In all my years of playing with yarn, I think hats are the project I make the most. They are relatively quick, practical, and fun. Last week, my daughter decided to pull out the hat I made for a Where’s Waldo Halloween costume. I offered to make her a similar style, in the colors she wanted and suggested she draw me a picture for guidance.
She can be highly detailed oriented. The details she kept stressing to me were the bottom of the hat had to fold up and the stripes of color had to have a half-inch of space in between.
I dug out the yarn in my stash that came close to the colors she wanted and we landed on Rozetti Polaris, Manos del Uruguay Silk Blend, and Malabrigo Silky Merino.
I struggled to get this hat started; I couldn’t just wing it. Designing is not my thing, I need a written pattern. After a few misfires (casting on with the yarn held double was too dense, then my cast on was too loose), I got it right. Anyway, a combination of the Classic World War II Watch Cap Hat and Skoufaki patterns gave me enough to lean on and get it right.
Any deadline to complete this hat was totally self-imposed. I was decreasing and making the pompom right through the school delay resulting from the crazy cold weather that came in with the polar vortex. Of course, I wanted her to have a hat she would want to wear and would keep her warm! This was a total success, given that she wore it to school, home, and kept it on inside yesterday afternoon and evening.
My son, on the other hand, is hat-resistant. He would like to be wearing shorts, but I’ve been able to win that battle. I made him a Barley, but it’s too small, I should have made a size up.
When forced to find a hat, he did pull out the Turn-A-Square hat I knit for Dan back in 2008! It was in the box with the other knit accessories, so sure, why not? At least his ears will be warm. It’s slightly too big on him, but he doesn’t mind and wears it.
May all your hats be ready at hand!
