Dissolving the Illusion

I am 33 years old. I actually stumbled over that recently when someone else told me that they were 33. Instead of saying that I was the same age, I said that we were around the same age. I said this because my mind blanked and I honestly couldn't remember, all of the sudden, if I was 31 or 33. The last few years of my life have been more than a little chaotic and even somewhat traumatic. Recently, I have begun to come out of the chaos and am in the infantile steps of reconnecting with and also reinventing myself. Somewhere in that process I lost my grip on just how many years I'd been at this so far. It's 33. I am 33. That dream, you remember --33.

Somewhere along the way I got it in my head that 33 was some kind of "too late for everything: number. My 20s are over. My college degree is complete, but a little on the unpractical side. I'm married and not working with no car of my own. I've missed opportunities, walked away from chances, let things pass me by, and here I am at 33 stuck with what have and will have that for the rest of my life. That is, of course, nonsense, but it's only about two minutes ago that I realized that. Until that moment, my thought process was inverted and turned upon the stark reality that I am not "young" any more.

The truth of the matter is, though, that I am not old, either. Thirty-three is not an unreasonable age to make things start happening. It's not an unreasonable age to find who you are and run with your talents. I realized, as I reshelved the Henson biography I'd started in dead tree format while waiting for my Kindle to charge so I could read it more comfortably, that 33 is actually a pretty good place to start. It's old enough, I realized, to really start to have a good grasp on yourself as a person. I realized that maybe a good sturdy sense of self is actually pretty hard to come by any time before thrity-something. Sure, I've missed opportunities and let potentially awesome things slip through my fingers, but in getting to this point I have learned a lot about myself. I have no idea what to do with what I have learned or how I got here, but I realize that it's not unreasonable to just be getting started, even if you thought you were well rolling a long time ago. There's no shame in picking yourself up after a mere 30 years on the planet and finally setting your heels to Doing Something. It's not unreasonable that it might take 30 years to even begin to get to that point. Because life is a strange strange bird and truly living isn't, oddly enough, just something that comes naturally. Rolling over as "done" or "too late" at 33 is silly. All these podcasts I listen to and books I read about successful entertainers people are starting to sink in. Life doesn't begin at 21. You don't get your big idea while you're still trying to become a person. And becoming a person never really stops. Thirty-three, though, is a good point to look back, make sense of it, and do something with all that time. It's not time wasted, it's not opportunities lost, it's where you learned how to be you. If you knew what was important to you and who were before then, well, that's awesome for you, but the shocking fact of the matter is that isn't the rule, it's the exception.

It's not too late. In fact, because it's now and no other time, it's just right. Now is always just right, no matter when it is. Now is happening at 33? Great! I'm glad it's happening, now go get it.

Housekeeping for Ravelry!

I just posted my two published Ravelry patterns here so I can delete the page they used to be hosted on. So... that's what happened there. Hope to get back to posting here in the near future! <3

Pass it Over Cotton Scrubby

Pass it Over Cotton Scrubby

The fun thing about this super quick scrubby is the fact that the back is the part with the cool pattern while the front is the more functional scrubby side. Being knit with two strands together makes it a quick and easy project perfect for last minute gift exchanges. (I made my mine for a white elephant and knit it up sporadically over the course of a couple of days.) You can knit up a bundle in a snap. I haven't actually gotten to try one out yet, but the front is fairly dense and nubby so I imagine it scrubs like a dream. :)

Yarn
Any two colours of your favourite cotton “dishrag” yarn. I used Lily Sugar and Cream in Black and Softly Taupe. This little scrubby probably won't even take half a ball.

Needles
9US (I used aluminum) Yarn or Tapestry needle

Gauge
I couldn't tell you and I'm not sure how much it matters. It's just a scrubby. ;) My final piece measured roughly 6”x5”

Knit holding both colours together. When doing a YO use one colour or the other NOT BOTH.

Cast on 25 Stitches (I use long-tail.)
Row 1: Knit
Row 2: Knit (and all even rows hereafter)
Row 3: K2, *YO(Colour 1), K2, pass YO over knit stitches, YO (Colour 2), K2, pass YO over knit stitches, repeat from * to last 3 stitches, K3
Row 5: K2, *YO(Colour 2), K2, pass YO over knit stitches, YO (Colour 1), K2, pass YO over knit stitches, repeat from * to last 3 stitches, K3
Row 7 and 9: Repeat Row 3
Row 11: Repeat Row 5
Row 13: Repeat Row 3
Row 15 and 17: Repeat Row 5
Row 19: Repeat Row 3
Row 21: Repeat Row 5
Row 23: Knit
Bind off
Weave in ends.


Pattern Side:



Scrubby Side:


I hope you have enjoyed knitting up this little pattern as much as I enjoyed knitting it up myself. Let me know how it works. I can't wait to make one for myself! :)

Flat and Cozy Cellphone Cozy

Flat and Cozy Cellphone Cozy

This is a flat knit cellphone cozy! I was looking for a good cellphone cozy pattern one day and didn't want anything that had to be knit in the round. I couldn't find anything I liked so I improvised and came up with this simple knit. This is knit in one piece that folds naturally in the center due to the composition of the pattern. The selvage is sewn up to create the cozy pocket. The strap can be done a number of ways. I'll include a few suggestions toward the end.

Needles:

8US (I used Bamboo.)

Yarn or Tapestry Needle

Yarn Used:

Lion Brand Homespun for my own and a friend's (both pictured).

I've done it with cotton, though, as well. The project is much less fuzzy and more neat and clean this way. I also recommend sewing it up with the wrong side out with cotton, because the bumpiness looks nicer with the sleeker, more sporty looking, outcome.

Gauge:

Not important. --You know what you knit the most comfortably and you'll be using your own phone to determine size of project, as it is, so don't sweat it. :)

Finished dimensions will depend on your own phone, as you will see. Have it handy when you start, you'll need it!

Casting on:

Create slipknot for first stitch and cast on two more stitches after it (so you have three loops on your needle.)

Now cast on until you have cast on sufficient loops to go across the bottom of your phone when you spread them out evenly and hold it up your phone up to your needle.

Cast on three more stitches.

There will be some flexibility and extra space, so don't stress over the measurement, just make sure that your phone fits between the first three loops and the last three, as these will be your selvage and the sewn up sides of your cozy.

Pattern:

Row 1: k3, *k, sl3 p-wise wyif

Row 2: k3, *p, sl3 p-wise wyif

Repeat until you can hold your knitting to your phone and it reaches the top (or as close to the top as you want the cozy to end if you want your phone to stick out some).

The next bit of knitting will be the bottom of the cozy and will cause the project to want to fold in on itself nicely.

(If you want to use the “wrong side” as the outside of your phone purl here instead and begin the next side with a purl as well.)

Row W: k across

Row X: k across

Row Y: k across

Row Z: k across

Now your pick back up the previous pattern to come up the other side.

Row 1b: k3, *k, sl3 p-wise wyif

Row 2b: k3, *p, sl3 p-wise wyif

Continue until this side is the length of the side before the “fold” section. The project should be wanting to fold and create the bottom on either side of the garter bit.

Bind off. (Bind off to last three stitches if using Strap Option: I-Cord Variant, and knit your cord now before continuing. For all other Strap Options, go ahead and bind off all stiches.)

Fold and make sure your phone fits.

Sew up the sides, keeping your stitches within the selvage, or just inside if your phone still fits and you prefer the aesthetic.

Tada!

Strap Options:

I-Cord Variant:

This works well with the fuzziness of the Homespun yarn.

Simply knit the three stitches left on your needle after you bind off then wrap the yarn around the stitches once so it's back ready to knit and knit them again. This will create a pretty wrapping pattern that looks good with a fuzzy yarn. Make this as long as you like then bind off and fold over to make the strap loop. You could even make a full “purse-like” cord if you'd like.

I-Cord:

I have never used I-Cord only because I don't own double-pointed needles. It would be a perfectly viable option to sew into the top of this project after binding off. I would suggest sewing in the cord before sewing the sides of the projects together so it looks like a more integral part of the design.

Braid:

For my husband's cotton version (which I would love to include pictures, but of course he lost it XD), I simply braided some of the cotton yarn together and sewed it on to each side of the piece about a quarter of an inch down the side to make a little strap.

Cord and Strap options are truly endless for this, so feel free to be creative! :)

This is a quick knit and very gratifying because it's so immediately useful. Makes a great gift if you're a beginning knitter or just don't have a lot of time. I hope you've enjoyed this pattern.