Cat Mad Crochet

Estimated reading time: 3 minutes

I met Violeta, my very best friend, when we both took our kids to a homeschool art class. We sat outside and chatted while our children learned to draw. We bonded over a shared love of books and pets and nature. 

When my father fell ill, she took in and cared for about 100 monarch caterpillars my younger daughter and I were raising. Have you raised monarchs? They have no idea they are endangered and persist in perishing in really horrific ways despite your best efforts. She took them in anyway. No one but a true friend understands these sorts of moments and gives of themselves to keep you afloat. 

Violeta has been ride or die with all of my schemes but has also been able to caution me when I have picked up a little cackle that maybe I should rein in. We mourn each other’s losses and disappointments, just as we celebrate each other’s victories. We have seen each other through sick children and pet loss. We have spent afternoons laughing about the harm we are doing to our google histories as we look up horrible things that we just have to know about.

She listens when I rant, laughs at my oddities in a way that shows she understands me, and sees me in a way that not everyone takes the time to do. I hope I do these things for her as well as she does them for me.

She is about to realize a dream. Her first (and I do firmly believe there will be more) book of poetry is about to be published. She has worked so hard and I am so happy others are seeing the value and beauty in her work. Her poems are thoughtful and thought provoking. They make you stop and see the things you might not see in a way that makes them important and beautiful even if they seemed small and insignificant before. 

Since her book comes out at the end of September, she could be doing some fall garden readings to publicize her book. She asked me to make her a capelet that she can wear to stay warm as she shares her poetry. I was thrilled to be asked and I am happy to have created something she likes. 

I think the world needs more capes, and I have a bunch of ideas for others after making this one. I’m excited to give them a try. If you would like to try this capelet for yourself, my notes are attached at the end of this post for your use. To make it, I used just a bit over three hanks of Malabrigo Mechita in Fiona. I would advise three hanks for x small and small sizes, 4 for medium to 3 xl and 5 beyond that. I used a 3 mm hook. 

The stitch pattern is easy to follow and the post stitches serve as indicators for where to put the increases. No stitch markers necessary! No pesky counting except to see if you reached 11 stitches yet. This is a nice, relaxing project to get into a rhythm with and just go. 

If you give it a try, drop me a picture. I would love to see how your project went. If you have a question or need some help, drop me an email (catmadcrochet@gmail.com) and I will be happy to help. 

If you would like to order a copy of Violeta’s book, you can do so by following this link: Songs for the Land-Bound — June Road Press

Happy crafting!