Very Warm Hat (EZ pattern)

Pattern: Very Warm Hat (Ravel it!)
Source: Knitting Without Tears, by Elizabeth Zimmerman
(Find it on Amazon or at KnitPicks)
Yarn: Knit Picks Wool of the Andes in Cloud and Chestnut
Needles: US 7 dpns
Started: July 21, 2009
Finished: July 24, 2009
Modifications: I added Norwegian star pattern in contrasting color on each side

Almeara Gloves

Pattern: Almeara Gloves (Ravel it!)
Source: Vogue Knitting, Winter 08/09
Yarn: Knit Picks City Tweed DK in Tahitian Pearl
Needles: US 7 dpns
Started: July 14, 2009
Finished: July 21, 2009
Modifications: none

Love these! I wish I didn't have to give them away... but maybe I'll make another pair in the recommended "Oatmeal" color later. They are very squishy, but I can't tell how warm they'll be. Usually for gloves or mittens, a needle at least two sizes smaller than the recommended size is used. For these, the needle is the same or one bigger than the recommended 6-7 US needles. Of course, the cables tighten things up considerably.

The garter stitch palm side makes them curl in a decidedly hand-like way, which makes them adorable when they're just sitting on the table.

Another rock-star pattern from Jared Flood!

Puple Sonata

Pattern: Pink Sonata (Ravel it!)

Source: Vogue Knitting, Fall 2008

Yarn: Knit Picks Palette in Hyacinthe and Eggplant

Needles: US 2 dpns

Started: July 2, 2009

Finished: July 11, 2009

Modifications: none

Fake Isle Hat

Pattern: Fake Isle Hat (Ravel it!)

Source: Spunky Eclectic

Yarn: Knit Picks Wool of the Andes in Onyx and Dove Heathers

Needles: US 6 dpns

Started: July 10, 2009

Finished: July 10, 2009

Modifications: Added motif in the "petals" of the crown pattern (because I was nervous about running out of Dove gray. Shortened the crown by three-ish rows because the hat was starting to look enormous.

The idea behind the "fake isle" of this hat's name was to use a self-striping yarn as the background color to mimic the color gradations in a true fair isle. I, however, in an effort to make as masculine a hat as possible am opting for solid neutrals.

It turned out fairly large, which could probably have been predicted from the comments on Ravelry, but if it's a problem for boy's head (which is significantly larger than mine) I can always felt it a little. I'm still pleased that I didn't have to felt the Fishtrap Aran from a few weeks ago, so I might be due for an off-sized hat. We shall see - fitting will be tomorrow!

Update 7/11/09 : Dang. It's too big even for my model's giant head. I will try to felt it a little and see if I can get an appropriate size.

Update 7/12/09 : First felting didn't help. I hate having to do it by hand in the kitchen sink. Hmph. I hear you starting to worry to yourselves - don't! I use laundry soap, not dishwashing liquid, to do the job.

Bulky Flip Top Mittens and Fishtrap Aran Beanie

Pattern: Bulky Flip Top Mittens
Source: Life in Cleveland Blog
Yarn: Cascade Eco Wool in Medium Brown, .25 skeins (119.5 yds)
Needles: US 6 and 7 dpns
Started: June 22, 2009
Finished: June 26, 2009
Modifications: Used k1 - p1 ribbing instead of seed stitch for the cuff. This yarn was also smaller than the recommended bulky weight, so this pair is really only good for some little lady hands.
This is the second time that I've made this pattern, and I just LOVE it! The instructions on how to make them into a flip-top set were taken from another source, I believe, but the designer here at least made it easy for me to understand. Doing a sort of after-thought opening makes it really easy to do the whole body of the mitten and then open it up after.
Pattern: Fishtrap Aran Hat
Source: Elizabeth Zimmerman's Knitter's Almanac
Yarn: Knit Picks Wool of the Andes in Evergreen, 2 skeins (220 yds )
Needles: US 7 dpns
Started: June 26, 2009
Finished: June 28, 2009
Modifications: none
Present number one for the boy's list for Christmas. I'm doing Yankee swap among the half dozen boys and half dozen girls in my family for all of my gifts this year. Hopefully that means that Christmas presents for 15 people will cost me less than $100. Oh, and hopefully it will be more successful than three years ago when I also made gifts for everyone... but they all kind of sucked. The only one I know of that went over well were the stuffed rabbit and bear for my little cousins.