happy little tune

A few summers ago a great pal of mine invited me to go to a concert with her. She said the artists were B.O.B., this new guy Bruno Mars, and Jason Mraz. Needless to say, but I'll say it anyway, it was one of the best times of my life! I was already pretty familiar with Jason Mraz but seeing him live was just awesome. My love for his sweet sweet jams only grew.
So of course now that he's dropped a new album, it's my duty to enjoy every minute of it...and I do. One of my particular faves is the little ditty below. It just makes me feel light and happy and sunny. And I dig it.

To my old man

I can't wait to be old with you.

But not in an age sort of way. 

In an, at the end of the day you read the newspaper while I knit, sort of way. 

We'll play a record and have a glass of bourbon

And you'll tell me about politics and I'll try my best to listen.

I'll make you try on a new hat and you'll pretend to know what a circular needle is. 

And it'll be just right.

Ever yours,

Your old lady

The Daisy Duke Cowl

Well, it happened again. I was consumed by a yarn. {holds head in shame} This time the takeover was much slower and very gradual but it still happened nonetheless. A couple weeks ago this very interesting cotton fabric yarn popped up in the store. It looked as though strips of fabric had been cut and then twisted around a string to make a yarn. Knitting AND fabric...I mean come on. One problem though, no one had a clue what to do with it. Every couple of days a customer would ask about what to do with it. I would shrug my shoulders. There weren't any patterns for it so it was hard to imagine what the possibilities were. A rug? A bag? It was a real head scratcher. As the days went by and I looked at the yarn, a little idea started to creep up. I saw a big needle. Like US35 big. The thought of them alone was exciting. I haven't made a project on such large needles yet so the prospects seemed wonderful. A holy, loosey, goosey summer cowl. Yes!

So cast on I did! And again, and again. I forgot how much experimenting comes with creating something from nothing; the scientist in me was napping apparently. Once I figured out a proper cast on number I went to knitting. After a couple rows it became clear that a US35 was just not the proper needle for this project. There was little to no stitch definition and I was barely an inch in and the ball was almost used up. So frog I did. My next try was the US19 and it made all the difference. I fiddled with knits here and yarn overs there and the end result was a super unique cowl that I absolutely love! The pattern on the fabric gave me a country vibe but it's still a girly accessory so I named it Daisy Duke!
Here she is!

Because the fabric is a cotton this cowl is still really comfortable to wear in the summer months. It's not heavy or fuzzy so it's not smothering.

The yarn is called Wildflower by Knit Collage and it comes in 3 other super cute colors. There isn't a lot of yardage on each skein so I needed 2 for this cowl.

Thanks to my pal Brie for snapping these shots. It takes a village folks and I'm sure glad I've got that gal in mine!

The pattern is available on my Ravelry page and will be on my Etsy soon!

pictures of yarn via