO urge.

Saturday:
It didn't exactly rain all day, but the weather was still icky. We decided not to go to the theme park. Our friends flaked out rescinded, and we didn't even go out for lunch at Yas as alternatively planned. DH drove me to M's and I used my 40% off coupon to buy my Boye interchangeable needle set. He was being very tolerant of me, especially since we were in that same shopping mall the previous night when I'd stashed. I like the Boye set, but not as much as my Denise set. For dinner, I had Tony Roma's ribs(4) for the first time in my life. They were okay. Not sure why they're world famous. They were not the best I've ever had, and only slightly better than average.

I finished the second baby hat and I decided not to frog the first one. A friend said that it'll fit a newborn just fine. I'm just starting on the third hat.


Sunday:
We saw "Constantine". It was one of those movies that if you don't expect much, and you get a little more than that, you're happy. It was entertaining, but just barely that. Pricing for that matinee was insane ($6.50/person) and I'm glad we chose not to go on Saturday night. I remember, way back, when it was $6.50 for non-mantinee showings.

So what's the deal with Mariah? She's done.



The hood worked out okay for the most part, but only after some major adjustments. I should have just bound off those 13 stitches to begin with. I double-folded the cabled edge onto the main part of the hood to eat up some of the loose fabric and decided I didn't want a pointy head.

I couldn't hand-stitch to save my life, so I seamed it using my sewing machine. The zipper was a bit of a challenge, but it isn't too badly installed. DH took two not-so-flattering pictures of me. Here I am with the hood up and the hood down. As you can see, there's still excess fabric around the neck area, and the neckline area is still loose. Even with the fix, the hood is still mis-proportioned, but it does its job. A close-up of the front neck area shows the way the top of the front panels pleat due to the way I folded and sewed the cabled edge down.

DH says it looks fine, and that I'm being too critical. He's seen me struggle through this project since mid-January, and I think he's glad that it's finally off the needles. I'm thinking about sewing in some elastic, installing a drawstring, or maybe sewing in some darts to tighten the neck area up even more.

Fortunately, a run in the washing machine worked out the cable wonkiness and loosened the acrylic. I even stuck it in the dryer (though I won't be doing that again). It feels almost like a polar fleece and it's very comfy. I can actually layer underneath it now.

10 things I learned while working on Mariah:
(No, really, I could only come up with 10.)
1. How to cable without a cable needle.
2. How to follow a chart. Even when knitting @$$-backwards to the way it was intended.
3. How to use my sewing machine on a hand knit item and use it to install a zipper.
4. How to pay attention to the way increases/decreases are made.
5. Installing a lifeline *before* things start to get complicated will spare much cursing and tears.
6. I can make something more than scarves and hats, *and* have it look reasonably well on me. I don't have to be afraid to try patterns, just because I knit backwards.
7. Not to be afraid to frog back significant progress or drop down stitches to fix mistakes. You'll only be happier in the end.
8. Don't be afraid to deviate from the written pattern if it'll help the FO fit or look better.
9. Choose a color that you will love and really, *really* wear, not just because it was cheap.
10. Gauge is your friend. I got lucky that I was right on gauge for Mariah. The next time, I might not be as lucky.

I love Mariah (such as she is right now) and wore her to work today. The acrylic is warm enough for my AC'd office, and the cream color works out okay for the most part. My next Mariah will be wool and in a darker color. I'm hoping to find an improved way to get the neck/yoke area to fit better. Any suggestions? Thanks for following me on my first sweater journey. I now have the confidence to make the sweater journey again.

Notes:
(1) DH found it a little weird that I'd help her out, even though we weren't invited to the party. She desperately wanted some adult morale support since her husband doesn't do diddly squat to help her with the housework! I'm so lucky that DH is the tidier one between the two of us. needed my help. She was expecting eight 2-3 year olds plus parents. Originally, they were going to hold it in the backyard where there was plenty of room, and minimal need to clean the house. But the weather wouldn't cooperate.
(2) Yes, that is Pound of Love acrylic. Maybe a washable Rogue? I'm a glutton for punishment.
(3) I have yet to make a single pair of socks. The Bonker's socks are going to get started this week, since Mariah is done.
(4) Yes, I'm being bad since I don't weigh-in this Thursday, but I did track my points regardless of the number. My tracking week starts on Fridays and I'm already 19 points into my Weekly points allowance. Eeks!

Pictures for the previous post:

This was a desperate attempt to tighten the neckline. I think it was too little, too late.

I didn't buy enough yardage, so I'm thinking about using the leftover cream from Mariah and making vertical stripes with the pink. I hope it looks cute.