Zebra!!!!!!!!!!!!

   This is Allison...my "niece" (ok so really she is my niece's fiance's little sister/best friend....which is why I just say "niece"...unless you are from the South these types of relationships can be extremely confusing! Us Southerners are used to having a mash up of mixed relations so it is normal for us to be, say, an Aunt for your neighbors grandsons wife's sisters cousin...its normal!) Anyway, one day while sitting in my sisters kitchen Allison asks me if I could knit her a zebra scarf. Now, this impressed me greatly because of 2 very important reasons: 1.) a 17 year old WANTS a hand knit scarf!?! and 2.) she doesn't think that knitting is "weird" or for "old people." I am not so proficient at knitting that I can make zebra stripes in the traditional sense nor have I really ever written my own pattern (unless you count a leaf that is posted on this blog!) but I promised Allison that I would try.
     I, of course, instantly became OBSESSED with trying to find a pattern to make a zebra scarf. I found that even though Ravelry has EVERYTHING it lacks a zebra scarf pattern. Looking on Ravelry I found a pattern for a zebra puppet which became the basis for my pattern.Susan B. Anderson Zebra/Panda Puppet pattern. So this left me with having to make my own. Which is TERRIFYING!
      Adapting the puppet was kind of easy at first. Instead of making it like the puppet I just extended it into a scarf. After the scarf was done (oh and color changes are something that was new for me as well!) I made two more pieces to attach to the bottom for pockets. Once the pockets were done I began to have fun with the scarf. I added a zebra face on one pocket and on the opposite pocket: a tail! Here are some pictures:









sorry about being blurry...cellphone pics!





<------Zebra face












The Tail---------------------->

<-------------entire scarf

     Of course, I could not stop at just making Allison a scarf (by the way the pockets behind the head and above the tail are HUGE and sturdy!) so I also made a hat....Allison asked if I could figure out how to make one that matched the scarf. So once again I turned to Ravelry for inspiration! I found the greatest pattern for an ear-flap hat that used two needles. Despite being a little apprehensive about the pattern (I have never used  two needles for a hat before...I usually stick to circulars and double pointed needles for hats.) But went full force into making this hat: Kat's "Two-Sticks" Ear Flap Ski Hat. I made the hat using the same stripe pattern I used for the scarf. Once the hat was done I began the task of the of adding the mane of the zebra, which is done the same way one would use to add fringe. A crochet hook and small piece of yarn. Here are some of the pictures of the hat on 2 different models (my 10 yr old niece, Kirsten and my 3 yr old great-niece, Sadie)

<----Hat with ears and no mane!

On Kirsten without ears----->

<-----Sadie with Hat on-no mane but with ears

Sadie with mane, ears, and flaps------>

<---Top of hat

Back of hat showing mane and ears------->

     I completely LOVED making this set! It was tough and frustrating but came out wonderfully! As you can tell from the first picture on this blog of Allison wearing the hat and scarf...she LOVES it as well. Here she is wearing both:

     Now she wants one in Bumblebee style....I love that she loves it! Now if only she would want to learn to knit.......