A Hat Trick.

This was going to be a riff about the beauty and wonder of a properly executed mattress stitch, but instead it will be a grouch session.
My Big Blue sweater would be gorgeous (with the phenomenal raglan sleeves and side seams in yes! mattress stitch), if I had not slip stitched the front edges so that now they curl outward. Considered stitching grossgrain ribbons to keep them flat, considered dropping the edge stitch from the end of the collar all the way down to the hem and reknitting it with proper edging, even - gasp! frogging the whole thing. I have having to fiddle with something that should just be done. And it is just so gorgeous, but it flaps!!!
My Winter Watermelon skirt is too wide and no amount of stitching and elastic will make it nice. The hemming also did not work, got frogged and is now halfway done in ribbing that will problably also not work.
The Grande Side Cloche in Lipstic Lava looks great, but the side cables are not looking at all like the photos. A wrong yarn for the wrong job will do that.
The only things that worked out are the three hats. According to my men this is what the Maple Leafs need - something called a hat trick.





I am off to learn a Moebius in some yarn that - you guessed! did not work out for the Anhinga by Norah Gaughan.