Chapeaux Jumeaux

Baby hats a-plenty.



These are for two little cousins, Tavin and Dani, who decided to come out into the world two months early. The hats are still too big for them.



Tavin and Dani are working hard to grow strong enough to leave the hospital. They have a long road ahead. Thoughts and prayers are welcome.

Yarn
Berroco Comfort in Boy Blue, Hummus, Pretty Pink, and Tearose.

Needles
Size 7, 4.5 mm

Pattern
Umbilical Cord Hat by Jennifer L. Jones
Stitch 'N Bitch: The Knitter's Handbook

Notes
I used this Random Stripe Generator at Biscuits & Jam to get the stripe pattern. Way cool tool.

Fuzzy Wuzzy Felicity

FOs have not been flying off the needles this year, but I finished my Felicity a while ago and have been waiting for a good hat model to come along. Alas, no one has, so I give you the hat blocked but not modeled.



The yarn is from a Chilean company and is 60% angora and 40% merino. So, so soft. It's got the perfect slouch factor for the Felicity.

The yarn is also so, so fuzzy. Fuzzy wuzzy. Shake your head and watch the rabbit hairs fly through the air. Check out the halo on this thing.


I am made of Little Bunny Foo Foo and therefore I am fuzzy wuzzy.

Yarn
Lanas Romanina Angora 60% in colorway #149

Needles
Size 5, 3.75 mm and size 7, 4.5 mm

Pattern
Felicity by Wanett Clyde

More Stripey Goodness

You've met my friend Sara before. She was the recipient of the Hell-Has-Stripes Scarf of last winter and spring.



For Christmas this year, I gave her a certificate for a beanie to match her scarf. She chose three colors of the Berroco Comfort: the cream, the rose, and the dark brown. I'm glad the hat looks so good on her. I looked like a complete dork when I tried it on.



Other than this hat and the knitting for Small Children, not much got done this week. It flew by. The week is short when you're only awake about ten hours per day. I've been going to sleep at about 8:00 or 9:00 every night, partly due to a cough that I can't shake, partly because we're in the second half of winter and the darkness and cold have just about done this body in. One more month.

I think I can, I think I can, I think I can.

Yarn
Berroco Comfort in Ivory, Teaberry, and Bitter Sweet

Needles
Size 6, 4 mm

Pattern
Basic Hat Pattern from The Knitter's Handy Book of Patterns by Ann Budd

Christmas Knitting in Review—Part Three

Needless to say, the hat I made for Small Child 3 turned out a tad too big. Just a tad.



Better too big than too small, I say. He can grow into it. See, he already has a hat for next winter. I'm ahead of the game on this one.



Small Child 3's modeling skills are a bit better than Small Child 2's modeling skills. I think it's due to the lack of controlled movement. You do have to be fast with the camera, though.



The yarn used is Berroco Comfort DK, which always knits up more like a sport weight rather than DK weight in my opinion. I still have a ton of this stuff left. What to do with it?



Yarn
Berroco Comfort DK in Boy Blue, Rabe, Bittersweet, Barley, and Teaberry

Needles
Size 3, 3.25 mm

Pattern
Garter Stripe Beanie by Mustaa Villaa

Christmas Knitting in Review—Part One

I have one word for Christmas knitting this year—disastrous! Two projects were finished on time and wrapped. One project was wrapped unfinished. And—get this—I still have five other projects that aren't even on the needles yet. That doesn't take into account ongoing birthday knitting.

What the hell was I thinking?

This will not happen next year. No knitted goods for Christmas. You scoff, I know, but I will not fall victim to this December craziness again! I have a new plan... knitted goods only for birthdays. See, this way, they are spread out over the year.

Anyway, on to the Christmas knits! The first project and probably most well-executed was a hat and mittens for Small Child 2.



Trying to get pictures of her modeling the mittens was difficult, to say the least.



Okay, hold the mittens a little closer this time.



Okay, not so close to the camera, closer to you.



Okay, now stop moving!



There... great cheesy smile!

Small Child 1 was willing to model the hat for me out-of-doors, in proper light.





Small Child 1 may have a future in modeling handknits!

Yarn
Berroco Comfort in Rosebud, Pretty Pink, Ivory, and Cornflower

Needles
Mittens—Size 6, 4 mm
Hat—Size 7, 4.5 mm

Patterns
Mittens—Basic Mitten Pattern, The Knitter's Handy Book of Patterns by Ann Budd
Hat—Scrap-happy Celebration Hat by Cosette Cornelius-Bates

Go Blue Beanie

In case you are wondering, NOT M Go Blue!

Another finished object!



This one was finished a couple of weeks ago, but I just haven't blogged about it yet. I made it for Isaac, my principal's adopted-from-Russia son. It's a little big. Isaac has a pretty big head, but I think this hat is big enough to cover his eyes. Had I knit eye holes into it, he might even be able to wear it Dumb Donald style. Yes, I am showing my age. I also think that Dumb Donald would be a ridiculously easy but cool Halloween costume, but it would only work if you had a sidekick to play Fat Albert. Anyway, the brim is just going to have to be folded up for a little while.



This was the first time I had used Meg Swansen's jogless jog, and I think it worked pretty well. You can see a slight diagonal line, but hopefully it won't be noticed by Muggles.

While I'm at it, I must put a plug in for Ann Budd's The Knitter's Handy Book of Patterns. It's a great basic pattern book that I recommend as a first book for budding (pun totally intended) knitters. Aside from hats, the book has patterns for mittens (from which you could also do fingerless mitts), gloves, tams, scarves, socks, vests, a cardigan, and a pullover. The best part of the book is that you can use any gauge yarn. Just knit a gauge swatch and follow the charts for your size and gauge. In the hat section, Budd includes five edging choices (single rib, double rib, rolled, straight, and picot—I chose the double rib) and six toppers (pompom, tassel, bobble, I-cord topknot, corkscrew fringe, and crochet loop—I chose the topknot).

It's December weather here. It's snowing, and it's sticking. It's time to make a vat of soup and get under my flannel blanket. Today the soup will be an easy bean soup from a mix, but I bought a butternut squash today, and this recipe is on the horizon.

Yarn
Caron Simply Soft in Dark Country Blue
Caron Simply Soft Brites in Lemonade

Needles
Size 6, 4.0 mm

Pattern
Basic Hat Pattern from The Knitter's Book of Handy Patterns by Ann Budd