Procrastination hat

I have several large knitting projects to wrap up, so of course I started something new, something fun, something quick. Think of it as a palate cleanser.

Pattern: Great Horned Hooter, by Valerie Johnson
Yarn: Cascade 220 Superwash, in 893 'Ruby' and in 871 'White'
Needles: US6 for ribbing, US7 for rest
Modifications: Used worsted instead of DK yarn, consequently upped the needle size, used two needle sizes, added a half inch of depth

My Fair Isle leaves a lot to be desired, but I do enjoy watching the image emerge.

Only one day until xmas

This hat has been done since Monday as well. I started with one pattern in mind, then began experimenting: knit from the bottom up instead of top down, provisional cast on, added Fair Isle, knit ear flaps like short row sock toes, etc. I'm amazed it's finished AND I am pleased with the result (although, like some of my other Fair Isle hats, this one is a bit snug).

Pattern: Based on Amelia E., by Amy Miller
Yarn: Cascade 220 Superwash, colorways 816 (Gray), 854 (Navy), 253 (Desert Sun)
Needles: US7
Modifications: A LOT!

Amelia E. is knit top down, but I didn't like trying to knit 8 cast-on stitches in the round. I didn't want to pick up stitches for the ear flaps, though, so I provisionally cast on 100 stitches. Then I embellished the plain stockinette with Fair Isle designs. At the crown, I decreased four stitches evenly, then started each section with a k1, ssk and ended each section with a k2tog, with a round of plain knit between decrease rounds.

Back at the lower edge, I picked up and purled a round so I could hem the bottom. And then I get confused. Somehow I ended up with a hem (good) while maintaining 26 or so stitches for each ear flap (also good, but I had to change the purl stitches to knit to eliminate an unsightly ridge). I tried knitting the ear flaps like sock toes, but there were major gaps between the fronts and backs of each one. So I reknit them, like short row sock toes, with the tip being 4 stitches wide. Then I sewed down the hem.

Instead of my usual i-cord tassels, I braided like I braided 4-strand lanyards at summer camp: wrap rightmost strand under two and over one, wrap leftmost strand under two and over one, repeat ad infinitum (or 12", whichever comes first). Each "strand" was actually two strands of yarn, with half in gray, a quarter in navy, the rest in orange.

I knit this hat before discovering this KnitPicks tutorial. Some of the floats are a bit longish. Since the yarn is superwash, no felting is going to help anchor them. Hope the recipient treats this hat gently.

And now I am DONE with xmas knitting!

Only two days until xmas

This hat has actually been done for a while, except for the pompom, which I added last Monday. And then my laptop went to Windows 10 update hell FOR DAYS. I was on the verge of taking the damn thing to Best Buy and reverting to Windows 7 when something resurrected it. I wish one of those so-called Microsoft techs (IT'S A SCAM, PEOPLE!) would call me now so I could give them an earful, just for fun.

Pattern: Based on Little Rabbits Hat, by Michael Storey, published in Easy Fair Isle Knitting (currently no Ravelry link)
Yarn: Cascade 220 Superwash, in colorways 901 (Cotton Candy) and 871 (White)
Needles: US6 (for ribbing) and US7
Modifications: Knit in the round (who knits Fair Isle flat?!?), substituted cat motif (from same book) for rabbit

The pattern calls for DK yarn, but since I used worsted, I cast on 84 stitches. BUT it is still too snug, as demonstrated by the photo below - the cats are all stretched out. Someday I will knit Fair Isle hats that fit.

My countdown to xmas may seem off to you, but my family celebrated on xmas eve (a Danish custom, I believe), so to me, xmas is on the 24th.

Only 12 days til xmas

I made a rookie mistake with this pattern: substituted worsted weight yarn for the DK called for by the pattern. But there was a reason behind my goof-up. I had been working on other Fair Isle hats and they were turning out too snug, so OF COURSE casting on 136 stitches did not raise any red flags.

Pattern: Plaid and Diamond Fair Isle Beanie, by Martin Storey
Yarn: Cascade 220 Superwash, in colorways 854 (navy), 816 (gray), 253 (desert sun)
Needles: US7
Modifications: used worsted weight yarn instead of DK; knit in the round instead of flat

After blocking, the hat became YUUUGE. Not wanting to waste an otherwise perfectly good hat, I resoaked it and threw it in the dryer with the rest of my laundry. It is still a bit loose, but bound to fit somebody with a big head.

I haven't done much colorwork, and due to the fit problem I was experiencing, I turned to this tutorial on KnitPicks. Not only does their technique anchor floats, it evens out the knitting. I highly recommend it.

Only 14 days until xmas

Another "hunter orange" hat, this one for my granddaughter. I decided to add some Fair Isle, just for fun, but my floats must be too short, as the result is kind of smallish. I resoaked it and tried stretching it on a styrofoam head form, which helped but also stretched out the hearts.

Pattern: Amelia E., by Amy Miller
Yarn: Cascade 220 Superwash, colorways 1952 'Blaze' and 871 'White'
Needles: US7
Modifications: Fair Isle designs, i-cord instead of twisted cord, added pompoms, skipped the front flap.

This hat is knit from the top down, which made the hearts look kind of odd because the V's of the stockinette are upside down in the design. My Fair Isle experience is rudimentary at best, and it shows. But I do like doing it - much less boring than plain old knit, knit, knit.

Granddaughter's favorite color is pink, but she told me the other day that she is trying to not like pink so much. Otherwise, I doubt she would have accepted this hat. She did comment on the strings - too long, in her humble opinion.

Pompomless

I had every intention of making pompoms for my golf club covers. In fact, I did make some. My g'daughter glommed onto the first one, the second one turned out okay, the third one fell apart when I tried to tie it off. Then I decided I was not a pompom kind of girl.

Pattern: Basic Golf Club Head Cover, by Sheila Toy Stromberg
Yarn: Purl Essence Sincerely Baby, colorways 'Sincerely Pink' and 'Sincerely Gray'
Needles: US8
Modifications: fancied them up with Fair Isle interspersed with solid stripes to indicate the club number (no striping on the putter cover)

Since I play on a par-3 course, I don't have much call to use more than one driver. And I find fiddling with the covers to be a PITA. However, the covers are cute and add a bit of panache to my tired old clubs.

My new addiction

No, not a new fiber addiction, but a new-found love of GOLF. I took some lessons this spring on a whim, and have been out on a 3-par course a couple of times since. My clubs are some old cast-offs from a friend. None have covers, so I decided to knit my own.

The set has three woods and a putter of unknown origin. Each cover for the woods will have stripes in the Fair Isle to correspond to the club number, e.g., 1, 3, 5. The colors will be reversed for the putter. Oh, and they all get pompoms. This is a fun and easy, one size fits all, who cares about gauge project.