Year of Projects Update 21st October

Another week, another finish! I'm on a roll at the moment.

Candy Skein Yummy Worsted in Blueberry Cheesecake

This gorgeous skein of Candy Skein Yummy Worsted has been sitting in my stash since February this year. I bought it specifically for Koolhaas, and the colour was chosen by my fiance, who has an excellent eye for things that will suit me.

I cast on about a month ago, as all my other WIPs were too big to take with me to roleplay night. It started off fairly quickly, but took a bit of a back seat while I finished off the sofa bed afghan (still need to weave in those ends on that one!).

This past week, I have picked it back up again and made a concerted effort to finish it.

It doesn't look like much when it's not being worn, as the cables all contract and squish together. As a result, I wasn't entirely convinced by it as I was knitting, although having seen enough pictures of the finished article, I knew the end result would be worth it.

See! Perfect colour choice from Jamie, it matches my eyes!

I love it! So warm and cosy. I think this is going to become my favourite hat for those really cold days in winter, when you want a hat that properly hugs your head and keeps you warm.

Project: Kool Hat

Pattern: Koolhaas by Jared Flood

Needles: 4mm circs for ribbing, 5mm circs and dpns for hat, plus cable needle

Yarn: Candy Skein Yummy Worsted in Blueberry Cheesecake (used just under 125 yards)

I chose to do 4 pattern repeats, which is the directions for the woman's size. While skeptical at first that the gauge of 16 inches for the cast on would be way too small, I was reassured by the many comments about this patterns negative ease, and can happily state that yes, it is more than big enough for even my large (23") head. While Koolhaas is a paid for pattern (currently costs $4.50 to download), I was lucky enough to take advantage of a special offer at Interweave Knits, and pick up an entire pattern book for ten cents (about 7p). The main reason I did it (other than the fantastic bargain of all those patterns for just 7p) was that Koolhaas was included in the book. So glad I took advantage of that offer, because I love this hat already. Mind you, it's so fabulous, I'd have happily paid $4.50 for it!

Could do with being better written though; I had to frog back my first few rounds of the crown decrease because I mistakenly read k2tbl to mean k2togtbl, so decreased too many stitches in the first round!

I have enough yarn left over (95 yards) to make a pair of mitts to match, although I can't currently settle on a pattern. I may make one up, taking inspiration from this pattern (ironically, devised in order to use up yarn left over from knitting Koolhaas!) but incorporating the lattice pattern from the hat on the back of the glove. We'll see how that goes. For now, I will work on other things and pick up the yarn again when I am in the mood.