The Slouched Tuva Hat

Obviously (by all the more frequent blog posts) I've been on a knitting kick.  More specifically, I've been on a hat knitting kick.  This project is no exception.  It's called the Slouched Tuva Hat.  I wasn't really sure what to consider it.  It's not really a beret.  It's kind of like a beanie.  Whatever it was, it looked like a nice knit and the model on the page was a child wearing this gorgeous red color.  I remembered that I had a red like that, and it just so happened to be in the right weight of yarn too.  I was going to knit up a hat for Bear.

The pattern worked up so easily.  It's just a four row repeat with some plain knitting and some yarn overs and decreases.  It gives it this pretty mesh look to it.  It's so simple I could easily work on it in the dark, while watching television, or as I have been, while doing school work with Bear.  I think it was a little shorter than the pattern recommended, and it seemed tighter than I would have wanted in my yarn, but I think a lot of that could have easily been changed by changing the yarn weight or the needles.  Of course, that doesn't matter because I was making it for a preschooler.

The best sign of a good hat is when the recipient refuses to take it off.  I'd call that an instant win on anything I knit up.  I love the way it looks, and it was a mark of pride that had to be shown off.  Bear wanted at least a million pictures in the new hat.  Now I'm getting requests for more hats, but not for Bear.  That one hat is enough because it's perfect.  Everyone else needs hats just like that.  At the very least, look at that face!  It really says it all!

I'm very much a beret and slouchy hat wearer, so it was really nice to be able to share my favorite style of hat with my mini-me.  I loved the pattern so much that the request to make them for everyone doesn't seem like a half bad one.  I've already decided it's going to be the pattern I use for the matching hats my mom, sister, and I are all getting from yarn my mom got me at the farmer's market.  We each picked out our own color.  It'll be interested to see the changes as Bear's hat was done out of Plymouth Yarns Dream Baby DK.  The yarn I'm going to be using is a lovely baby alpaca.  It's certainly going to have a lot more drape to the slouch, and it should make for some really nice warmth.

I've got to admit, this yarn wasn't something I ever thought I would use for a hat.  It's an acrylic microfiber/nylon blend, but it doesn't feel like acrylic usually does to me.  It's got this nice softness.  Plus, it's washable, which is great for a child.  I could have used superwash, but this is cheaper and I had it on hand.  If it gets lost, it's not a huge deal.  Given it's for a preschooler, getting lost is a reality I have to face.

I've noticed I'm on a hat kick lately.  It all started with the Leaving Cowl, even though I know that's not a hat.  There was something nice about an easy, quick knit and the feeling of a larger yarn and needles in my hands.  I ached less when I was working it up.  That was followed by my Lullula Beret.  Now I'm going to be making three more Slouched Tuva Hats.  I'll be honest, I was looking in my yarn stash to see what else I could dig out to turn into hats.  I seem to have some pretty good options.  I'm sure you're going to be hearing about those soon.  I forgot how much I like knitting hats and how incredibly wearable they are.  Unlike socks, I don't have to worry about my weirdly thick calves, my high instep, and my narrow feet.  Instead I can just knit it, and if it doesn't seem slouchy enough for me, add more repeats before casting off.  A simple hat is perfect travel knitting.  It's a small enough project to throw in my bag, and it works up quickly so it feels like I've really made progress, even if I only had a few minutes to work.  Best of all, it's a project I don't have to pull off my shoes to show off!

The Lullula Beret

If you've been actually reading my blog, you know I have a fondness for patterns that no one seems to knit.  If it's got under 100 projects listed on Ravelry, I want to do it.  It shouldn't come as much of a surprise when I say I've done it again.  This one I was project number 8.

Let me start with this.  I used a beautiful Malabrigo yarn for this project, Silky Merino.  It was absolutely beautiful.  The colors were a bright and happy rainbow, but there was no slap you in the face primary colors.  Instead it's a beautiful, subtle color palate that, were it a Crayola marker label, it would be called Bold.  (Let me tell you, those weren't easy to find a link to!)  The colors were absolutely stunning, which is what drew me to this yarn in the first place.  Not only do I have a thing for rainbow colors, but they were such lovely tones!

This yarn was a gift from Sable.  Let me tell you, she gets me the best gifts.  Given the tight budget we live on, I'm always thrilled at the gift of yarn, and this one was no disappointment.  When they said silky, they meant it!  It was so soft on the hands and so easy to knit with, despite being a single ply.  I almost never knit with a single ply, mostly because I don't like working with it.  If I have to pull something out it pills up and gets ruined to easily.  I also have a bad tendency to split it when knitting in low light, but this yarn was just beautiful.  It worked up smooth as, well, silk!

The final project, the Lullula Beret, turned out stunning.  I love the play of the colors across the beret.  The pattern was simple enough with a nice little eyelet and some basic cables.  The look was nothing short of fantastic.

Another never, I never knit with yarns that splash color like this, especially this brightly, for anything but socks.  Socks can be hidden by shoes, so I don't mind the bright colors playing off each other like that.  For anything else, I think the bright colors look, well, too much for me.  I generally stick to more muted colors.  It's more my style.

Well, the finished product on this is nothing short of beautiful, at least in my eyes.  I don't mind the playful, bright colors.  I find it very wearable.  It's not quite as slouchy as I like, but given it's made of a silk/wool blend, it should be pretty warm in the winter.  In the winter the last thing I need is a super slouchy hat that's just going to get caught up on a jacket collar or scarf.  Winter will be upon us soon and something with warmth and bright colors will definitely keep the season bright.  I'm sure I'll wear this straight through until spring!

Entrelac...It's So...

When I first decided to make this hat, I thought I was crazy.  It's entrelac!  I wanted to try a new technique and challenge myself!  I didn't really have enough yarn to make a solid color hat in any one color, so I figured this would be perfect!  It would go wonderfully with my dreads (which are undertaking a whole new journey right now...) and it's coming into winter.  A hat is just what I needed!

So I started knitting.  The beginning was rocky, but it very quickly started to turn around.  that first row of triangles I had to wonder what I was thinking, then I started onto the next row and things really started to cruise!  I was making some significant progress, and it was starting to make so much sense!

Taking a look at all I've done so far, I've come to the conclusion that I'm never going to finish that hat.  It's not that it's particularly hard.  It's just that, well, the pattern is easy...  Dare I actually say it's a little too easy?  For the most part, it's just really short rows of back and forth knitting.  The whole hat is broken up into 7 stitch segments to be knit back and forth again and again.  Each round adds about an inch to the total length of the project, but with the way it likes to gather up and bunch, it doesn't even look like that much.  Each round takes forever with all the back and forth knitting.  I think straight knitting around would be quicker to cover the distance!

However, it does look really nice and I know I'm going to be so happy with the finished project.  I really do need a hat, and part of the reason it's so much to knit is the sheer quantity of head space it's going to have to cover over the dreads.  Actually, I probably could have made it a little smaller, but I wanted to be on the safe side.  While the hat band is going to be a bit loose, it actually fits with the kind of drape and flop I like in a hat.  I actually prefer my hats a little too big.  Plus, when the woolies go in every winter, it will leave plenty of room that the hat will still fit.

Still, I have to wonder if the hat will even be finished to wear this year.  It's pretty enough and all, but the pattern just isn't engaging.  I'm finding myself getting sidetracked and looking for something more challenging to do.  I'm stuck on my hair, finishing dance costumes, and wasting large amounts of time on the internet!  If I keep up like this, it might not even be done for next winter!

The Entrelac Hat

This hat was supposed to be a challenging project, picking up a new skill with a new yarn.  I expected to be tearing my hair out, and thankful that I don't have much time to knit!  I should have been frustrated and tossing it back in the bag!  What's wrong with me?

Entrelac is...well...easy!  Much easier than I expected.  It's just a simple back and forth knit/purl pattern.  There's a couple decreases and stitches get picked up.  It's really not all that bad.  In truth, it's quite simple!  I'm really happy with that fact, but it's also a little disappointing.  I was looking forward to a challenge since my fall/winter shawl is on hold until I can get my hands on my new needles.  A challenge was definitely not what I got.

I have to admit, I almost don't want to finish the project now.  A part of me is okay with keeping it on hold on my needles until the end of time.  A part of me doesn't want to be bothered with working on something so simple.  It's sad when you get bored easily.  At the same time, a part of me can't wait to see it finished, with the beautiful colors and the silky soft yarn.  Paton's Bamboo Silk is a deliciously wonderful yarn!  I can't wait to have all the colors knit up!

On top of that, I've got a wonderful reason to be knitting.  I need a cute new hat that will flatter my new dreads.  I want it to be done already so I can have a hat that fits well with my dreads, and has a bright, cheery, contrasting color.  Is that really so much to ask?

It's times like these where I really need someone to motivate me to finish what I've started!  I know I'll be thrilled when I'm done with it.  The process isn't the most boring of slogs.  I just need to get my tail in gear!

Too Much of a New Thing?

I'm starting this new hat.  It's going to look awesome!  It's an entrelac hat, a knitting skill I've never undertaken.  I'm working with a new yarn that I've never used before, compliments of my swap partner.  It also required a new cast on, which I thought would look wonderful!  It's a tubular cast on that requires you to pick up the stitches from your cast on and continue on with the project.  It sounded wonderful and looked even better!

Unfortunately, after I attempted to cast on, I found that the yarn was, well, not co-operating.  Knitting into that first row was like torture, though the rows after that weren't too bad.  Then trying to pick up those stitches, that was a nightmare!  I was beginning to wonder what I did wrong!  Now I think I'm just going to go back and knit it the way I typically start a hat, doing the ribbing in two needle sizes smaller and go from there with a regular cast on.  I might be adventurous enough to try that new cast on again, should I decide to start all over, but for now, I think I'll be happy just to try one new skill and one new yarn at the same time!