Winner! And Thoughts on H-B P

Our latest contest winner is Becky, who correctly answered our "How Fast Can Harry Find Himself in Trouble?" question. Becky, a Sly gal, will be receiving two skeins of truly Slytherin green Wakiki yarn by Crystal Palace. Good job, Becky!

Another question, perhaps a little easier, will be coming this week. Stay tuned...

I had a few thoughts after re-reading Half-Blood Prince.

1. Is Dumbledore setting up his own death? I was just a tad-bit hysterical at finishing H-B P and found a LOT of comfort in the website Dumbledore Is Not Dead (now called "Beyond Hogwarts") when the book was first released. Even after J.K. assured us all he IS dead, I've gone back to that site to remind myself that maybe Snape isn't, oh, I don't know, the scum of the earth and there is some crucial reason to Dumbledore's death.

I realize, Dumbledore had to go, he was the last adult protecting Harry from his inevitable final meeting with Voldemort. There's no one left in Harry's life who he might look to for guidance; I get it, Dumbledore couldn't be in the seventh book (though maybe, just maybe, he is... just maybe).

But did Dumbledore mean to die? On my last reading, H-B P seemed littered with signs he was putting all the pieces into place, giving Harry all the necessary tools for Harry and the Order to carry on after he was gone. (Of course, now I can't find any of them easily, but they're there, I swear it! ;-)

2. Is there a chance the final showdown, we'll call it, between Harry and Voldemort happens at Hogwarts and not Godric's Hollow? Or that Hogwarts will play a bigger role than any of us, or I, at least, expected? In "Lord Voldemort's Request", Dumbledore says,
"'Voldemort was, I believe, more attached to this school than he ever has been to a person. Hogwarts was where he had been happiest; the first and only place he had felt at home.'
Harry felt slightly uncomfortable at these words, for this was exactly how he felt about Hogwarts too.
'Secondly, the castle is a stronghold of ancient magic... he [Voldemort] may have felt that there were mysteries still to be penetrated.'" ( H-B P American edition, p 431)
I can't help but think that, even though Harry won't be going back to school, he will end up back at Hogwarts in Book 7.

3. Even if, and I really hope this is true, Snape IS on the side of the Order, is he a "good guy"? I have some sympathy for him after what J.K. revealed of his youth in OotP, but I can't bring myself to like him even a little. Yes, I love Alan Rickman, and it's hard to hate him in the movie, but when I read OotP and H-B P, I'm reminded of what a small, petty, nasty character Snape is, not only to Harry, but to almost everyone- Neville, Hermione, Ron. Can all that cruelty be part of his double-agent role?

Just some questions/concerns/comments. Getting to the end of Book 6 suddenly made the release of Deathly Hollows seem so much more crucial and, therefore, so much farther away. When will the 21st of July get here?!

Part 4: A New Man

When we last left our woollen Dark Lord, he was reclining in the sunshine with his new found friend, revealing his deepest desires.
"A flower shop? Really?"

"Yeah... it's silly, but I've always liked that idea. Making arrangements and creating beautiful things that make other people happy."
"I guess it's part of growing up in that dank orphanage. There was no color. No beauty."

"I just can't get over how different you are than I expected. You're really... you're a whole different man. Here..."
"Take your wand back. I want to see the good you can do with it."

"I... I don't know what to say. Except..."

"Yes?"

"Avada Kedavra!"

"Gullible twit..."

"Now then... I know I saw it in here somewhere..."
"Ah yes..."Harry has powerful protection while he can still call this house 'home.' This magic will cease to operate the moment that Harry turns seventeen."* Finally! I have found the way to defeat him! Now then, to get my body back... Finite Incantatem!"

"Now... Harry Potter... you will DIE!!!"

And They All Lived Happily Ever After

The End

*Quote taken from HBP, US edition pgs 55-56

WARNING!

I'm sure all of you have heard the rumors that some guy hacked into the publisher's database and found the secrets of book 7 and posted them on-line.

I'm 100% positive that they're fake, but if you want to avoid it all together DON'T read the comments attached to the Mugglenet.com article. Someone went and read it and then told everything that was in it, in a "This is what it said, don't believe any of it" kinda way.

Just a heads up.

Harold The Purple Pygmy Puff

While I was walking around Diagon Alley looking for a new pet for the start of school, I stopped by Weasly's Wizarding Wheezes. I found the sweetest Pygmy Puff. He is purple with black eyes and his name is Harold. Here's a picture of him for you!

I just love him to death! He is soft and fluffy and just plain cute! I used Mandy's Pygmy Puff pattern and he turned out wonderfully.

I am once again rereading the first Harry book. It is by far my favorite book. I love discovering the magic in Harry's point of view. This is the fourth time this summer that I am rereading this book. I want to read it seven times.

QUESTION! CONTEST!

Our second week of our Countdown Contest is now in play!

The first two KALers to email me a correct answer at knitter.natter@yahoo.com will win!

Please only email me if you're currently a member of this blog. In your email, besides your clever answer, include how you're listed on the sidebar so I can link your name on the winners' post.

So.

We've watched Harry, in these last six books, grow more rebellious and more defiant of authority. Can you tell us every book in which Harry has received detention, from any teacher, in his first week of school? Include in your answer: 1) which book, 2) the teacher who gave the detention and 3) the length of the punishment (one detention, two detentions, etc).

Any questions?
GO!

Winners and the correct answer will be posted tomorrow, Friday, evening or first thing Saturday morning.

And I'll be shopping tomorrow for some extra-Harry prizes... ;-)

Good luck!

Controversial topic

Interesting topic or is this Pandora's Box?
Today at work another mom and I started discussing JK Rawlings. Strangely enough J.K. attends the same church that C.S. Lewis did. When he did his writings many Christians didn't read his books because of magical creatures. Also when a reporter asked J.K. what her views where on being a Christian. J.K.'s response was if "I answered than I would be giving out the ending of my book". I already knew about the connection between a mother's love and Christ's love and good vs. evil. But now I am really curious. Just some thoughts.

House Afghan Progress

I'm behind in reading--I'm just getting finished with Chamber of Secrets. But I am making progress on my house afghan. I've finished Hufflepuff and Slytherin's squares.

Onto Gryffindor, then Ravenclaw, then the hard work begins--assembly and the border :)

Here's the whole story(if you're interested).

Happy knitting and reading!

Podcasts

Do any of you listen to Harry Potter podcasts? I'm just curious, because I listen to Mugglecast, and they have some really thought-provoking theories and crack me up. It's also National Spread Mugglecast month, but I wouldn't promote something that wasn't fantastic.

Mugglecast will achieve their 100th episode in a few weeks. I've been listening since around the 75th episode. There are several hosts, and they have a lot of segments so they cover a lot of topics each episode. Check it out- it will definitely get you excited for the new movie and book!

Attention HufflePuffers

Hello HufflePuff! This is your Prefect Janet. How are you doing on your second project? Are you almost ready for the final date in 23 days? How about reading the books. Have you started the Half-blood Prince yet?
As for me my HufflePuff shawl is almost 1/2 way done... that is if I don't decide that it really needs to be a sweater.

Slytherin Wrongfully Accused!

Hi gang! I simply couldn't pass up on the opportunity to join in on this most engaging KAL. A total and complete Harry Potter fan, I combine that laudable characteristic with a fanaticisim for knitting, crochet, spinning, and in fact all forms of craftwork, be they fibre or wizardry. So obviously I am now at home among my family!

You may notice I've chosen Slytherin - or perhaps it chose me. Well it's about time some of us did something to retrieve that noble House's reputation. It has been somewhat badly done by up to now, simply because of the bad press it has received from others (hang your head, Gryffindor!) We Slytherins simply (although 'simple' is not a word normally found in our extensive and educated vocabulary) pride ourselves on upholding the exceptionally high standards, both of wizardry and of elegance, for which we have always been renowned.

To that end, I shall commence by creating the most supreme pair of socks in Slytherin colours (green and silver, Earth and Water, the perfect witching combination), which will showcase the twining Serpent which is of course the Slytherin crest.

(I might then go on to make Molly Weasley's amazing jacket with crochet sleeves, since I hold no grudge against those who could achieve no higher than Gryffindor. Plus I loved that jacket from the first moment I saw it. I got my pattern from Fruitcats and you can find it there too if you're so inclined - and you SHOULD be, it's incredible!)

I am in a fever of dread and anticipation about both the forthcoming film AND the final book. The film since, having read The Order of the Phoenix, I don't know if I can bear to see those dreadful happenings played out on screen. The final book - well, because it is the final book of course. That's too dreadful to contemplate.

Which brings me to another serious difficulty. Help me on this one. I shall of course grab my copy at midnight on the due date. But do I then follow my natural instinct (start it slowly, savouring every sentence of this last-ever instalment, read a chapter a day as a treat, thus extending the pleasure to the last moment possible) or keep up with the Potterses (start reading in the shop, don't stop for sleep, food, anything, until the last line is reached around dawn) ?

I don't WANT to read it quickly. How could I? That's no way to treat a classic. But if I go with my pleasure-loving instinct, how am I to avoid hearing every detail on all sides? (I'm a journalist by trade, by the way.) Could I go into a hermitage? No, they'll probably be reading it too. Emigrate to Outer Mongolia? Not a hope, it's probably translated already and neatly stacked in piles in Ulan Bator. Stay home without watching TV, taking phone calls, reading emails or indeed this KAL? Possible but difficult. V-E-R-Y difficult.

Advice welcomed.

(Bows magnificently, turns and sweeps to Slytherin table, trailing long black cloak lined with sparkling green, to cheers and applause from The House, boos and hisses from Those Other Three Losers - sorry, houses.)

Local Library Read-In

My local public library is going to have a fun event for teens for the HP Book 7 release.

They are distributing a Harry Potter quiz. Teens are to answer the questions and turn the paper in. Names of those who answered all questions correctly are added to a drawing. Twenty lucky winners will be able to come at midnight on July 21 for a night-long read-in. The library is getting 20 additional books for the read-in.

Wish I were still a teen - but those days are long gone. I'll have to wait until 9:30 am to get my book from the library.

Winners!

We have two winners for our "Can you name three Ravenclaws other than Cho Chang and Luna Lovegood?" contest.

Treesh (Ravenclaw Prefect, by the way- she came to play) answered:

Roger Davies - was a captain of the Quidditch team
Michael Corner - dated Ginny
Padma Patil - sister of Parvati

and Tammy (who I will link as soon as I figure out who she is on the sidebar ;-) answered:

Michael Corner
Stewart Ackerly
Roger Davies

Good Job to the winners! Contest prizes (and I would take a picture, but my husband's out of town with the camera- oops!) are: two skeins of Regia sock yarn and two skeins of Scholler and Stahl Fortissima Colori sock yarn.

Stay tuned for next week's question. The harder the questions, the more Harry-themed the prizes!

Ravenclaw updates...

Well, I did actually get some Ravenclaw knitting done. I finished the cable & bobble hat and made little progress on the scarf. The hat I knitted with Cascade 220 in Midnight Blue using a size 7 16" circular then down to DPNs toward the end. The pattern can be found in the Charmed Knits book. I just finished the 4th trapped bar stripe using Lion Brand Woolease in Navy and Grey Heather. It's yarn from the stash. The pattern I am using came from the Atypically.net site.

http://knit.atypically.net/scarves/azkaban/pattern.shtml

FUNNIEST VIDEO EVER!!!!

Tonks hat

I don't know about you guys, but I'm not crazy about the casting and costume of Tonks in the upcoming movie. She doesn't look anything like I pictured her, and I'm disappointed by the hair. That is purple hair, not hot pink. I'm not sure what they think hot pink is, but I feel pretty sure they could have come a little bit closer to it than this.

That's what gave me the idea for a Tonks hat. Head Huggers has a free pattern for a fun fur hat that is supposed to look like real hair.

I already have some hot pink (real hot pink) fun fur in my stash, and I think I'm going to use it to make a Tonks cap. Now, whether I'm brave enough to wear it to the movies...hmm. ;)

W.O.M.B.A.T.

The third WOMBAT is open today at JKrowling.com. It's supposed to be the most difficult installment yet, so good luck! I'm having trouble getting the site to work. I recommend trying the British version, though even that is giving me trouble...

....if you want to know exactly how to get inside the door and to the test, click here.

More Prizes!

Hello to the KAL! I've been a sadly absent co-host for the last month and so I'm jumping back in with a bang.

By my calculations we have four week to the movie release and five weeks to the book. This should be the time the blog is at a frenzy of questions, thoughts, hopes, dreams... you see what I'm saying.

To help that excitement along, we'll be doing small, oddball contests every week between now and the release of the book.

This week's contest:
Name three Ravenclaw students other than Cho Chang and Luna Lovegood.

The first two people to email me today (Wed, 6.13) at knitter.natter@yahoo.com will be the recipients of some festive little prizes. GO!

Is this thrilling enough? ;-)

Good luck to the KAL!

A finished object

I finished a pair of Hufflepuff sock for a swap thought I would share.

Lots of Knitting!

I have knitted up a ton of Harry Potter related objects. I also managed to read the sixth book. I have once again started with the first and plan on reading the series again before the release of the seventh book. I think I will start off with my comments from the book, then go on to knitting.

First, wouldn't Voldemort have put curses on Harry if he was being used as a Horcrux? There were curses on the other ones.
Second, does Harry still want to become an Auror? If he does won't he have to go back to Hogwarts for his final year?

That was all I could come up with for this book. On to my knitting. First off, here is my owl: Isn't he adorable! I finished him up the same day I started him. (that is the second). However, I could not think up a name for him. Any suggestions?

I have also knitted up a mini sweater for my uncle for Christmas. I didn't add the embroidery because I don't think he reads Harry Potter. Awful, I know. I also made a little Ravenclaw bookmark for me, which you can see below.


I also knitted up a baby hat, using the Tea Cozy Crown. It is soooooo cute. I used navy for the body and gold for the stripe. Ravenclaw yet again! Here's a pic:


In the car yesterday on the way back from Florida, I cast on and knitted up the first mitten using Gryffindor colors and the trapped bar pattern. I love it. I cast on the second of the pair during church, and managed to get to the thumb gusset during the sermon. Unfortunately, I didn't snap a pic of them yet. Maybe tomorrow. I also started a Slytherin colored Warm Up America! square that I am crocheting. Have a picture! Since I took the picture, I have worked almost two stripes. Of course, it wasn't until I finished the first stripe that I measured. It was nine inches wide. I decided to work for seven inches then finish it and call it vertical stripes!

Sarah

1/2 Blood Prince book discussion

ok I am done reading 1/2 blood Prince.

• And am wondering who was Amelia Bones?
  
• Hagrid's brother Gwarp has an unseen use.
• Godric Hollows = Deathly Hollows
• when will the locket connection be made?
• dobby and kreacher we will see again
  
• where are the other Horocruxes?

Just some thoughts.

Huffle puff Yarn

The yarn for my Hufflepuff shawl. I have to finish another shawl first as I need the needles. Can I do it it less than 1 month?

Pic of a knitted hogwarts

You might have to scroll down a bit. It's the Top 10 Geekiest Yarn Creations on the Web.

An Owl For A Ravenclaw

I just bought the book Charmed Knits today and I am in LOVE!!!!! I am casting on for Errol the owl right now as I type. However, as I am in Ravenclaw, he will not be called Errol. I will have to post a picture of him when he is done so you can all help me decide on a name for him.

I am going to the beach this week and I am taking the sixth book with me. I will probably be able to finish it this week, along with other Harry Potter related knitting. I was going through my stash today, and realized that I have a ton of Slythryn green! I am going to pick up a skein of gray/silver Red Heart to match it and make a pair of mittens in Slythryn colors. I will gift them to a friend of mine for Christmas or something.

Did you see that they are making a Harry Potter theme park!!!!!! I am very excited! I can't wait for '09 so I can go see it!!!

Sarah

Finished house elf slippers

House Elf slippers in purple acrylic from stash. Hope everyone is busy knitting.