Annoying Designers!!

I was looking on Ravelry for tea cozy patterns, because I wanted a tea cozy that I could use from now until I make a red/white/blue one for Memorial Day til July 4th. I love my march cozy, but am kinda over the shamrocks until next year. So I found a really pretty pleated cozy in dark and light pinks. I did not want pink, but the beauty of knitting is you can make a pattern any color you want, if you can find the color - I guess dyers have a slight advantage here. I wanted yellow and green with some white. Kind of inspired by :



When I went to click on the free pattern I discovered that the picture in the pattern is a cozy the designer made from an old vintage pattern. The pattern she had available was her "version" of the cozy. IT REALLY WASN'T CLOSE!! It had a checkerboard bottom, then the pleats, then instead of a nice round top the top looks loke a paper bag tied shut with string. Not saying it wasn't a perfectly nice cozy. But that if you see the picture of one cozy, that same cozy is on the top of the pattern page - you do not expect to scroll down to find a completely different looking cozy and the pattern for that second cozy!!

I started using the pattern figuring I could just skip the checkerboard and shape the top when I got there. Well I obviously can't count while watching a race because I cast on 2 few stitches. And knew the number I cast on - maybe it's reading not counting that is my issue. So when I got to the striped pleats I didn't have enough stitches. Frog. Take two - correct number of stitches, but using three colors was becoming a tangle in back and the strands were too loose on the bottom. Frog. Now anyone who knows me knows that after 2 trips to the frog pond it's a 50/50 proposition as to whether it gets frogged or trashed. But I want this cozy. So I cast on for a third time. This time I tossed the pattern and grudgingly realized if I wanted to have the tea cozy in my head I would have to do it myself. I would like to say here that I am not a designer. I have no desire to ever be a designer. I do not have the insight/creativity ot be a designer. I get really irritated if I feel pressured to do something I don't want to do ( not just crafting - life in general)

So I started with a ribbed bottom- why? because that way I wouldn't have to worry about the cozy fitting the bottom and still getting over the belly of the pot. I then started the vertical stripes. Realized then that my white is completely a different size yarn than the yellow. Realized after I did a few rows - frogging is not happening here folks! So after growling a bit, I decided that I liked it. The yellow stripes are a really pinched pleat while the white is just barely pleated. The yellow literally pops. I like it. Then I started getting bored - short attention span remember? So I started a cable in the center white stripe. I love cables. Cables make me happy. I now realize it will not fit my teapot. Too small. But that's ok. I have a smaller tea pot. Here's what I have so far:



Now, before anyone comments ( yes I am still grouchy) I am not going to frog again!! I am not currently mentally stable enough to frog this project again. So - no suggestions!! If you don't like it ok, you can say that. If you like it ok you can say that. But no comments along the lines of - maybe if you used less white stitches more yellow stitches or maybe you should try garter stitch etc etc.

tomorrow, hopefully I will be less grouchy and I will be taking a road trip with a knitting friend. Don't know if we are going to Montclair or Martinsville or just to lunch yet. The store in Montclair will be closing. The sale starts on 4.20. So I may want to go before everyting is picked through. And they have a really cool t-shirt I want. The store in Martinsville gets some really good comments from people on Ravelry, and would have different yarn and hopefully stuff I haven't seen/pet before. Ok - if you want to leave a suggestion when you comment - here would be something I need help deciding. New store or closing store before stuff goes on sale?