Totoro: The Next Generation

My friend, being a good auntie, is introducing her niece to the wonderful world of Miyazaki films.  The kid's birthday is coming up and as part of her education in awesome she'll be getting My Neighbor Totoro on DVD.  For a fully interactive experience my friend wanted to give her a plush Totoro to go with it.  After perusing some options what she decided she wanted was something like Lumpy T and asked me to make one for her.

Revisiting the pattern after gaining some crochet skills has been an adventure in 'man, what a difference it makes when you know what the hell you're doing.'

Meet the New Totoro:

He has his own problems because while I might be a lot better at this than I was when I made Lumpy T, I am by no means a crochet super genius.  I'd be hard pressed to call me an anything super genius, but if there was something in which my geniusness was super it wouldn't be crochet.

But still.  Have a helpful comparison shot:

I'd like to point out that I didn't change the pattern in any way- that's the size he's supposed to be. 

Another comparison shot:

I don't want to play favorites.  Lumpy T may be problematic but I love him.  In fact, I'm kind of wishing that I hadn't stuffed the New Totoro quite so firmly- he may avoid lumpiness in the future this way, but he's not nearly as squashable.  Besides, even though Lumpy T's eyes are crazy pinwheels at least I placed them better.

I like to think that while I'm not around Lumpy T and New Totoro will get up to crazy adventures. 

'Whooo Arrrre Yooooou?'

Have fun guys.  At least until New Totoro goes to his new home.  Hope he works out there.

Getting Ideas

The ladies over at Deth Spïralz have been trying their hardest to get me into ice skating.  Unfortunately, I don't understand the Yankee witchcraft of 'frozen water' and so it's been difficult to get me onto the ice and the definition of awkwardness once I'm there.  What's not been difficult is to get me into watching figure skating.  I can do this comfortably in my pjs while sitting on the couch which is a requirement for a lot of my activities.

Here's Johnny Weir wearing thigh high legwarmers and a haramaki.  Because he's awesome.  I'm fascinated by the idea of haramaki, a Japanese belly warmer.  Even though I don't skate, I have, once upon a time, been physically active and can see the usefulness of something that would keep your core nice and toasty while leaving the majority of your torso unencumbered unlike a heavy sweater.  When I was still dancing I would have loved one of these.

Kate and Candice have always been willing to put up with my fiber-related whims and thus they are going to be on the receiving end of my first haramaki.

Here's a fast and dirty paint rendition of what I have in mind.  Have the top sit just under the bust and have the bottom hit the top of the hips, perhaps a little lower.  An inch or so of ribbing at the top and bottom and then at least a couple inches at the back for some simple shaping.  Some big crazy buttons and maybe some colorwork on the stockinette belly and I think it should do it.  Am debating adding a kangaroo pocket for extra fun.

Poor Impulse Control

Sadness.

Like a lot of people I've been watching the World Cup.  But because of my inability to just sit still and watch something on the TV (even for something as quick and exciting as a fútbol match) I needed a simple project that I wouldn't have to look at too much lest I miss an awesome tackle or a spectacular shot on goal.

So, I started a pair of simple toe-up socks.  Something I've done enough that I don't really need to think about it anymore and I can keep knitting at even while yelling for Brazil to get their shit together (spoilers: they didn't.)

Here's another personality tidbit: if I have the option of doing something that I've done before or changing it just enough so that it feels new I'm going to pick 'feels new' every time.

For these socks I decided that a very simple lace pattern up the back of the leg would do nicely for making it seem new.  Unfortunately, like so many things that I do, I didn't think it through all the way.  I tweaked the lace pattern so that it matched my stitch count because I am capable of thinking that far ahead, but didn't take into account that every example I'd seen of this pattern had a reverse stockinette or garter stitch border.

Turns out there's a reason for the border.  I noticed after a couple of repeats (because my eyes were only for Ghana v. Uruguay) that my lace leaves weren't looking very leafy.  After sitting and thinking for much too long about whether I could live with what I had or if I should rip back I ripped back.  Because I had this idea, see, and I wanted it to look like what I thought it would.

I need to find some way to reconcile my impulsiveness with my innate perfectionism.

Totoro

This is Lumpy T (and Fat Bill, because she loves to get in the middle of project photos.)

Lumpy T was the first thing I'd ever semi-successfully crocheted.  My mom is a champion crocheter and has made many delightful things for me that I never appreciated enough as a kid.  Thanks, Mater.  Despite my mom's crochet aptitude I was never able to do more than make a chain.  I had some sort of weird mental block when it came to single crochet, let alone any of the other stitches.

Then a few years ago amigurumi hit big in the craft world and I Wanted it.  So.  Bad.  My life was incomplete without anthropomorphic food made of yarn and what not.  So, I decided to put on my big girl britches and set to learning how to crochet after 20 something years of failing.

Oh, the determination.  I hid my knitting needles from myself so that I'd be forced to use a hook.  So many tangled messes.  A metric butt ton of chains.  Squares that stretched the geometric definition of 'a shape' let alone 'a square.'  I jumped into making circles, thinking I could use them as coasters, pot holders, funky outfit accessories- the possibilities seemed endless.

Serious increase failure resulted in several tubes closed on one end that I dubbed 'toe cozies' because they fit over my big toe perfectly.  I may have failed spectacularly but I invented a new article of clothing.  Because I don't know about you but there have been many times when just my big toe has needed an extra layer of warmth.  Ok, that's a lie.

Still, it eventually came together and I felt confident enough to try my hand at an amigurumi pattern.  Enter Totoro (pattern available for free here.)

Several things about my so-called crochet skills here: I was pretty much consistently crocheting into the back loop only, I didn't understand that for stuffed animals you want a dense fabric so the stuffing won't poke through, and I had never sewn anything together before.

And thus, Lumpy T took shape.  I ran out of polyfill while stuffing the body and so he's pretty floppy and lumpy, hence the name.  Because of my deep, deep lack of understanding about gauge he ended up rather on the huge side.  And because I had never sewn crocheted fabric together before he has those crazy pinwheel eyes.

He was supposed to be my niece's Christmas present but she rejected him pretty firmly.  He lives at my house at the bottom of her toy box except for when I need a model because Lumpy T can stand still for as long as it takes me to remember how to use the camera (a long time), never judges the amount of photos I have to take to get one that's reasonably in focus, well-lit and has a minimum of my finger in it (a lot), and never blinks or makes funny faces.  Seeing as I have a compulsive need to screw up my face and act like I'm picking my nose when someone tries to take a picture of me this is a definite plus.

Yes, Mater, I know my face will freeze that way.

Best Laid Plans

When I started this blog I intended there to be a minimum of life-related blathering.  Mostly because my life is not an exciting adventure and can best be summed up as, 'Today I watched Law and Order reruns.  Then I farted around on the internet.'  Sometimes kittens are involved.

I've told the Boyfriend this but he doesn't entirely believe me.  Mostly because he knows there's very little I enjoy more than pointing out things he does that I think are funny to other people.  Even if we don't agree on the 'it's funny' part.

I've told you that to show you this:

When I came into the office today I found a couple of notes on several stacked post-its that the Boyfriend left for me last night.  This is the second one.  Because of some not family friendly language I've put the rest of the note after the jump.

Turning a Heel...

... is like magic.  Not rabbit out of a hat magic, but full on Harry Potter 'Heelus Turnus!' magic.  Or maybe Gandalf 'You shall turn' magic.

I don't particularly like doing it, it's fiddly and I have stupid fingers when it comes to needles smaller than about 3.5 mm.  But I still feel pretty awesome once I've done it.

Still flat....

Taking shape....

Presto!.


Yeah, I am that impressed.  On the other hand, I'm very rarely bored.

I'm using Paton's Kroy Socks FX for these in colorway 57210 (blues and greens.)  This is my first time using this yarn and I'm liking it so far.  It's itchier and a bit rougher than other sock yarns I've used but is more squishy than I would have thought.  If it wears well then I'll definitely be using it again because wow, is that a price I can get behind.

Sometimes I Try New Things

And sometimes they go well.

And sometimes they don't.

Having this blog is a new thing that I'm trying.  Since I already spend an unholy amount of time on the internet maybe I can use some of it for generating new content here.  Or maybe I'll continue to watch funny videos on YouTube.  Preferably involving kittens.

I don't know.  It is a mystery.


But here are some kittens!