It’s been a while since I talked about my Tatami, but I am still plugging along at it. Slowly, ever so slowly.

And here’s where I am, and here’s my dilemma.

The sleeves–which ultimately are folded in half–are about 15" long. They should be 20" before finishing off most of the edges and narrowing back down for the fronts.

The tricky part here is that the yarn you see in the picture is ALL the yarn I have left. One full skein, about half of another one, and a tiny bit (which, actually, I finished tonight after taking the photo). I don’t think I have enough yarn to knit another five inches of sleeve AND the fronts. And since it’s handspun, it’s not like I can run out and get more. I mean, I might . . . or I might not . . . it’s going to be close either way.

Now, the important thing to know is that I started with four skeins of yarn. The first skein got me all the way through the first inch of sleeve. Which means that the remaining 14" or so of sleeve have taken me about one and a half skeins. Which comes out to about 9.3" of sleeve per skein . . . so that the 5" still to go should be just about possible . . .

Frankly, though, I’m a little too afraid to risk it, but his isn’t necessarily a big problem, so long as I plan properly. So what I’m thinking about doing is stopping the sleeves at the 18" mark. That’ll leave them a little less full than ideal for the pattern, but close enough, I think. A 9" wide sleeve instead of a 10" wide sleeve . . . a difference of an inch (or 2.5 centimeters). I can deal with that….

…Especially when you consider I have to be sure to leave enough yarn for the ties and for the seaming, huh? Certainly, the length of the sweater isn’t a problem. If it’s a inch or two shorter than the pattern, well, I’m only 5-foot-3, so it’s not like I NEED the length. Right?

Yeah, that’s what I thought, too.

Edited to add: Maybe I didn’t explain this well. Tatami is knit in one, big piece, starting at the lower back, working up to the sleeves, knitting them, and then continuing upward to the bottoms of the fronts. Then, it’s folded in half lengthwise and seamed up the sides/sleeves. I’m working on the sleeves now, and they’re now 16" along the cuff . . . which would translate to an 8"-deep sleeve when finished. If I continue to 18", they’ll be 9" deep. The 20" the pattern calls for translates to a 10" deep, rectangular sleeve. The problem is not the length of the sleeves . . . it’s the depth. And there’s no way to add any contrasting color to them that wouldn’t make a horizontal stripe all the way across the front of the sweater. (Ick!)

And, obviously I’m having trouble actually FINISHING the Celtic Icon, since I keep finding things to play with. Like, I rummaged through my button container and found one, perfectly simple button that’s a great match, to be sewn at the neckline of the sweater. It just needs to be sewn on and some kind of loop-closure sewn to the other side. A bagatelle. (And don’t ask me why the picture looks so brown. No idea.)

Then I pulled out my beads and made this little zipper pull. The beads I think are perfect. The beadWORK? Um, not so much. My beading skills aren’t exactly ideal. For one thing, I really want someone to explain to me how you’re supposed to keep the main piece of wire/headpin STILL while you’re trying to wrap the end neatly around the shaft. I mean, the headpin is round, so as you (well, I, at least) start to twist the end . . . the headpin twists along, so that there’s no actual change in rotational position between the pin and its end. You know, like if your flyer and your bobbin are rotating at the same speed, you never get any yarn winding onto the bobbin. How on earth are you supposed to keep the blasted headpin from rotating?

Um, yeah . . . and then I wonder why my beadwork is lousy…..

Edited to add: And, the beaded zipper pull there? It’s on a lobster-clasp, so I can put it on and take it off as desired, like a necklace. It’s NOT a permanent addition to the sweater, really!

Oh, and no, I don’t know why Chappy did what he did yesterday, but no, I don’t think it’s a health issue (though I’m keeping close tabs on him for a few days, just in case). Usually, this sort of thing is a territorial thing, so about the only thing I can think of is that he’s decided he wants to move up the family ladder, and picked Mom as the next up up the chain of command. Or something like that.(Because, I don’t necessarily hold with the whole "dominance" philsophy. I’m a clicker-training girl at heart.)  Really, who knows? He’s not usually a territorial dog, and his house-training is pretty solid, and well, it’s one big question mark. I really don’t think it’s a health issue, though. And I don’t think it’s the start of any serious behavioral problems, either–although for a little while, he’s back on the "Nothing is Free" plan, where he has to ‘earn’ his privileges . . . just for a little reminder that, loved though he is, he does NOT outrank his Grandma!

Now, some random links for you:

Okay, this is funny–a man sent a digital camera through the mail, with a tiny hole in the box so that it could record its trip, taking one picture every ten seconds….

Ah . . . Indiana Jones is really back….

An ever-lasting lightbulb?

This man’s sidewalk art is just amazing–love this little raft!

And, folks? This looks like just about everything you ever wanted to know about blogging–or 120 resources, anyway.

And, finally? One of my co-workers was talking about this today–Paperback Believer. A blending of the Beatle’s "Paperback Writer" and the Monkees’ "I’m a Believer" which works amazingly well–much better than you’d expect!

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