FO: Habitat

Pattern: Habitat
Source: brooklyn tweed
Yarn: Malabrigo Worsted in Lettuce
Needle: Knit Picks Options, size 7 & 8
Started: January 1, 2010
Finished: January 31, 2010
Mods:
Ravel It!

If my claim to a Gordie Howe hat trick is to have a leg to stand on, this hat is essential. It ended up being my fight. I pretty much knit the hat twice. The first time through, I didn't knit the ribbing tall enough for my liking. It didn't quite cover my ears, which by now you should know is very important. I let it sit for awhile, like to two hockey fighters circling each other on the ice shift after shift. Finally, I dropped the gloves and frogged the darn thing.

On the second go-round, I got the ribbing long enough, but the cable chart gave me fits. I think I took it for granted because I had knit it once already. Also, I was probably more distracted the second time, since I originally started knitting during Christmas/New Year's break.

I finally finished the hat on the last day of the month only to realize that for as beautiful a hat it is with all the gorgeous cables, half the hat is ribbing! Ugh! At this point I'm calling it done, with a chance of being reknit later on.

FO: Blue Aran Toque

Pattern: Irish Moss Toque
Yarn: Cascade 220, Blue Velvet
Needle: Knit Picks Options, size 6 & 7
Started: January 12, 2010
Finished: January 18, 2010
Mods: Knit the brim extra long, changed cable crosses
Ravel It!

This was the third hat I knit for the 2010 Hat Trick. I love cables and really fell in love with the design when I saw it on Ravelry. I also liked the idea of folded brim as I sometimes have trouble getting hats just the right length. They either don't cover my ears or slip down and cover my eyes. I haven't worn this one out yet, but I think it'll avoid those problems.

The blue yarn really makes the cables and seed stitch pop, which I totally love. What I wasn't totally excited about were the decreases. They're not evenly spaced over the pattern, so they almost formed corners on the hat where they began. Blocking helped as does actually wearing the hat. The yarn stretches to fit my head and the 'corners' go away.

I made two modifications to the pattern. First, I knit the ribbing deeper than called for since I need to lengthen most hat patterns anyway. Even though the brim is folded - and therefore longer than normal - I didn't want to end up with a really small fold. Second, I changed the way the large cable crossed on row 1 and row 13. It just made more sense in my brain that way, it makes the cable look more 'woven' which is what I like.

FO: Swatch Cap

Pattern: Elizabeth Zimmerman's swatch cap
Source: Knitting Workshop
Yarn: Bartlettyarns Fisherman 2-Ply in Medium Sheeps Gray
Needle: Knit Picks Options, size 8
Started: January 16, 2010
Finished: January 18, 2010
Mods: none
Ravel It!

This one is, admittedly, pretty darn boring. One of those goals where you just lull the defense and goalie to sleep only to tuck a dribbler in between his pads. It truly was intended as a swatch cap, one to check my gauge for my Ravelympics project. It does fit nicely, although I should have knit the ribbing on smaller needles. The yarn softened up nicely after washing; I actually cooked it on the stove like I would dye yarn since it felt like there was some oil still left in the yarn. I'll keep it around until my sweater is finished in case I need the yarn, but I may end up donating this one. Which is ok too.

FO: Wood Hollow Hat

Pattern: Wood Hollow Hat
Source: Through the Loops!
Yarn: Stonehedge Fiber Mill Shepherd's Wool in Berries
Needle: Knit Picks Options, size 6 & 7
Started: January 6, 2010
Finished: January 11, 2010
Mods: Went up one needle size for body of hat, knit an extra cable repeat
Ravel It!

I. Love. This. Hat.

Another home run from Kirsten of Through the Loops! Every other pattern she publishes I want to knit. I think she might be responsible for 25% of my Ravelry queue right now. But can you blame me? Kirsten designs some really fabulous stuff.

This hat and I had a bit of a rocky start. I began knitting with some Cascade 220 in dark gray and just was not feeling it; the yarn felt too rough for my liking. I totally messed up the small cable pattern, knitting a twisted cable instead of the wavy cables called for. Of course, I realized it about halfway through and totally lost momentum.

When I came back around, I decided I needed new yarn and knew the perfect one. I saw the dark red color on the yarn store shelf and grabbed it up immediately. I love the depth it gives the pattern and it's SO soft. Once I got going again there was no turning back. It took me less than a week to finish the hat. I think it took me longer than that to actually photograph it!

The fit is perfect, long enough to cover my ears and not too tight. I went up a needle size for the body of the hat both to make it slightly larger, but also too keep that luscious softness of the yarn. I think that's one reason the Cascade 220 wasn't working out. I also knit an extra repeat of the cable pattern to make sure the hat fit the way I wanted. Quite a few of the hats I've knit in the past I end up making too tight because they're not long enough. I constantly pull them down trying to cover my ears and they end up squishing the top of my head. With the larger gauge and size, this hat may not keep that bitterly cold winter wind at bay quite as well, but the comfortable fit is a good trade off.

FO: Flat 'at

Pattern: Morgan
Source: Knitty.com - Fall 2008
Yarn: Rowan Felted Tweed
Needle: Knit Picks Options, size 6
Started: November 29, 2009
Finished: March 28, 2009
Mods: Sewed brim to front of hat, free-handed brim stiffener.
Ravel It!

Here in lies the problem with blogging knits so long after you finish them. I can't remember how I came to knit this one! I'm sure I saw it in Knitty that fall when, like everyone else, I crashed the site the day it came out. I do remember having stealing a similar hat from my Dad when I was young, so I'm pretty sure that's why I wanted to knit this one.

I'm not entirely happy with how it turned out, though I don't hate it either. I had worn it a couple times. For me, the Felted Tweed makes the hat too light; like it doesn't have enough substance. The hat doesn't want to keep its shape, instead it conforms to the shape of my head. I also wasn't too pleased with how the brim template fit into the actual knitting. Perhaps my gauge affected things, but I ended up free-handing the layout with some cardboard. The main complaint I've read about this pattern is the fact that you have to pay constant attention to the written pattern because the increases are spread randomly throughout the crown to better disguise them. I can't say it really bothered me, although I do remember having to constantly count the number of stitches on my needles.

I'd like to knit another one of these with more substantial yarn - and something not so warm - so I can have a summer version. This one is more suitable for fall. I did pick up some Cotton Ease for it, but couldn't get gauge. I've also got the idea in my head on how to design my own version. It would be constructed differently and I think it would be better. Also, I want to put cables on the top of the hat. I don't know when I'll get around to that.

Ravelympics 2010

As you surely know by now, the 2010 Winter Olympics in lovely Vancouver, BC are fast approaching; they begin February 12th, one month from today. That also means the Ravelympics are almost upon us. I competed for the first time two summers ago during the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing and knit my Dr. G's Memory Vest in 17 days.

This time around, I won't have as much time to knit because we leave for a 7-day cruise on February 13th that returns February 21st. If I don't knit a stitch on vacation, that would leave me with only 7 whole days. Let's break this down.

1. From the official Ravelry page: "The One Rule To Rule Them All: Challenge yourself by starting and finishing projects during the 2010 Winter Olympics." (The emphasis is mine.) At first I thought I would knit a hat or two, or maybe a large gauge pair of house socks and call it good. But are the Olympics just about participation? In all honesty, for some countries/athletes, yes participation is enough, but that's not the true spirit of the Olympics. Every athlete has challenged him or her self to be the best and aspires to win the gold medal. We're definitely looking at a sweater or vest here.
   
   
2. I will be on vacation for 9 days during the games and let's face it, I'm just not knitting for hours a day on a cruise. I will, however, have the opportunity to knit on the drive to and from Chicago at either end of the trip, and on the flights to and from San Juan, PR. And surely I can squeeze in a few rows before bed or during a day at sea. What exactly constitutes a challenge with those parameters is still to be determined. Another thing to consider here is all the 'venue' changes. Managing DPNs or cable needles only complicates things. I'm all for challenges, but complications I can do without.
   
   
3. Is it better to have tried and failed than not to try at all? While I don't want to disappoint Team Michigan with an incomplete project at the end of the games, a half knit sweater is 50% closer to a finished sweater than one that isn't started at all. I think an Olympic athlete would answer this question in a heartbeat with a strong affirmative.
   
   
4. Pattern selection. This again comes back to the challenge concept. Last time I knit a cabled vest with all the time I chose to devote (minus work) to the task. Are a raglan or seamless hybrid sweater equivalent with my time constraints? A sweater has sleeves where the vest doesn't but I'd probably knit it in stockinette since that's what I want anyway.
   
   
5. Some miscellaneous issues to consider: How much yarn will I need to bring? I probably need to plan to be at least a third done by the end of the trip. Will I have enough room to pack it all? Have to leave room for souvenirs booze. Will it totally suck to knit with wool in the Caribbean? Will there be enough room on the plane? Will security let me through with needles and cables?

All good questions and points to ponder in the next 31 days.

FO: Mini Hockey Sweaters

Pattern: the beer sweater
Yarn: Knit Picks Palette
Needle: 2.0 mm bamboo needles
Started: late June 2009
Finished: July 14, 2009
Ravel It!

I knit this Vancouver Canucks sweater for our first off-season swap in the Puck This! group on Ravelry. The sweater has 4 row hem at the bottom to keep it from curling up. The sleeve and body stripes are all duplicate knit, which added more bulk than I anticipated. Normally it probably wouldn't be an issue, but on a sweater this small, it shows a little. I decreased sharply at the neck to keep it from curling and to make it more like a real sweater. Therefore, it will not actually fit on a beer bottle.

The logo is needle felted using Knit Picks Palette yarn. I outlined the green oval twice to give it more thickness. This was my first time needle felting and I learned that white can be tricky to use. The felting needle tends to pick up fibers from the surrounding space - in this case blue - and they can muddle the white color. Also, I think the white yarn I was using was a bit thinner than the green.



Pattern: the beer sweater
Yarn: Knit Picks Palette
Needle: 2.5mm bamboo needles
Started: August 23, 2009
Finished: September 3 2009
Ravel It!

The Boston Bruins sweater was also knit for a Puck This! swap, the second round during the off-season. Using what I learned from knitting the Canucks sweater, I went up a needle size and added a few stitches to the body and sleeves. I also knit the yellow stripes on the sleeves and body, and then duplicate stitched the small white and black accent stripes over top of the yellow. This worked better to reduce the bulk of the stripes.

The original pattern has you put stitches on hold where the body and sleeves meet and graft them together when finished knitting. Since these aren't meant to be worn and that method left some bulk under the arms, I omitted those stitches. The yoke of the Bruins sweater was different than the Canucks sweater as well. I switched to yellow for the last 5 rows and continued to decrease until the neck opening was small enough. I then came back and duplicate stitched the black yoke accents.

Again the logo was needle felted and I'm proud to say that I did the entire logo at lunch one day sitting in my car. It was tricky to free hand the circle and B, but very rewarding once I got it right. With this sweater, I also doubled the yarn (essentially) to bulk up the lines of the logo.

I'm really please with how these turned out. I even received a Detroit Red Wings jersey of my own in the swap!