Arcana Vitae

Download the pattern (PDF) for free here: Charlotte Dice Bag

Charlotte’s Dice Bag by A. A. Leavitt-Reynolds is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 3.0 United States License.

My friend Ben just got a story webpublished! If you enjoy zombies you might enjoy this different point of view: Riding Shotgun

Just a taste: I suppose this answers the question about the existence of a human soul. By all rights I know I should be gone. At least I hope so. I should have listened to the preacher more closely. Learned what I had to learn so that when I finally pass from this torment, I know my soul is going somewhere. (Read more at the link above).

Alright…here is it..the fabulous Cthulhu Dice Bag!

Please, this is my first attempt at designing anything, so I would cherish and love your feedback and pictures!

Cthulhu Dice Bag – Fulfilling all of your geekery needs.

By A. A. Leavitt-Reynolds
Arcana Vitae Design

Why trust your dice to any holder? Put them in the hands…er..tenticles of the Elder Gods.

To construct your very own Cthulhu dice bag of glory you’ll need:

- 2 skeins, one each of black and a light green worsted weight yarn (I used Cascade 220 Wool)
- Size 5.0mm / US 8 straight knitting needles (I knit very tightly, so unless you love huge bags, use whatever is needed to get gauge)
- 1 set of 5.0mm/US 8 double pointed knitting needles (dpns) or what is needed to get gauge.
- Stitch marker or scrap yarn to make a stitch marker
- Darning needle or blunt end tapestry needle for weaving in ends.
- 30 or so dice to fill the bag.

Gauge: 22 stitches X 26 rows equals 4 inches of stockinette stitch.

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Using the US 8 straight knitting needles CO 15 stitches. Knit 20 rows in seed stitch as follows:
Seed Stitch:
Row 1: K1, P1 and repeat to end. (Right Side)
Row 2: P1, K1 and repeat to end. (Wrong Side)
Bind off after 20 completed rows.

Now switching to your set of 5.0mm DPNs (or whatever you need to match my tight gauge) pick up 70 stitches from the edges of your square (15 on the top and bottom and 20 on the sides worked for me). If you need help picking up stitches, check out the nice tutorial on
knittinghelp . After you have picked up the 70 stitches and they are on your four double pointed needles feel free to place a stitch marker or tie a piece of waste yarn to the beginning of the round. Place marker and join together to begin working in the round (being careful not to twist the work).

Knit 8 complete rounds in stockinette (knit) and then begin chart. When knitting in more than one color carry the unused color LOOSELY (or else it will pucker unevenly when your bag is full) across the back of the work. On the longer stretches of a single color, wrap the unused color once around the working yarn to hold it in place on the back.

Cthulhu Chart

After completing the chart:
Knit eight rows in the MC (Main Color).
Next row: K5, yo, K5, yo and repeat to end, ending with a yo.
Next 8 rows: Knit
Bind off.
If desired use the contrasting color to attach a decorative border of single crochet on the bind off edge, or not.

Now create the i-cord for your drawstring bag: Using your dpns, cast on 3 stitches in the CC (contrasting color) and DO NOT Turn work. With right side still facing up, slide the stitches to the right needle tip and bring the yarn across the back of the needle and knit the three stitches. Knit in this way, repeating with sliding the stitches to the right tip until you’ve knit a tube about 20 inches long. Tie an overhand knot at the end of each end of the cord

Weave in all ends!

For an extra special touch you might try to imbue your dice bag with good vibes as you knit it by thinking about how you’ll roll awesomely, or perhaps if it is a gift for a friend, how they will roll epically. That will really help them out so the next time they are a swashbuckling hobbit or a classy artistic vampire and they come across some werewolf they can take it down. Don’t worry, the werewolf was a jerk anyway…..single too, so no family or pups to worry about.

Copyrighted by Creative commons…share and share alike…or roll for damage.

Cthulhu Dice Bag by A. A. Leavitt-Reynolds is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 3.0 Unported License.

One of the great things about being a pseudohomeowner (aka…house renter) is that you get the joys of yardwork in addition to paying for someone else’s equity. Win, win, surely!

So, today when I came home from work I looked at the overgrown lawn and realized that once again it was time for me to whip out the ol’ lawnmower. The yard at our house has been a constant struggle. As you can see from our house picture below, the grass that borders the street is dead and you can also see in the same picture our piteous attempt to revive it with our hose and a little sprinkler. I know it is entirely irrational to have a lawn in the arid Southwestern clime, but again, did I mention that it is not my house. Nightly, I awake, frightened and I remember, somewhere back in my wee brain signing a paper saying I would take care of the lawn. A. feels that that means it’s entirely up to us how we “take care” of the lawn (his version involves a magical xeriscaping fantasy complete with us spending lots of money). Being the destroyer of dreams that I am, I take the water the hell out of stuff approach and see what happens. Well, it has happened.
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This is the beginning sketch from a bag I’m making for my friend, Cashew. What do you think?

The thesis work is coming along…slowly. I wonder if it will indeed, ever end? Thankfully I have friends helping to motivate me along the way (Thanks, B.).

I probably shouldn’t have but, for the last two nights I’ve been reading for fun! It’s very different reading something that you don’t have too.

Oh, and there is still unpacking to do, but this is the new abode:

I remember the night vividly, the dry juniper logs crackling on the fire, their bright light providing the only barrier from the oncoming cool desert night. My little green tent faintly aglow in its light, the eerie haunted sound of coyotes echoing in the distance. When I heard his footsteps I jumped and turned around quickly, wishing that I had something to protect myself with. I guess there was always the fire. I would use it, as a last resort. “It’s funny,” he said, in a gravelly smoke stained voice, “that this is all that is left of animals after they die. It seems like there should be more.”
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