I spun the wool for this project, fully intending to knit a dolphin.

Really, I did.

When I was ready to knit, a pattern popped up in Ravelry for (wait for it…)

THIS!

It is an excellent pattern, very clearly written, but I left it at home after I had completed just a portion of the creature’s face.

I was impressed by the math of the shaping, and thought I remembered most of it, so I just happily kept knitting, scribbling down my math and checking it twice…

I was writing a section of the new book which involves seals that might be mistaken for mermaids if one is so inclined, and then we went out for a sail and I came face to face with the most marvelous seals, and my brain apparently set about recreating THOSE creatures…

which is how I ended up with this:

As a good luck gift for a friend with a lovely new boat….

A Mermaid Seal.

Which is to say, that if you are like me, and you trust the creative PROCESS and ignore most of the rules along with way after you have learned them, sometimes

MAGIC happens.