More Slouched Tuva Hats

I hope you enjoyed reading about the Slouched Tuva Hat.  There are more.  The pattern was so lovely I decided I had to knit another for myself.  That's when I realized that there's this lovely set of yarns my mom got me at the farmer's market last winter.  We each picked out a color, though I have no idea who picked what anymore.  I'm pretty sure I picked the gray.

These yarns have been on hand for quite some time.  I've been hanging on to them, waiting for the right project to come along.  I'd thought about some kind of beret, because I love a good slouchy beret.  I wanted to do something that would really look stylish.  The problem was finding a pattern that would suit my sister, my mother, and myself.  We've definitely got different styles.  Every time I see my mom she's styled out of a catalog, probably Eddie Bauer or something like that.  J. Crew also comes to mind.  She seems to like her hats practical.  My sister is very much into the vintage styles.  She would love for me to make her a lovely cloche.  For me?  My style wanders between grunge, neo hippie yoga mom, and "hipster", though I guess one could say I was hipster before hipster.  I like my super slouchy berets, tams, watch caps, and beanies.  Finding something that would suit all three of us was definitely a tall order.

When I finished the Slouched Tuva Hat for Bear, I sent a picture to my sister.  She responded with how incredibly cute it was.  She loved it!  Immediately I snatched up a skein of yarn and cast on.  It seemed like the perfect hat.  It was practical enough that it would suit my mother.  My sister already loved it.  I needed to make my sister a Slouched Tuva Hat too!  I wanted to knit one for myself before I even made one for Bear.  It works up fairly quickly.  It was the perfect hat for the situation!

The reaction my sister had was priceless.  "You know I love looking like a Dickensian orphan."  To some that would sound sarcastic, but from her it's actually a compliment.  It's part of her playful personality, and her love for literature blending together.  She's definitely someone I find knitworthy because she absolutely loves the stuff I make.  The fingerless gloves I made for her last year were such a success that she took them with her when she went to Denmark.  I consider it a high compliment that she brought them on a trip abroad.  Traveling often means selecting what you bring carefully to avoid being burdened with luggage.  The fact that those gloves made the cut reminded me just how much she appreciates the quality of high end knits.  I even wrote about how knitworthy she was last year.

Between the gooshy, perfect yarn that knits like a dream and the pattern I love to knit, I'm having a great time with this matching hat project.  I'm working with 100% baby alpaca, and while this pattern doesn't have a lot of drape, which is something baby alpaca is great for, I think it's lovely for the project.  It has a soft, warm feel, and the slouch wants to drape and fall naturally.  I don't have to work to make it slouch down in the back.  It's truly lovely.

For a pattern that's got to fit the styles and lives of four people, this isn't a bad one.  I'm going to have a good time working these up.  The result is going to be phenomenal.  I'm so excited to see how my mom and sister are going to react to getting them for Christmas this year.  Once I get these hats done, my Christmas knitting will be done.  I might do up some matching hats for the kids this year, but I'm not sure.  Those can really wait because I can knit for them for no reason at all.  I don't need an occasion to knit for them.  These hats, however, are definitely an occasion to give a lovely gift, which is especially pleasing because it's a gift that was given to me.  There's no better way to return a gift to the giver than to have it transformed into something lovely!