Cast On: A Hat For Jenn

I have my second worsted skein from Thelittlewolfknits in my stash. That dyer is a Pigskin Party KAL sponsor so this yarn gets me extra points in the game. I also had this thought that my friend Jenn would love this yarn. She is ALL things teal.

Over a cup of yummy coffee, I started a basic beanie. My typical 88 stitches on a US 8 needle. I do NOT feel like ribbing this hat so stockinette it is. Jenn also has a March birthday so I could make this an early birthday present. She doesn’t know about this plan and I kind of like the idea of a random surprise gift in the mail!

Happy Knitting!!

Cast On: 2025 Chiefs Beanie

I have a few days left of the 2024 Pigskin Party KAL and I decided to cast on another football themed hat. This is some malabrigo singles I got last fall.

I am going to make my normal beanie recipe. I am starting with 88 stitches and the yellow. The base is Malabrigo Worsted in 022 Sauterne and then the red is 102 Sealing Wax. I also still have some Chiefs logo patches that I can sew on as well.

This base is a singles and I’m not wild at the moment of how I am struggling with snagging. I think my needles are too blunt. I need to switch to my Chia Goo needles? I do love the hand of the finished fabric as it is very very soft. Therefore I will persevere!

Happy Knitting!!

Finished: Flats Hat

The Flats Hat is complete and ready for my 2025 gift bag.

Pattern: My own 88 stitch beanie “recipe”

Needles: US 8s

Yarn: Thelittlewolfknits Opti base in the Pigskin Party KAL exclusive colorway “Flats or Drums”

I forced myself to extend this to maximize yarn usage. I used 82 grams or 179 yards of yarn total. I got 40 bonus KAL points for using sponsor yarn. I really like how the dark brown spiraled in this hat at my gauge.

I would definitely buy more yarn from this dyer again. It was nicely dyed and I didn’t have any colors bleed. And the hand of the finished fabric is very soft and nice. Orange isn’t usually my colors but I love how the browns and green bits punch this one up.

Now on to my next hat! Happy Knitting!!

Flats Hat Decreases

My Flats Hat is ready for decreases!

The family sat down and watched RedOne since we missed it in December and I cruised through the body of the hat. The move is great and seeing a jacked Santa was something else! This yarn is Littlewolfknits yarn in the Opti base called “Flats or Drums”. I picked flats because those are the superior wings IMO.

I managed to get my DPNs installed before my eyes started crossing and it was time to go to bed. I should be able to wrap this up in the next couple of days. And bonus for me, it will earn me extra points in the Pigskin Party KAL for an exclusive sponsor product.

Happy Knitting!!

Turning My Flats Brim

Thanks to a holiday dinner at GGs and some family chit chatting….I knit enough to turn the brim on my Flats Hat.

My little cousins were mesmerized at how much fabric I could make during one family party. They tried to convince me that this was orange enough to be a hunting hat, lol. I know I need to make more ribbed brims for my hat collection, but it is just so much faster to work stockinette in infinity.

This hat has a deadline to score some extra points in the Pigskin Party KAL. This yarn from thelittlewolfknits earns me sponsor points! These hats really don’t take much time if I can force myself to be monogamous…but that has been a problem lately as I want to cast on all the things!

Happy Knitting!!

Cast On: Chiefs Touchdown Beanie

I have officially wound up the hat kit I purchased from TreasureGoddess yarns. I am going to start my Chiefs Beanie and really lean in to doing actual colorwork.

This is a great yarn dyer but I still took the precaution of pre-washing the red yarn and doing a citric acid soak on the red yarn. I would hat to ruin my FO with bleeding dye. Great news, I didn’t see a drop of dye come out in either back it took!

This hat does work at a smaller gauge that I have historically been doing. I am torn between a swatch or just starting the brim and using that to gauge. Knowing myself, it will probably be door #2.

I have the needles prepped and a project bag lined up. I just need to start! Happy Knitting!!

Finished: Fairy Tale Beanie

Happy New Year’s Eve! I decided to cap off the 2024 year with a finished object. I present to you my finished Fairy Tale Beanie.

Pattern: Bluestem Beanie by Rebekah Lil

Needles: US 7 and US 8s

Yarn: Potions Yarn Dryad DK in Fairy Tale and Stranded Dyeworks Mohair in Patisserie

I love how this hat turned out so soft and so pink. There ended up a fair bit of flashing in this hat with the rusts and golds. The finished hat ended up using 363 yards of yarn. Magically I still have ball of the mohair left even after TWO hats. Laceweight really does give you the bang for the buck!

My hat needles are empty and I need to get some new mindless knitting on the needles! Happy Knitting!!

Cast On: Meaningful Handspun Hat

Santa comes tonight and I’m in need of plain autopilot knitting. I gifted almost ALL of the hats I knit this year and it felt so good. And now I have a little urge to refill that bin!

So I decided to grab a skein from my bag of hat yarn and start. This one is a little special as it’s handspun. This was my Deep & Meaningful 2ply from this summer. It’s heavy DK to worsted and it should make a lovely squishy hat.

I am working on my US 10.5 needles and 72 stitches. Totally have not swatched and not sure this gauge will work. And I can always rip out and start over. And I may find that I don’t have enough yardage as well. I really feel like living dangerously at the end of 2024!

Happy Knitting!!

Fairy Tale Decreases

Plodding along has it benefits. My Fairy Tale beanie is sliding into the holidays and into the decreases!

I put my big girl pants on and counted my pattern repeats. I decided to do 8 full repeats before the deceases to add some extra height to the finished hat. There is enough hat now to see that DK cashmere yarn is flashing/pooling a little bit. The yellow bits looks a bit like a lightning bolt to me and I kinda like it.

Now I need to dig out stitch markers so I can set up the decrease section….and then you know…..actual knit them!

Happy Knitting!!

Finished: Cherub Hat

I wanted to be done with this stinking hat so badly that I powered through. My Cherub Hat is done and ready for the gift pile.

Pattern: My own beanie recipe with 90 stitches and a folded stockinette brim

Needles: US 8s

Yarn: Cascade Yarns in Cherub Aran in the color Navy

Total yardage come out to 75 grams using 180 yards. And I added my cute little personal tag to this hat. The yarn was just so darn splitty the whole time and it attracted dog hair like no one’s business. This yarn was definitely not a good use for a hat. But here we are done and its fine.

I need to focus on my Blitz Blanket but I am finding myself dreaming of my next hats…..

Happy Knitting!!