Martha Bottlecap

Can I cast on something new yet???? All of this finishing is killing me!

So, here's Martha, from Rowan Studio, in the new Manos Silk Blend. I call her Martha Bottlecap because the buttons remind me of bottlecaps - love them! If I hadn't used them on this little cardigan, I may have built a project around them.
This was an easy knit, and a not so easy finish - blocking was a bitch. Thanks for that schematic Rowan - not!

The schematic had all of two measurements - width and height. Last time I looked, that made a rectangle. Hmm - there's an armhole there people. So, I did the best I could. Sewing in the cap sleeve was no fun. Kind of like putting a square peg in a round hole. I messed up the buttonholes - thanks again Rowan for writing instructions like "begin front neck shaping 39 rows from the beginning of neck shaping of back." I guess my row gauge was off, because when I followed the instructions for the buttonholes - p54, make button hole - I ended up with a buttonhole on the lower half of the garment. Oopsy. So, I sewed that hole up, and went with 2 buttons on the top half, and since they're pretty big, showy buttons, it worked out ok.

And, I'm so glad I took this picture outside - what's up with my crazy two-toned hair!?! I immediately made an appointment for a color - friends - how did you let me walk around like this??? Can I just whine for a moment - something has happened to my hair. It's not growing. Well, it must be, since you can clearly see the color line in the above pictures. But, where is it going? I don't have a lot of breakage at the bottom. I thought that perhaps it was just curling up, and curling up, but when I blow it dry, it's not significantly longer (see pics with Tangled Yoke). I have the amazing disappearing hair. I guess what goes around comes around - I've spent a lifetime with thick, curly hair - and all I've ever wanted was straight hair. When I would clean out the drain in my shower after washing my hair, I would secretly, and evilly, chuckle at my bald male friends - if they only new how much hair I had to spare! And now . . . ok, I'm not going bald, but I've definitely reached one of those age milestones where you're body changes in a not so good way.

I'm ok with turning 40 (not this summer, next summer - we'll see how ok I am then). I'm ok with the lines appearing on my face. I'm ok with feeling tired and a little sore after playing tennis on Wii. I'm ok with my metabolism slowing down, and not being able to drop five pounds by simply upping my water intake, and chopping out alcohol and sweets. But my hair! Sigh. It's all downhill, I know it - I might as well go to the wigmaker now.