This was a case of yarn looking for a project. I went to the knitting shop to buy some long circular needles - size 4 for my current project, a lightweight white Euroflax linen cardigan with a lace border for spring http://www.ravelry.com/projects/mmchurchman/gardenia
- but I couldn't walk away without two skeins of Manos el Uruquay wool classica in a luscious pinkpurpleo,rangeburgundymoss colorway. I kept thinking the colors were really Abigail's, not mine, but I thought I was knitting a warm hat for myself in the Sideways Grande hat pattern in a book I also bought on that trip to buy one knitting needle. I finished the hat in a week, and Abigail admired it as we were getting ready to leave for the airport this morning for her trip back to Iowa for the rest of the winter. She said it would be warm and she would wear it, so I sent it with her, after snapping a picture. I wasn't totally happy with it. I think it's too deep. The construction was strange (knit sideways in a strip, with 4 progressively smaller sizes of needle, then the crown is picked up on the long edge, the side seam is sewn, and the twisted straps picked up at the bottom and tacked to the top I might try it again in a different color and use a slightly smaller needle for the main part, or cast on fewer stiches for the long ribbed strip that becomes the hat.
2 comments:
I've long admired this pattern. Was it fun to knit?
It was fun and quick - but I definitely recommend reducing the number of stitches you cast on. Since it is knit sideways - the width of the strip you are knitting in ribbing becomes the height of the hat. I thought all along it was going to be too deep and I should have started over. But Abigail thought it would be great for Iowa winters. The yarn was bulky weight. The braided band up the side was fun and definitely not hard. (If you reduce the width, be sure to knit the bands shorter too.)
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