We interrupt this Clapotis for an emergency hat and shawl… (Long post!)

I am being bad in not following up on my Clapotis, but we had a couple of events this week that caught us off guard. Early morning on Monday, our friends’ father/FIL passed away. He had Parkinson’s Disease and had fallen so hard that he was taken to the hospital. It turned out that he had a brain tumor and never woke out of the coma after being operated on. The risk was something the family had realized, but death never hits you fully until it appears square in your face.

Rich and I had the opportunity once before of meeting her mother and brothers when we helped her move out of her apartment to Jamie’s house. A typical scene on where the older brothers tell funny stories about her, I knew that Linda’s family is pretty close. Her mother was so sweet when we saw her at the wake asking, “Do you remember me?” And I gave her a huge hug and said, “Of course! You were so funny when we moved Linda that day.” My response gave her a small smile — the kind that gives you a warm feeling inside but circumstances prevent that feeling from growing.

After the funeral services were over, we had gathered at her older brother’s house. It was there when I had the idea to knit her a Clapotis in her favorite color. Originally I thought the one I was working on would be ideal, but I was carefully reminded that the differences between the 3 balls of yarn may not look as “gift” material. So I asked what her favorite color was, and learned it was pink. Thinking I could use the soft bubblegum pink Catalina Alpaca Worsted, I made my decision immediately. When I arrived at RA Yarns later that afternoon, I changed my mind and went for Kertzer’s Marble in colorway 0004 because of the different shades and the striping effect. Another new project for my needles to cast on, and I am looking forward to seeing how Debbie likes it.

In the midst of the wake and funeral, Ruth has decided to have another huge closeout sale at RA Yarns. All yarn is 40% off; needles are 25% off; books and notions are 20% off; individual patterns are $2.00; Erica Wilson embroidery kits are 50% off. So if there is anything you guys are looking for, email me via my Contact Page and I will be glad to check for you. Otherwise, I will have to add to my Stash again, and my husband is dreading when my bonus check comes in…

The other emergency project is a hat for Rich’s dad, my FIL. The hat that Rich bought for him is too small, but then is he also a larger man, so it was not a guarantee that it would work out for him. Rich mistakenly told his mom that I can knit a hat in an evening. What he failed to mention was that I used a big yarn with fat needles. What his mother and father are expecting is a hat identical to the one he bought: fine yarn on tiny (like US-2) needles, double-knit stockingnette. Oh, and it has to be machine-washable and not itch. Unfortunately for me, I only have a little yarn I consider “busy-schedule” friendly. I dug into my stash and found I had some 7 Settembre which is machine-washable soft new wool. Bonus!!
Now what to use for dad’s pattern? Hmmm… I figured that if Simon and Gabby’s hats both used 72 cast ons with 2×2 and 1×1 ribbing, I could double that number for him. So here goes:

Yarn: 7 Settembre in soft brown (almost like milk chocolate)
Needles: Plymouth Circular Bamboo Needle Set, US-5 on 16″
Cast on 160 stitches and join in whatever manner you use (I add a stitch and join by knitting/purling the 1st and last stitches together). Beginning with knit, 2×2 rib for 16 rounds. Purl 3 rounds. Knit 1 round. Beginning with purl, 1×1 rib for 12 (I may change this depending on fit) rounds. The decreasing part is also going to be winged due to head size, but I think you get the picture.