embracing my inner capecho

dear nora gaughan,

first off, let me say: i still heart you. your capecho is the most innovative design i've ever had the pleasure to knit.

i thrilled to the completion of each puffy, sand-dollary pentagon, despite the alarmingly misshapen capechos-in-progress i began to notice floating around cyberspace..

"have you tried it on yet," became the question on every fellow capecho-maker's lips. "trust the process," became my mantra. meaning, no, i hadn't tried it on. meaning, yes, i was in complete and utter denial.

i finished the body and felt a sharp twinge of panic. i could tell without even trying it on: the thing was huge. but surely, the sleeves would shore everything up. just like the model on the cover of vogue knitting. i finished the sleeves and plunged blindly into the neckband. from there i went straight to blocking. i even threw it in the dryer for 10 minutes like someone i'd read about on craftster.

and then today, i finally tried it on.

and.

it's a capecho, alright.

i guess that annoying descriptor should have been my first clue. let's consider the etymology of the word "capecho." it contains the word "cape," as in that thing worn by florence nightingale or, say, the french lieutenant's woman and "poncho," as in mucho hango, or as the dictionary says, "a blanket-like cloak with a hole in the center to admit the head."

honestly, nora, i think you got a bum rap from the editors of VK. it's not your fault that they completely misrepresented your design on the cover of the magazine. here's my theory: the extremely narrow VK cover model has an extremely large metal clamp stuck to the back of HER capecho, thus creating the semblance of a tiny, fitted jacket (a "tinfijacket, if you will), with barely enough room to admit her tiny frame, let alone a head.

i will admit, i originally fell in love with that adorable little capecho as depicted by that adorable little model. but i am learning to embrace my own capecho, in all of its big, fat, capey, drapey glory.

i will, as the unflappable tim gunn tells us, make it work.

love always,
kate

addendum: thanks for all the nice comments about my capecho post. someone aske me about the size...i made mine a size smaller than my normal bust size. one of my commenters had a great solution to make it look just like the picture. personally, i don't have an issue with the size or fit. i just have an issue with misrepresenting it in the magazine. btw, i have shown my capecho to a bunch of friends who have no idea what a capecho is...and they all gushed over it. go figyah.