Christmas Hats revisited

Hats make such great gifts-- they are so quick, so functional, and appeal to both genders. I gave the hats below to my uncle and cousin. Gotta love matching family accessories!

FOs: Forest Cables and Cabely Cap (I give projects such amazing names)
Pattern: Dean Street Hat by Nina Machlin Dayton
Yarn: Elsebeth Lavold Classic AL in Forest and Brown Sheep Lamb's Pride Worsted in Cafe au Lait
Needles: US 8 bamboo DPNs


The hat pattern looks cabely, but its a cross stitch, requiring no cable needle. I feel like I am the only person out there who still uses cable needles for cables. For those who are still using cable needles, this type of stitch is a nice option for the cable look with out all the picking up and putting down of the cable needle.

Each hat took me a couple hours, the second one being finished just a couple hours before being gifted on Christmas Eve.



The Elsebeth Lavold AL is great-- incredibly soft, but shed quite a bit on my clothes. I was pleasantly surprised by the Lamb's Pride-- it is so inexpensive, and is not very soft in the skein. It knits up in a nice fabric, not as stiff or scratchy as I thought it might be. I decided to try it, having found it on sale for extra inexpensive, and have been pleased with the results. I have another skein in a gorgeous color called Persian Peacock that I look forward to using it to make a nice cowl.

Sara's Fairisle Cowl

Nursing school is DONE! And to celebrate, I've written up a pattern for Sara's Fairisle Cowl (original FO post here). I couldn't NOT write up a pattern for this cowl. Mainly, so I could make it again for myself. The PDF is available on Ravelry HERE for free. I am a big fan of free. I know you are too.

I hope you all enjoy it, although it hasn't been test-knit by anyone else. If you see anything I should correct, drop me a line!