a note about knitting

About two years ago, a friend of mine talked me into learning to knit. (Hi Cheryl!) Given my post-punk attitude toward most things crafty, I took to it like a goth teen to nail polish. I've made lots of things, mostly for other people, in an effort to prove that conservatives have hearts, too. (But maybe that you need a scarf and mittens to stand next to this one.)

My most recent project is... well, huge. My little bro (who is actually only 2 years younger and about a foot taller than me, so 'little' is hardly warranted) is going to be a senior in college this year, and HE'S GETTING MARRIED. And so I'm making a blanket for his future household. But not just any blanket, oh no...

It's a double-knit monster of a blanket.


Yes, that's my copy of Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets and yes, it is double-sided. The pattern is the opposite on the other side. For colors, Don requested something bright and happy, like orange, and my migraine-prone brain requested a neutral.


The pattern itself is something that I created to mimic the Nazca lines in Peru, which we hope to visit sometime. (They're interesting to read about, Google them if you've never heard of them.) The one I chose is a pattern they believe to be a Condor, and looks like this from the air:


The blanket itself is huge. Its width stretches from my feet to my shoulders comfortably and with room to spare, and it will be significantly taller than it is wide. Since it's double-knitted, it's unbelievably warm, and sometimes I wonder why on earth I'm knitting this in August. It's so big I've taken to carrying it around in a tub thing, so that it looks like some sort of creepy sea monster with poisonous (knitting) needles sticking out. Nevermind that the tub is a reassuring pink. This blanket will eat you alive, man.

Nom.