OAK: I enjoyed this quick little pattern. I had a tiny bit of trouble at the beginning because I have trouble remembering my right side from wrong side. Once I got that worked out, the oak log was a dream! I used all but about 10 yards of the Dark Taupe skein, and probably 1/2 of the Soft Taupe. Only a small amount of the Linen was used. I had to go up to an 8mm hook and even then be a loosey goosey with my stitches to meet the gauge. But it was fun and super easy. I'm getting another skein of the Dark Taupe so I can have a little trio of logs. BIRCH: While equally lovely, and seemingly more simple, I had more trouble with the birch. Who would have thought that rings of 44 HDC would be so insane? I used only a small amount of the Linen and Soft Taupe. A single skein of Natural has proved to be *insufficient* to finish the birch log. The first attempt started fine but then I started getting nervous about how much yarn was left, so I unconsciously started crocheting tighter. My poor log looked like an upside down funnel. A somewhat short funnel but a funnel. So I ripped the whole thing out, re-caked it, and started again. That log's cancerous looks were caused by crocheting in a dimly lit room while watching TV. But there was one similarity -- the length didn't make it anywhere near 17 inches. Third time has to be a charm? right? At the end of every other row I checked the gauge. 9 sc = 4" got it! But upon finishing the last stitch I could stitch I was still 4 inches too short. So the Oak and its pattern and homebrew kit get 6 stars and the Birch and its pattern with homebrew kit gets 4 stars which average out to 5 overall.