11th Hour Hat - Bulky Weight

Finished Size:
20”- 22” around

Yarn:
Knit Picks Twirl (69% Superfine Alpaca, 28% Wool, 3% Nylon; 73 yards/100 grams): Fog (MC), 2 hanks and Cream (CC), 1 hank.

Needles:
Size 10.5: 16” circular needle.
Size 10.5: set of 4 DPN
Adjust needle size if necessary to obtain correct gauge.

Notions:
Yarn needle
Stitch markers
Waste yarn

Gauge:
3 sts = 1” worked in stockinette stitch on size 10.5 needles.
Check your gauge before you begin.

Directions:

Brim
With waste yarn and size 10.5 needles, cast on 9 stitches using a provisional cast on so that you can easily graft the band together. Knit 2 rows. Attach CC and knit in garter stitch, until band measures 21” or desired head circumference.

Leave stitches on needle and cut yarn leaving a generous tail. Carefully unravel waste yarn and place live stitches on size 10.5 dpn. Use directions below to graft the two short ends of the garter stitch strip together. Weave in all ends.

Grafting for Garter Stitch
Step 1: Thread 12” tail through yarn needle. Put the yarn needle in the first st on the front knitting needle knitways and pull the yarn through. Do not drop this st off the knitting needle. Next, put the yarn needle into the first st on the back knitting needle purlways. Pull all the way through. Do not drop this st off the knitting needle.
Step 2: Put the yarn needle into the first st on the front knitting needle purlways and pull the yarn all the way through. Drop this st off the knitting needle.
Step 3: Put the yarn needle knitways into the next st on the front knitting needle and pull through. Do not drop this st off the knitting needle.
Step 4: Put the yarn needle knitways into the first st on the back knitting needle and pull through. Drop this st off the knitting needle.
Step 5: Put the yarn needle into the next st on the back knitting needle purlways and pull through. Do not drop this st off the knitting needle.
Repeat steps 2-5 until you have worked all of the stitches on both needles.

Top of Hat
With the MC and using the size 10.5 circular needle, pick up and knit about one st for each garter ridge along the top of the garter stitch brim. Place marker after the last stitch that you pick up, this will mark the beginning/end of each round. Knit these stitches in the round for 3-4” (or until you feel the hat is long enough).

Top of Hat Decreases
Round 1: *k8, k2tog; repeat from * around
Round 2: Knit all the stitches
Round 3: work as for round 1, but with one less stitch in between thek2togs (k7, k2tog; repeat from * around)
Round 4: Knit.

Continue in this fashion (decreasing the number of stitches between the decreases) and switching to dpn when necessary, until you have 5 stitches left, then break the yarn and use the yarn needle to thread the end through the remaining 5 stitches. Switch to dpn when necessary. Tighten, and weave in the ends.

Voila! This basic hat can be modified in several different ways – add a color or texture pattern in the straight area, add horizontal stripes, a slip stitch pattern, lace, or embroidery on the cuff or crown. It can also be modified for size – simply knit more or fewer rows of garter stitch and pick up the appropriate number of stitches around for the crown. The cuff itself can also be made wider or narrower by simply casting on more or fewer stitches in the beginning.

11th Hour Hat - DK Weight

Finished Size:
20”- 22” around

Yarn:
Knit Picks Merino Style (100% Merino Wool; 123 yards/50 grams): Butternut (MC), 1 ball and Harvest (CC), 1 ball.

Needles:
Size 7: 16” circular needle.
Size 7: set of 4 DPN
Adjust needle size if necessary to obtain correct gauge.

Notions:
Yarn needle
Stitch markers
Waste yarn

Gauge: 20 sts = 4” using size 7 needles in stockinette stitch.

Directions:
Brim
With waste yarn and size 7 needles, cast on 15 stitches using a provisional cast on so that you can easily graft the band together. Knit 2 rows. Attach CC and knit 158 rows in garter stitch. You will end up with 79 garter “ridges”. Leave stitches on needle and cut yarn leaving a generous tail.

Carefully unravel waste yarn and place live stitches on size 7 needle. Use directions below to graft the two short ends of the garter stitch strip together. Weave in all ends.

Grafting for Garter Stitch

Step 1: Thread 12” tail through yarn needle. Put the yarn needle in the first st on the front knitting needle knitways and pull the yarn through. Do not drop this st off the knitting needle. Next, put the yarn needle into the first st on the back knitting needle purlways. Pull all the way through. Do not drop this st off the knitting needle.
Step 2: Put the yarn needle into the first st on the front knitting needle purlways and pull the yarn all the way through. Drop this st off the knitting needle.
Step 3: Put the yarn needle knitways into the next st on the front knitting needle and pull through. Do not drop this st off the knitting needle.
Step 4: Put the yarn needle knitways into the first st on the back knitting needle and pull through. Drop this st off the knitting needle.
Step 5: Put the yarn needle into the next st on the back knitting needle purlways and pull through. Do not drop this st off the knitting needle.

Repeat steps 2-5 until you have worked all of the stitches on both needles.

Top of Hat

With the MC and using the size 7 circular needle, pick up and knit 80 stitches around the long edge of the brim. This will end up being about one stitch for each garter ridge. Place marker after the 80th stitch, this will mark the beginning/end of each round.

Knit the 80 sts in the round for 3-4” (or until you feel the hat is long enough).

Top of Hat Decreases

Round 1: *k8, k2tog; repeat from * around
Round 2: Knit all the stitches
Round 3: work as for round 1, but with one less stitch in between the k2togs (k7, k2tog; repeat from * around)
Round 4: Knit.

Continue in this fashion (decreasing the number of stitches between the decreases) and switching to dpn when necessary, until you have 5 stitches left, then break the yarn and use the yarn needle to thread the end through the remaining 5 stitches. Switch to dpn when necessary. Tighten, and weave in the ends.

Voila! This basic hat can be modified in several different ways – add a color or texture pattern in the straight area, add horizontal stripes, a slip stitch pattern, lace, or embroidery on the cuff or crown. It can also be modified for size – simply knit more or fewer rows of garter stitch and pick up the appropriate number of stitches around for the crown. The cuff itself can also be made wider or narrower by simply casting on more or fewer stitches in the beginning.

Spinner's Socks

I dearly love spinning, but sometimes in the winter, it's a challenge - I can't wear socks or my feet slip on the treadles, but it's too cold to go without. These socks are short, but very warm, and have leather attached to the bottoms to prevent slipping. They would be too thick (and probably too warm) to wear with shoes, and the leather on the bottom rules that out anyway. They're also a good way of using up smallish amounts of handspun yarns - especially luxury yarns, because the socks won't be getting a whole lot of abrasion. The yarn I used for mine was a 75% wool/ 25% mohair blend in blues and greens. It was roving, and came in two separate balls - one entirely green and one blue and green mix. I spun them separately and plied them together to produce a green yarn with flashes of blue. I used about 70g of the yarn - at 12 or 13 wpi.


Final Size
8.5" around the ball of the foot
8.75" long (ladies size 8, but easy to lengthen)

Materials
~70g heavy fingering weight handspun
3.0mm 32" Circular Needle (I knit my socks using magic loop, but feel free to use dpns or two circulars if you prefer)

Gauge: 25 stitches/4 inches in Stocking Stitch

Pattern Stitches:
Broken Rib
Row 1 - *K1, p1; repeat from *
Rows 2 & 3 - Knit.

Twisted Rib
Row 1 - *K1tbl, p1; repeat from *

Using your toe-up cast on of choice (I like Judy's Magic Cast On), cast on a total of 20 stitches over two needles. Knit one round.

Round 1 - Knit 1, m1, knit to 1 before end of first needle, m1, k2, m1, knit to one before end of second needle, m1, k1.
Round 2 - Knit

Work these two rounds until you have a total of 48 stitches total, or 24 on each of the two needles. Begin working in Broken Rib stitch and work 18 repeats (54 rows) or until your sock is your foot length - two inches.

Work short row heel as follows:
Knit 23, w&t
Purl 22, w&t
Knit 21, w&t
Purl 20, w&t
continue to
Purl 10, w&t
Knit 10, pick up next wrap and knit together with stitch, w&t
Purl 11, pick up next wrap and purl together with stitch, w&t
Knit 12, pick up two wraps around next stitch and knit together with stitch, w&t
Purl 13, pick up two wraps around next stitch and purl together with stitch, w&t
continue to
Knit 22, Knit 12, pick up two wraps around next stitch and knit together with stitch, knit 24.

Ribbing - work 24 rows of twisted ribbing (on the first stitch of the first row hide the two wraps from the heel, then continue working around the stitches normally). Or, work the twisted ribbing until you run out of yarn.

Not Much To Report

I've finally started on Colette's mittens - just plain grey for these ones, with two cables running up the back of the hand. I hope they fit - the reason I'm knitting them is that she's got tiny hands and can't really find mittens that fit. I've got a tracing of her hand, so hopefully it'll turn out okay. I'm really liking the way the cables are looking. They're not too loose, despite the fact that I'm using acrylic yarn.

I've also been working on spinning some merino (in teal, royal blue, white, and orange) for Lindsay to knit a hat from. I'm not sure if I dyed enough fiber originally, so the hat may have to have stripes. I've Navajo plied some of it, and I really like the effect.

I love all the Craftster Challenge entries. Everything that's been posted is so different - despite all using the same stitch. I can't believe people had time to knit sweaters or clothing in the month deadline.

Laundry Day!

And around here, laundry day means I get to spend a couple of hours spinning, because the spinning wheel lives at my parent's house, as our apartment is rather too small for my wheel. I spun and plied a full bobbin of brown shetland. While I was spinning I was worried it was going to turn out too heavy, but after the whole thing had been plied, it turned out to be ~sportweight, possibly a little bit lighter. I think it'll be perfect for the hap shawl. Now I just have to spin another 150g of it.

Also, there is finally another Craftster challenge entry up, which looks very different in terms of looks than my tightly knitted cozy. It's rather interesting to see the different ideas people come up with from the same prompt.

Pattern is Finished!

The tea cozy pattern is all written up - a word of warning though, it hasn't been test knitted, and will probably need modifications for teapots different than mine. If anyone knits it, please let me know, as I'd love to see pictures.

Tea Cosy Pattern

This pattern is my entry for the first Craftster Knitting Challenge. It fits my nearly spherical tea pot, which is about 7 or 8 inches in diameter, but the cozy could probably fit a much larger teapot of the same shape, as the stitch pattern used is very stretchy. If you have a teapot with a spout that comes out of the body of the teapot opposite the handle, you'll need to make a hole in the cozy for this - a buttonhole in the middle of the center band would work. I think this would be lovely in a self-striping yarn like Noro Kureyon or Silk Garden, or Patons SWS. It should be slightly heavier than normal worsted weight yarn. Other stitch patterns could be used as well - I think it might be nice in ribbing for the top and bottom portions, with some other more decorative stitch for the center strip. However, this section needs to be somewhat stretchy, so choose a stitch pattern accordingly.

Materials
Worsted Weight Yarn (Lamb's Pride - Purple)
4.5 mm 16" Circular Needle
3 shank buttons

Gauge: ~4.5 stitches/inch, but it really isn't too important

Pattern Stitch: Garter Stitch Lace
Multiples of 2 stitches plus selvage.

Rows 1 to 6: K.
Rows 7 & 9: *YO, K2tog*.
Rows 8 & 10: *YO, P2tog*.

Body:
Cast on 12 stitches using removable cast on.
Work pattern stitch, leaving first and last stitch in garter stitch, for 10 repeats (100 rows).
Work 6 more rows of garter stitch, and place remaining stitches on piece of yarn to hold.

Pick up 54 stitches along long edge of strip. Work 1 repeat of garter stitch lace. Work 4 rows of garter stitch.
Next row - *K1, k2tog; repeat from * across.
Knit 1 row. Cast off loosely, or use sewn cast off.

Repeat this process along other long edge of strip.

Place 12 cast on stitches onto circular needle, and knit 10 rows in garter stitch, then cast off.
Place other 12 stitches onto circular needle, and knit 6 rows in garter stitch.
Next row: K2, YO, k2 tog, K1, YO, K2tog, K1, YO, K2tog, K2.
Knit 3 more rows of garter stitch. Cast off.

Sew on buttons matching them to the holes on the other side of the cozy. On top edge of cozy, add crochet chain ties (chain ~40), to tie over top of and below the handle. A bottom edge, sew up the bottom 1" of garter stitch, right below the handle. Weave in the many ends. Tea cozy can be blocked on the teapot it is to fit, but it really isn't necessary - blocking would open up the lace, reducing the heat-retention qualities.

Tea Cosy is Done!

Last night I finished up the purple tea cosy, and I'm giving it that test run this morning. Thus far, it's keeping my Jasmine Pearl tea nice and warm, which is wonderful, because the teapot tends to cool off very quickly, as it is mostly glass. It also catches any drips when pouring, which is also helpful, as I'm kind of clumsy and none to graceful.

The pattern itself is pretty simple, and I've got it written up, but I want to give it a once-over before I offer it to the general public. It's knit out of Lamb's Pride yarn in some shade of purple (I've since lost the ball band) on 4.5 mm needles. The fuzz from the yarn seems to keep in heat that is lost by the lace pattern. Also, the cosy hasn't been blocked, which means the lace isn't as prominent, but the holes also aren't as large either.

My tea pot is roughly spherical and ~7 or 8 inches in diamter, and holds about 4 cups of tea. The pattern could be easily upsized for larger teapots, and changed slightly for different shaped teapots. I've got a couple more pictures for you.


Here, you can see the way that the cosy closes - buttons inside the handles, and ties above the handle. You can't see it, but below the handle, the two sides of the cosy are sewn together.













And a close up of the closure under the handle.



























And a top view of the teapot.















That's about it for now - I'll post the pattern later this week, once I've had a chance to go over it and double check everything is written right.

Tea Cosy o' Doom!

Well, the cozy itself is nearly done, and the pattern is written up, though the kinks still need to be worked out. Considering the challenge doesn't end until the end of the month, I'm rather early in finishing it. This doesn't happen all that often with me - assignments are usually finished a couple days before they're due, or even more likely, the night before.

I've also got another pattern running around in my head. About a year ago, Anthropologie made a cardigan called the Poet's Muse Cardigan.



I've wanted one since I saw it posted on Craftster, but nobody could come up with a pattern for it. So I've been thinking about how to make it, and I think I've got a workable pattern. I'll have to scrounge up some laceweight yarn to get the right drape for the fronts, but that shouldn't be too hard. I'll keep you updated on the pattern as it comes along.

New Project

I know I said I wouldn't start anything new until I had finished some older ones, but I wanted to participate in the new Craftster Knitting Challenge. Originally, I wasn't planning on participating, as I didn't know what I could do with the theme ("One Stitch to Rule Them All"), but since I had been meaning to make a tea cozy for our new teapot, that I would give it a spin.

It's turned out quite well, for making it up as I go, especially considering I was without the teapot for most of the knitting (Lindsay's hockey games mean lots of knitting time for me). It's not done yet - I still have to finish the bottom edge and figure out how to close the tea cozy.

I'll post pictures and a rough pattern once it's finished, though the pattern probably won't be of much use to anyone unless they've got the same teapot as me.

I'm really interested in seeing what others come up with for this challenge. I was hoping for a theme that would allow me to knit some soft toys, but I think that this one is working pretty well.

Woe to me!

I spent the rest of Christmas day carding up the dark Shetland "roving" I purchased from Sharon, but I don't think I bought more than 50g, so I'll have to pick up some more when mom and I visit tomorrow. I ended up with a good stack of rolags to spin, but haven't been able to touch them since (worked yesterday and will be working today). Hopefully I'll have some time tomorrow to start spinning them.

I also started on a swatch in the grey/brown mystery fiber, to test how it blocks. I'm leery of lighting it on fire, but maybe once Lindsay gets back from Sturgis, I can recruit her into lighting it on fire for me. The yarn I do have spun from this stuff is too heavy to be used in the shawl, but I've still got plenty more, and the giant white batt that I haven't touched yet. These things are huge - the two batts fill a large green garbage bag and unfold to about 2" x 4" x 1". Lots of fiber to keep me going.

The shawl is probably going to be mainly white, with stripes in the edging of the two brown shades. Before I start knitting though, I'm probably going to buy Sharon Miller's new book Shetland Hap Shawls ~ Then & Now - I've already got her first book (bought it last year when I wrote a paper about knitting in the Shetland Islands), and hopefully this one will be just as good. It's a pity I can't just order it though work - then I'd get a nice bit of a discount.

That's all for now - I'll include pictures in the next post with the giant batts and my rolags, and possibly the swatch for the grey/brown yarn.

New Beginnings

So, in addition to my personal blog, I've started this knitting blog. Mostly because my friends won't want to hear about my esoteric knitting gabble, but also to track progress on my knitting projects.

The current plan is to finish the current knitting projects I have (socks for Carol, mittens for Colette and possibly that scarf in Sea Silk for mom) and embark on my most ambitious project to date - a handspun hap shawl. The log cabin blanket I'm currently working on isn't going to be finished before I start this as I also need a simple project that is mindless for working on outside of lace.

The shawl is going to be made from white and grey/brown mystery wool (from Value Village), which I still need to check to see if it blocks properly, and the dark brown shetland wool that Golden Willow carries. I will need to pick up some more of the latter, as I've only got ~100 g of it. I still need to check that the mystery wool will block properly as I'm not entirely sure it's wool.

Based on the little bit of sampling I did, the yarn will be spun from hand carded rolags, to ~15 or so wraps per inch. It's not going to be lace weight, because I don't think I can keep the yarn even enough for a lace weight shawl. Besides, I need something slightly heavier to wear as a scarf in the winter.