Dreadlock Tube Hat with Corset Lacing

I went through my knitting this afternoon and came across my most popular hat.  I would say that it is my most requested pattern, but people don't ask me for the pattern.  They ask me where I bought it.  This was actually one of the first hats that I designed, and it was made right after I fell in love with steampunk.  Today I share it with you.


Honestly, I can't remember exactly what yarn I used (except that it was cheap stuff), but it's really pretty simple.  I recommend that you measure your head and knit a gauge swatch to see if it will fit you.  Adjust your needle size, or the number of repeats of the pattern, to get it right.  If this is hard to read or follow, please, please click on comments and let me know. (Just because it's all obvious to me, doesn't mean that it makes sense to someone not inside of my head.) 

Again, if you can't read this, yell at me. I apologize in advance for not getting off my butt and learning to chart more professionally.

Slightly Steampunk Lighting Project

We all have those times when stress amps up to the point that we need a distraction.  For me, this past month has been one of those weeks.  So, last week I needed something different to do.  As timing would have it, my sweet husband had just bought this chandelier, from an "antique" dealer, for our anniversary.  Someone had spray painted it flat white for a shabby chic look.  We wanted steampunk...   My de-stressing project was provided.

My youngest little creative and I started off by painting it metallic black (along with a vintage style globe stand to match).  The surfaces had been prepped with steel wool.  I had also done a small repair to the metal on the globe stand, and had pealed off much of the annoying band of astrology stuff from the metal strip surrounding the globe (In the end, this ripped texture added a corroded look to the the finished piece that I love).

We actually just used cheap craft paint for both pieces, so the whole project only cost about 5 bucks. The paint colors we used were as follows: Sequin Black, gun metal grey and sterling silver; all of them metallic.

After painstakingly getting the black into all of the nooks and crannies, we followed with a quick brushing of the metallic gunmetal grey.  We were carefully not careful with this step, so that the black would show through in the low spots.  As you can see, the globe stand took extra coats of paint.  Finally I added some silver to the high spots in strategic places, and used it for the candle stick tubes as well.  I'm thinking that eventually we'll cover the plastic tubes with old fashioned style pipes, painted to match. (much more steampunk).

After all of the painting was finished, I spent about 5 hours or so rewiring and cleaning every single crystal.  The old ones looked awful, so it was well worth the blisters.  One day, when we buy our long term home, we plan on putting this chandelier in our multimedia studio.  Until then, we grin whenever we look at our little piece of obnoxious elegance in our living room.

Stress always passes, and I believe that all things work together for my good, so I'm thankful that I have lovely things to focus my mind on when life threatens to derail my brain.

Go find something good to do! 

Yarn Diet

Crown of Thorns Tam

I made this hat this spring, and it's the one that I'm wearing in my profile picture (for now).  So far, all of my dreads fit under it, but I'll probably need to go back to the drawing board for this coming winter.  This fair aisle type tam is made a little more roomy than a classic tam, so that it would fit over my big head with my big hair. It uses a worsted weight yarn, and I believe that I started with size 6 needles and moved up to size 8 after the knit 1 purl1 edge. I'd tell you exactly what yarn that I had used, but when I made it, I didn't realize that I'd ever be sharing the pattern.  Lesson learned, for now it'll have to be sufficient to say that the yarn is a mainstream cheaper brand that I picked up at a big name store, rather than a nice yarn shop....

In time I'm going to figure out the best way to reproduce my charts in a more professional way, but below is the chart I wrote out on graph paper.  The darker squares are what I actually did in this hat, but I've added green for the parts of the pattern that I would change if I ever do this design again.  I felt that the vines on the crown of thorns weren't as clear as I'd like them to be so the green in the chart beefs them up a little.  Work chart A from the bottom up, followed by B, and then A again. For the triangle shaped decreasing chart, begin at the top and work your way down.  You can use whatever method of decrease that you'd like, so long as you make those decreases at the edge of each repeat, in order to keep up with the stitch count.  As you can see, I did my knit one purl one beginning with alternating colors, and if you look closely you'll notice that I added one plain row between each chart. Whenever I knit in only one color, however, I still carried along the alternate color just to keep consistency in the thickness of the hat.  This pattern fits a head with a 23 inch crown measurement.  If your measurements are far off from this, either adjust your needle size or add/decrease stitches to fit (just remember to add or subtract them back to do the charts).

I hope this works for you, but if you have any questions, don't hesitate to click on the word comments below and ask.  I really want to communicate clearly enough to be of help.
 

Crown of Thorns Tam Chart

How to wash Dreadlocks

The single most common question I get about dreadlocks is "So, do you wash it?"  I bite back the comment in my head about dreadlock wearers only rolling in the mud to get clean, and say "Of course I wash my hair."  The next question is what they really wanted to know, "How?"  The answer? - Very carefully.

Those of you who know me, are already aware that I'm one of those crazy sensitive people who are allergic to everything.  The first time I had dreads, it meant that the shampoos that people recommended to me made my scalp bleed, literally. The main culprit was the ever popular tea tree oil.  This seems to be the mainstay for people that want to be natural and keep their skin healthy.  The only problem with this is that it's really potent, and quite a few people, like me, are sensitive to it in any amount.  It wasn't until I discovered ginger, that I felt I could try dreadlocks again.

It had been recommended to me to boil down ginger root and add it to a bottle of natural shampoo, along with a few crushed aspirin. This is supposed to help people with scalp problems (most of us with sensitivities will have skin issues).  I totally recommend the crushed aspirin, but like so many other things, I'm allergic to it's ingredients.  For the ginger, however, I find that using fresh ginger each time you shampoo is far more effective.

Here is what I do - 
First I grate about one finger of ginger, and squeeze the juice out into a plastic measuring cup. You'll want less than a quarter cup of this liquid.

 Next, I run a bath... Before you give me the anagram for "Too Much Information", get your brain out of the gutter, and hear me out.  For best effect, you will want to begin by soaking your head.  This softens the skin and opens your pores.  A bath is better for this, because running water is tough on your knots.  The less movement of the water, the better.

After you've soaked your scalp for a couple minutes, put a small amount of your favorite natural shampoo (I recommend something with Lavender) in your hand.  Add about 4 drops of peppermint oil into the center of this, and mix it in with your finger.  Then pour a tiny bit of your fresh ginger juice into it as well, and mix in with your finger.  After our "medicine" is mixed in I add more shampoo to my hand and mix until I have a whole handful of herbalized shampoo.  I know it sounds like a lot of shampoo, but it's a little difficult to get the shampoo throughout your hair, when you have dreadlocks.  I apply this mixture to my entire scalp without a whole lot of concern for the length of my hair, unless it's extra dirty for some reason.  (As you rinse and squeeze your hair later, it will be cleansed quite well.)  Leave this on your head for a couple of minutes to do it's work.  The peppermint will soothe and cool, and the ginger is not only an anti - inflammatory, but it also is a great antioxidant, antimicrobial for sores, and stimulates circulation.  When you're ready, just let your head soak in the bath.  Gently massage the water through your scalp, and squeeze and release the length of your hair under the water.  This is rinse #1. Drain your bath.

Now rinse your hair again under running water, remembering to squeeze and release your hair under the water to get the water in and the shampoo out of your dreadlocks.  Don't rub and scrub your dreadlocks, because this is too rough on them.  Pay special attention to making sure your entire scalp is well rinsed.  Shampoo residues left on your skin will both irritate your scalp and invite infection.  That was rinse #2.  Now, remember that cup with ginger juice in the bottom of it?  Yeah, that.  I tip it a little and look at the bottom of the cup and see if there is starch on the bottom.  If there is, I'd rather not have a lot of it in my hair, so instead, I scoop it up with my finger and rub it into my skin (behind and in ears, along hairline, etc.  I know it sounds silly, but it helps.)  Now, I add water to the rest of the ginger juice until the cup is full. Slowly pour this onto your scalp, all over, leaving just a little bit behind in the bottom of the cup.  Let this sit on your head while you take care of the rest of your shower.  If it starts to burn rinse it right out.  This would mean that it was a little strong.  Use a little bit less next time.  After your done shaving, washing or plucking out your eyebrow hairs (whatever, really none of my business), rinse out your ginger. This is rinse #3.

This last part is optional, but take that cup with just a little bit of diluted ginger juice, and fill it back up with water.  Pour this over your scalp and hair.  This was rinse #4, and I find that it makes a real difference for me.  This tiny trace of ginger seems to help me as some sort of preventative measure against... whatever, until I wash my hair again.

When you're done, don't scrub your head with your towel.  Just squeeze your hair dry with it instead.  I also, always gently blow dry my hair as well.  It's really important to make sure that your hair gets dry before you put it up, or under a hat, or sleep on it.  If it doesn't get dry, it'll mildew.  Really mildew is not just gross, but will definitely give you skin issues, even if you don't already have them.  So, squeeze your hair in a dry spot on your towel, and then come back a few minutes later and do it again.  

That's it for washing your dreadlocks... It takes time, but we usually only wash our dreadlocks about once a week anyway, right?  If you have bangs, like me, just go ahead and wash them every day with your face, while the rest of your hair is pulled back.  If you have any questions, feel free to click on comments below, and ask.  I'll try to clarify any confusion.

Ever Been Mob Hugged?

Low Carb Gluten Free Granola

Yeah, gluten free and low carb doesn't sound like a good breakfast option, does it?  This granola, however, really satisfies that hearty, crunchy craving in the morning.  If I was worrying only about flavor, I'd leave out the pumpkin seed kernels. If I wanted it to be completely Paleo, I'd leave out the gluten free oats.  For me, this is a good compromise.

First, we make the temporarily gross looking mixture that you see here in this pot. It is:
1/3 Cup Coconut Oil
3/4 Cup Agave
1 Tbsp Vanilla
1/2 tsp Molasses
1/2 tsp Cinnamon 
1/4 tsp Nutmeg
1/2 tsp Powdered Ginger (optional, but ginger is super good for you)
1/4 tsp Salt

Put all of this on a low heat, and let it melt together. Meanwhile mix together in a large bowl:
1 8oz pkg. Raw Pumpkin Seed Kernels (optional, as I mentioned before)
1 12oz pkg. Unsweetened Flaked Coconut
1 16oz pkg. Sliced Almonds
2 Cups Gluten Free Rolled Oats (Leave this out or replace it if you want Paleo.)
1/2 Cup Chia Seeds (Optional, super healthy. Tastes good but you may not like texture)

Pour your melted mixture over your "Granola Stuff".  I just mix this by hand until it's all wet.  Spread between two of your largest pans, and bake at about 265 degrees.  You can put both pans in your oven at the same time, but try to stagger them, so that the heat will circulate evenly.  Stir after the first 30-40 minutes.

Stir about every 20 minutes or so until your granola is a beautiful golden color.  Let it cool completely and add any dried fruit that you might like.  This goes great with milk, and also is a good base for crumb cheesecake crusts (if I do say so myself).  Actually I recommend messing with this recipe until it suits you.  You may find that you like some nuts and seeds better, or you may want more agave for sweetness.  Do it your way.

 

Allergic to the Universe