We are really suffering with a lingering upper respiratory bug in this house. It’s all I can do but to just sit on the couch. It has meant that I have made some pretty good progress on my Boreal Hat.
This hat is coming out more marbled that I had imagined. I was hoping for a softer green but the grey is sticking out more as a contrast. I am several inches into the brim, but I think another inch before I do the brim turn. Surely the book, diet coke and knitting will make the germs go away faster!
I am casting on my first 2026 Pigskin Party KAL project. I grabbed one of the hat setups I made this summer. All the back to school germs have hit so I need an easy project that doesn’t have any complicated pieces.
I am calling this my Boreal Hat. I picked up the yarn in Skagway, Alaska. It is the Raven Frog Fibers Bear Feet sock yarn in the boreal colorway. I am holding that sock yarn double withe Raven Frog Fibers Cirrus Bay mohair. This is not the softest mohair and it’s got some really long staple fibers. But it will be a very warm hat!
I am using my “recipe” for a basic beanie. I cast on 100 stitches on a US 5 needle. I think I am going to work a folded stockinette brim and then a stockinette body with 8 point decrease for the crown. And holding two yarns together means I will double my yardage for KAL points!
I’m trying to trick my brain into doing tasks I have been avoiding. Usually by promising myself a reward or by putting the task somewhere I can see it and it will annoy me. Today’s was to hand sew the pile of things that had been collecting my dresser.
First up, was sewing a label into my latest sweater finish. This was my Bibliophile 2 and my very last tag from my Etsy order from back in 2011/2012. I have different tags now and I will kind of miss these old ones!
Next up was reattaching the button to my strawberry pajama set. It popped off after it’s latest wash. I must admit that I am rusty at buttons. I forgot to leave some room under the button so the fabric has somewhere to lay. So this button fits rather snuggly.
Alas, it’s functional so I am gathering that I will not redo it. Happy Mending!!
I have my first cast on for the 2026 Pigskin Party KAL. These are some self striping socks from the Cozy Knitter. I am still working on the backlog of previous advent calendars. This newest pair is the 2019 colorway.
I used the contrast color (white) to cast on the toes and then after some school events and sitting at sports practices….I have several rows of color added! This is my “recipe” for my own toe up vanilla sock with an afterthought heel. It’s 68 stitches on US 1 needles. And I’ll work the afterthought heel with some added depth for my high instep.
Pattern: My own 68 stitch toe up vanilla sock “recipe”
Yarn: The Cozy Knitter 2018 Advent Stripe skein and The Cozy Knitter Bliss Sock white mini skein
Needles: US 1s
I used about 15 grams of the white contrast for the toes and heels. While I used exactly half of the advent skein. The Cozy Knitter sends hers with two full repeats of the 24 color design. So I can get two pairs of socks out of these skeins for my US 9 womens shoe size. I did mess up one sock slightly as the heel and toe are just slightly off alignment. But that doesn’t affect their wearability so I’m rocking it.
I do have the remainder of the skein to do something with. I think I will move on to the 2019 skein and save all the second halves. And then I will take all the seconds and send off to be cranked into sock snakes. Then I can batch create the second pair of each color.
I cut the heels in last week and got the live stitches on the needles. I have just been avoiding knitting the actual heels. I do a modified afterthought heel where I add extra plain rows when I start the heel and methodically work down to the alternating decrease row/plain row pattern. This creates a deeper heel that fits my specific foot better. The fabric doesn’t slip down into the foot portion nearly as badly.
Both of these are ready for Kitchener and I’m feeling the task avoidance….
Mods: I didn’t knit the cuff ribbing as long as called for. And I lengthened the body to have a finished length that hit below my hips, also a pattern deviation.
This ended up being a nice comfy sweater. Just slightly oversized without swamping me. The sleeves are slouchy and cover my knuckles. I used just under four full skeins of the Vintage DK. Finished weight is 372 grams of yarn or 1,078 yards of yarn. I have a little numb and one full skein left over.
I literally tried this on and took photos in the 100+ degree heat. So I didn’t linger in this FO for very long. It will be a minute before I need this sweater for warmth. The pattern was fairly easy to follow and the finished look is good. But I likely wouldn’t knit this one again, once is enough.
Now I need to plan my fall sweater knit and what I want to work on for the 2026 Pigskin Party KAL! Happy Knitting!!
I measured and cut in for where my heels need to go. It’s so hot here in Kansas that I plan to skip the wool and do some reading in the basement where the air doesn’t hurt my face. But I think another evening of swim lessons or indoor gymnastics and I will have finished heels. And therefore finished socks!
I will have half a skein of the self striping left. I am formulating an idea where I save the second halves of all my advent skeins and send them off to be machine knit into snakes….stay tuned….
It just finished storming here in the Midwest and is forecasted to start to reach temperatures close to the surface of the sun. So why not finish a DK weight sweater? The Bibliophile 2 is almost done!
I have in fact used my measuring tape to figure out when to stop instead of just using up all the rest of my skein that is attached to the work. I don’t need a knitted dress.
This thing is cast off and I did a quick bath in the sink. Bright side to the heat? This thing is drying quickly in the constant flow of A/C from the floor vent. Plus I popped it outside in the sun for a couple of hours to speed up the process.
Next up, I just need to weave in the rest of my ends and take FO photos. In 100 plus degree heat…..Sigh
The 2×2 hem is growing on my Bibliophile 2. I’m on the home stretch, I think? I have over an inch thus far on these tiny needles.
PB has passed level three swim and I got to enjoy an only sort of hot Saturday morning in the shade. My ball of yarn is shrinking but I’m also making growing progress on the hem. It’s just a race now!
