Saturday, December 8, 2012

Aack! This scarf is going to kill me! - or - Knitting things from movies, books, and TV shows

My son asked if I could knit some scarves for him and his girlfriend for Christmas. Specifically, a Gryffindor scarf and a Slytherin scarf. There are a few different patterns out there, so I asked which type he wanted. He chose, I bought the yarn, and started knitting away. Scarves are usually pretty easy.

This one is easy, yes, but time consuming, and LONG. My husband is out of town for several days, and I thought this would give me lots of time to put into knitting. Gaaa! I think there's a spell on my needles, or something. I've been knitting, all told over the past few days, for HOURS AND HOURS and the scarf seems to grow only incrementally - soooo slowly. And it's only half way done. Gaaa! What was I thinking??

And notice the green and silver yarn in the corner? That's for the Slytherin scarf, yet to be cast-on. I say again, GAAA!

 
 
I've knitted things from movies and books and TV shows before, usually as gifts. Some have been specific requests, like the Jayne Cob hat I made for my son (from the TV show, Firefly). You can see him wearing it in this post - scroll down to the end.
 
I also made some fingerless mitts fashioned after the ones Johnny Depp wore in the movie, Sweeney Todd, for my daughter's boyfriend. He loves them and wants another pair because these are about to wear out (they are 2 or 3 years old by now and he wears them all the time in winter). The problem with that is I sort of cobbled the pattern together and customized it for his (large) hands, but now can't find my notes. So I have to go through the process of cobbling together and customizing all over to make new ones. Gaaa!
 
And here are some mittens I made from the excellent book, Code Name Verity, for a friend.
 
I would someday like to knit the fingerless mitts Hermione wears in The Deathly Hallows Part 1 for myself (click the image to see it larger):
 
 
And then, there are the Beowulf socks I intend to make for my son someday - they have the first page of Beowulf written on them. I made the yarn already, but the pattern is a bit daunting, so I'm nervous about starting.
 
So there is no end to the inspiration that can be found in literary, film, and television sources - and the requests that may come your way if you are a knitter. My only advice to you is, STAY AWAY FROM THESE BLEEDING SCARVES. If you must, knit one of the other styles that can be found. You'll be glad you did.