It will haunt your nightmares

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How does one get out of a knitting funk? By knitting joke patterns, of course!



This is the famed adult balaclava pattern that has made such a splash on ye olde interweb.

I made this out of some spare Cascade 220 I had in my stash on size 8 needles. It only took a few days, and the results are just fabulous. Check out my friend Panda modeling:



I actually made this for my friend Mr. N, who is also owner of the eyepatch mentioned in the earlier posts.

Molly thinks I'm crazy for making the mask:



But I've found it's good for brainstorming:



So, the official cure for the knitting blues: ridiculous vintage patterns! Take my word for it!

In a funk

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I am officially in a knitting funk. A deep knitting funk. I keep starting projects and then abandoning them. Or ripping them out. It's getting to the point that most of my knitting needles are functioning as stitch holders on dormant projects.

There are two things I've knit recently. One is a modular scarf for my friend N's birthday:



Here's the Ravelry link and the link to the pattern. It was super-fast to knit, and looks really nice in Patons SWS. Plus, the pattern is super easy and repetitive, so you don't have to constantly consult the instructions while knitting.

I decided to knit another one in a different colorway while I was at the Sundance Film Festival last month, but I only got through a half ball before the malaise set in. I just wasn't feeling that pattern. So I thought I should go back to knitting my Starsky that had been sitting on the needles for months. But after a few rows of following the cable pattern I was feeling uninspired.

I then thought I should try and create something with the enormous bright-orange super-bulky alpaca yarn I've been saving. I've cast on three different times (for one sweater and two bags) and I still don't have anything made. Then I decided I needed a basic black wrap, so I consulted my stitch dictionary and started making something out of my black Phoenix Soy Silk. I've done about five inches of it and I'm bored again. What is wrong with me?

The silver lining is that on my recent trip to Joshua Tree, my friend Mr. N requested I knit him an eyepatch. and I just happened to have the black Phoenix with me, so I made him this bad boy:



It could be better, but it's not bad for something I whipped up in 20 minutes (and after having had a few beers). Mr. N likes it, and that's all that counts.

But I'm still in a funk. I've spent hours on Ravelry, seeking out inspiration, and just feeling blah about everything. It's like clinical depression, but only for knitting. Do they make a Prozac equivalent for knitting malaise?