Unraveled, Week 52/2025

Hello, friends, and happy Christmas Eve! I hope you all had a good Festivus yesterday, with all your grievances aired and your feats of strength well executed. It's Wednesday, so I'm joining in with Kat and the Unravelers for the weekly update on making and reading.

I'm happy to report that I actually finished my father-in-law's hat after getting my post ready Sunday night -- yes, I crocheted a hat in a day!

Pattern: Not-So-Chunky Guy Beanie by Elvee Dickinson (Ravelry link), size medium
Yarn: Knit Picks Chroma Twist Worsted (70% wool/30% nylon) in Cousteau, 0.7 skeins
Hook: 4.5 mm
Started/Completed: December 21

I had started this once before but didn't like the fabric; the pattern has you work through the front loop only for the body of the hat, and I felt that made it too floppy and loose. So I ripped it out and restarted, working through both loops on each stitch. I also joined each round with a slip stitch and chained to start the next one rather than working in a true spiral. I worked the the brim through the back loop as instructed, though, to give a bit of texture, and then worked the last few rounds as back post double crochet, one round of single crochet, and then the final round working the back loop of the penultimate round and the front loop of the next together in a single crochet (I'm not experienced enough to know if there's a technical term for that). Is it perfect? Absolutely not. But it has to be better than the ratty, machine-knit acrylic monstrosity I've been seeing my father-in-law wearing.

As that was the last holiday crafting left on my list, I've been using my vacation crafting for mainly selfish purposes. Designing has been something I've largely let go of this year, but that doesn't mean I haven't been thinking about it. Traditionally, I've used this vacation as a chance to work up design samples for the next year, though that hasn't been the case for several years. This year, I thought I'd reinstate it, and first on the list is a cowl version of my Xenolith hat (Ravelry link).

I'm using a set of six mini skeins from Fibernymph Dye Works, each one a semisolid from Lisa's Wild Atlantic Wildflowers colorway, which I used for a pair of socks for my sister-in-law last year. I'm planning to work at least three repeats of the stripes for a fairly tall cowl. There will be a lot of ends to weave in, but I love seeing all the colors so much I don't mind.

Now that I don't have to deal with work, I've had more time for reading and have finished three books since this time last week.

I am a big fan of Alix E. Harrow's books, so I immediately put her newest novel, The Everlasting, on hold as soon as my library had it and dropped everything else (other than work) as soon as I got it. This novel is part historical fiction, part fantasy, part something entirely new. It's a love story, a story about a female knight, and a story about how stories become history. There's a time travel element, and I'll admit that how that worked to change the story confused me a bit, but it turns out it didn't matter too much. What I love about Harrow's writing is how imaginative it is and how her female characters always defy stereotypes and expectations. I find it hard to even describe this book because it was so unlike any other I've read, even though it draws on fairy tales and stories of epic heroes. If you, like me, are an Alix Harrow fan, then I think you'll like this one. I gave it 4.5 stars.

I found a copy of The Idiot in my nearest Little Free Library several months ago and started reading it last month. It was slow going for a while, but I thought it was mainly because I was reading it right before bed, so I never managed very many pages at once. I was about halfway through when we left for vacation; I read a little more than 100 pages on the plane and finished it the next day. The premise is a young woman's experience in her first year at college. Like the author, she's Turkish American and attending Harvard. She also has very little experience in the wider world, both academically and socially. She takes a variety of classes and develops a crush on a classmate in her Russian language course. I kept reading because I kept expecting something interesting to happen, but frankly this book was just ... boring. Nothing much happens. There's a lot of thinking and talking without any real substance. I didn't hate it, but I also didn't really like it. I probably should have DNF'ed it, but I figured there had to be something of substance there if it was a Pulitzer Prize finalist. Maybe I'm just not smart to get it? I gave it 2 stars.

My first entirely-on-vacation read was the first in a series that came highly recommended by my friend Margene. The Unselected Journals of Emma M. Lion is a series following a young woman in 1880s London. In Volume 1, Emma has returned to her family's inherited home of Lapis Lazuli House, which has been inhabited by her cousin Archibald until she reaches the age of 21 and legally can take possession. Emma is an orphan and is relying on the house and a living left to her by a relative, but she soon discovers that Archibald has squandered much of the living, leaving Emma in a precarious situation. The entire book is written as Emma's diary, and she is a delightful and plucky heroine. I found this to be great on audio -- and all eight volumes that are published are available on Hoopla! Highlight recommend -- 4.5 stars.

I hope that those of you who are celebrating have a lovely Christmas full of good food and good company. We'll be having a quiet day here, though we'll have homemade cinnamon rolls and and big dinner because why not take advantage of a holiday to experience a little extra joy?