Tale of the Pretty Hat of Death

So, I signed up for Hat Attack II thinking this would be fun and fairly easy. I mean, what's so hard about a hat, right? I've done hats, I get the basic idea. Yeah, well I've never done a hat (Ravelry link) designed by Firefairy! Her guage is wonky, her design requires numerous tinkings and froggings, but in the end, you do end up with a really nice hat.

Well, my personal tale of woe started on the day of the release -- this past Tuesday. The design wasn't released until after I'd returned from work... when I no longer had access to a printer. Well, I wasn't going to let that stop me. I downloaded the pattern from Ravelry (because accessing it from the HAII website was NOT going to happen that night), read it through and then thought, ok, I'll jot down the pattern repeat for the body of the hat and then get some done. Well, the best of intentions and all that... long story short, I had difficulties just casting on, so I decided the hell with it, I'll get some help at Knit Happens' Late Night on Wednesday.

Ok, so, we get to Wednesday. Stephanie at Knit Happens helps me with the long tale cast on and I'm in business. Until I realize that I had forgotten to put a stitch marker on, so I wasn't switching to the next row at the right place. Then, I'm talking AND trying to knit this pattern at the same time, which is throwing the count off. First frogging. Try again, but I had only casted on 100 stitches, not 101. Second frogging. Went home, tied again for a THIRD time, get to about the 4th row and realize my count is off... AGAIN! Third frogging. So, end of day two and I still have NOTHING!

Thursday night though, I hit a break through. I cast on correctly, I'm counting correctly and I even get through the first repeat by 1AM (EST)! Then I go to measure and I'm off. At the end of the first repeat, I have BARELY 2"! @&#*(*#%$&! FOURTH frogging! So, Friday night, in the midst of packing for Vegas for my association's annual meeting, I cast on again with larger needles (correctly), I get through a few rows and hit the sack. Then the greatest thing happens. The pattern repeat REALLY starts to make sense! I start to see how the flow is supposed to go, how when I'm changing the pattern, what stitch is supposed to be the first purled, etc. And even better, I have an hour wait at the airport before my flight AND a five hour flight! SIX hours of unlimited knitting! It was great! I got through TWO repeats and even a few rows into the third!

So, we're now at Sunday. I'm still only on the third repeat and will probably still be killed, BUT I have mastered this pattern (well, at least the body of it) and will have SOMETHING to send when I am killed. Even better, it's on guage! :)