And now for something completely different

This week I spent getting over my cold so I have slept a lot and am not longer a big ball of negative energy.  I imagine I am much more pleasant to be around these days.

I am having a bit of project malaise.  I have two sweaters stuck on sleeve island - one with one sleeve down and one to go even, three lace shawls in process, two sweaters just cast on, one sweater I'm knitting on when we travel, one sock about 3" in, and one lace scarf that has unintentionally gone into hibernation.   The rest of those are things I consider active knitting - meaning I have knit on each thing at least once in the last week.  Sheesh.  My energies are a bit spread out.

I do not lack for things to knit.

But.  Yesterday in this insanely unseasonable weather DH asked for flip top mittens, that got me looking at patterns for winter accessories, and that had me pulling out all my half balls of yarn seeing what I had that I could work with.  So, this morning, there I was with about 20 colors of worsted weight flung about me, trying to find colors I liked that had enough left to work with...and what was I making?  

Not a pair of flip top mittens...oh no, a hat.  A colorwork hat from Hats On by Charlene Schurch.  For dh, at least?  HAH.  You do jest.  Nope, for me.  

In my defense I don't love any of my hats.  I have three, one is too loose, one is too tight, one doesn't cover my ears - so I am still looking for the one that is JUST RIGHT.  I have hopes that this hat will do the trick.  With the colorwork and multiple layers it will certainly be warm, and that is the point.

So I chose this deep purple and a reddish orange, they compliment each other nicely.  And after a day of solid knitting I finished it.

It has this funky construction - you turn the knitting after knitting the brim and going the other direction, knit another layer underneath, then knit the top.  I didn't do the colorwork pattern in the center b/c I didn't think I had enough yarn - which I didn't, so that was a good thing.

 

I used my new found colorwork skills that I picked up in the jared flood class and I do believe I am much improved.

Unfortunately, it doesn't fit me.  This was not my goldilocks hat - when I blocked it the silly hat stretched out and easily fits my husband.  It practically touches the tip of my nose.

I put it in the dryer to see if it would shrink up at all.  Be back with you in a sec with the results...

Well.  Maybe that worked after all.  The camera just died, so I don't have much to show you, I'll get a better shot one day this week.  It's still big, and quite long, but no longer looks like floppy cloche.

 

I know, it's a FAB picture, ACK!  Oh well.  We're all friends here, right?

Maybe I'll try another one next weekend.  I'll see how I feel about it after a good night's sleep.

Here pixie is lying on my various knitting projects & bags.  Why lay on a perfectly good dog bed when you can lay on this stuff?

 

You'd think it might be prickly, what with all those needles in there, but apparently that doesn't bother her.

Comments

[Barbara-Kay]

That's fab color work. Actually, it is a very flattering hat. So many knit hats make one look like a "skin head". Don't discard it!

[Jocelyn]

The colorwork is absolutely gorgeous -- look at those even floats! And I like the construction -- warm ears, and colorwork on brim and top, very nice.