That’s Better

This feels better! My hat is back to normal human sized and zooming right along. The fireplace feels toasty on my feet and the puppy doesn’t understand why I get to bring sticks in the house and he cannot.

Right now this project is cruising along until I get to the right length so the hat will be the right size when doubled inside itself. I MIGHT be playing yarn chicken but again that is a problem for future Rachelle.

It’s also December 1st so I get to start both sock advents today!!! Happy Knitting

Well Shoot….

Last night at golf lessons (indoor, thank goodness) I finally set about looking at my Handspun hat gauge. Doesn’t it look great!

My gauge in this handspun is WILDLY too big. I mean this hat is almost two hand spans! So I pulled the needles out and took a big chug of water for courage.

By the end of the lesson I had the hat ripped back and the needles back into the decreases. This time around I took out 16 stitches and moved this hat down to an 80 stitch count.

So, time to persevere and redo this hat. The silver lining is that my handspun is holding up really well to the knitting and ripping back!

Happy Knitting!!

Cast On: Blue And Gold Handspun Hat

I know, I already have a hat on the needles. But this handspun has been caked up and waiting on my desk for months. I decided to start a hat but from the crown worked down so I can maximize the use of the yarn.

I am using 8US dpns and I cast on 8 stitches and started increases at the end of each needles. This will create four lines of increase. Based on the size large hat I just finished for my coworker, I am going to work up to 96 stitches.

Once this gets up to full stitch count I will switch to a 16 inch circular in the same needle size. I don’t know how I will finish the brim. That is a problem for future Rachelle!

Happy Knitting!!

FO Friday: A Toddler Hat

I made it! My hat trio is complete with the finished tiny toddler hat. And it turned our adorable.

Pattern: A 64 stitch basic beanie “recipe” with a rolled 2×2 brim (Rav link)

Yarn: Lilliput Yarn Woof Worsted in Chocolate Lab and Chasing Cars

Needles: US 8s

This project was a great stash buster. I knit the brim and the start of the hat until I ran out of chocolate and then finished off with the teal. I didn’t want to guess at yarn chicken and play with the decreases. So I knit until I had enough yarn to do a 3 needle bind off.

I’m not sure it will fit the toddler for long but I think it’s the gesture that matters most. Before I pack up these in a gift bag I think I will snag a photo of all three hats together. A little memento of cuteness for me.

Happy Knitting!!

Cast On: A Cozy Hat

It’s Thanksgiving Eve and I am starting a new hat! This is one of the skeins of Woof Worsted I purchased from Lilliput Yarn.

I’m really feeling another basis beanie recipe. I stared with 2×2 rib over 96 stiches on a US 8 needles. This color is called Sasha and I thought it looked glorious against the orange of my fireplace.

This will be my holiday knitting as we run from event to event. Let’s see what I can get done! Happy Knitting!!

Will It Toddlers Hat?

We are screaming into Thanksgiving week and I have one tiny hat to finish before month end when my coworker is moving. So its GAME ON.

I have 20 grams each of the chocolate and teal left from the adult hats. I also have a tiny ball left from a previous hat. I cast on 64 stitches for a toddler sized hat and I plan on working a color blocked hat.

This really should only take a couple of hours but it’s a CRAZY week getting ready for the holiday. Let’s see what I can accomplish! Happy Knitting!!

FO Friday: The Other Coworker Hat

I made it! The second hat is done and ready to move to the Pacific Northwest

Pattern: My own 96 stitch basic beanie “recipe” with a folded 2×2 brim (Rav link)

Yarn: Lilliput Yarn Woof Worsted in the Chasing Cars colorway

Needles: US 8s

This hat was made to be a large but somehow, magically, I used THE SAME amount of yardage as my medium hat. I don’t under the physics….but the scale does not lie. It could be this skein was a tid bit heavier/larger than the chocolate? Whatever, this hat is roughly 177 yards of yarn and 80 grams.

Happy Knitting!!

Coworker Conference Knitting

What a difference 8 hours of sitting and listening can make! My second coworker hat is ready for decreases!

I am super ready to NOT be sitting in ballroom straight backed chairs and drinking really bad coffee. The muggles around me were really impressed with my multi-tasking skills and I think I just might make my deadline!

I do think I will STILL have yarn leftover even with a larger brim and more stitches. Perhaps I could use these leftovers and the chocolate leftovers to make a wee toddler hat for my coworker’s kiddo? Shall I dare?

Hat In A Hotel

I finished my first coworker hat and wasted no time in busting through the second. I’m working against the clock here. And it’s conference season so I’m working out of a hotel room for a few days.

This is going to be a bit larger than my first. I knit the ribbed brim longer this time in an effort to use more of the yarn. Since I am making up this from a “recipe” it is a dangerous game as I also increased the stitch count. I need to monitor my yarn usage to ward off yarn chicken.

The good news is that I am already in the stockinette section and I have two days of conference lectures!

Happy Knitting!!

Cast On: Another Coworker Hat

I’m running out of time before my coworker leaves us! So I grabbed a second set of needles from my interchangeable case and started the second hat I need. (I use the Addi Shorties set in the larger sizes)

For this one I am shooting for a larger size based on my newly evolved gauge so I went up to 96 stitches. I like working my hats in multiples of 8 so that I can accommodate 2×2 ribbing and have the kind of crown decreases I like.

Must knit faster!!!