The Part I Didn't Show. The Stuff I Haven't Said.

I have an ever-growing list of blog posts I need to write - it was at 12 at last count - and yet I feel bad to post when I haven't yet responded to the comments in previous posts. You guys left me some big Tomten love, as well as some fabulous ideas for what to do with my mistakenly-purchased canvas (list included at the bottom of this post). Even though I haven't responded to individual comments, I want you to know how VERY much I appreciate each and every one. Your encouragement and advice keep me going! I want to do better with writing back to each comment, and I may be on the verge of a non-blogger option, but in the meantime, I have to just go ahead and post again. So here I go.

Regarding the Tomten and its gigantic hood, Rebekah suggested the possibility of sewing it smaller. That is exactly what I would like to do, if I had a clue how to do it. I keep looking at it and trying to figure out how I would go about doing that, and I can't get my mind around it. If anyone has ideas, do tell.

I swear someone somewhere suggested that he would grow into it, but now I can't find any comment like that. Still, I had to show you why that is simply impossible.

Here's the Tomten, on my larger-than-average adult noggin.
Little Buddha inherited my genes in the big-head department, but I still don't think even his head will ever fit this hood. A family of squirrels, perhaps. But not a human head.
It isn't as obvious on Little Buddha, because when he wears the hood up he doesn't pull it any further forward than this:


which then gives this jaunty gnome-like effect in profile:


(I know I showed these pictures in my last post, but I couldn't keep myself from posting them again. I'd hate for the only pictures in this post to be the ones of me looking ridiculous)

Having finished Little Buddha's Tomten, I had to go back and take a look at Tiny Dancer's, to see if there were any way I could proceed without ripping. Nevermind that I had completely screwed up by trying to knit the stripe of blue along with the green, rather than waiting to add it as a buttonband (an effect that looks quite horrible up close and in person). I wanted to see if it was somehow nevertheless salveagable. First, I tried on the hood.

Not exactly small, but strangely not as enormous as Little Buddha's. I swear I have no idea what I did differently with Little Buddha's (which I began knitting after I realized how problematic Tiny Dancer's had become). But I remembered why Tiny Dancer's was such a mess. It's not the hood that's huge. It's the whole freakin' thing.

(Try to ignore the mess of my study).
This thing fits me perfectly. On Tiny Dancer it is ridiculous. It barely touches his body anywhere, and it hangs down past his knees. So the whole thing will be a complete re-do. Probably sometime next spring.

So there ya have it. The behind-the-scenes looks at what I did wrong.

And now a list of groovy ideas of things you can do with canvas:

• bucket or box
• reading pillows (Annika points out this one - and take a look! moonwaves point out that the sample actually shows the same Gingerbread man fabric I bought, in a different color)
• a play tent
• a hammock
• placemats
• a bag for knitting or sewing stuff
• belts
• crayon holders
• wallets
• beach towels or picnic rugs with little handles
• baby carriers
• changing pad
• lampshades
• aprons
• bulletin board covers
• floor cushions

WOW. So many fantastic ideas it just makes me want to scramble for some more canvas!! I really want to make several of the things on the list now, but I only have a small amount of fabric. Stay tuned....