Winter Hat for Kat, Part 3

Kat's winter hat has been stalled for the past several weeks.  I was able to extend the hat successfully.  But once I figured that out, the hat has sat on the end table neglected.  Which is just plain sad, 'cause the only thing I had left to do was weave in the ends.

I researched quite a bit to figure out how to extend the hat.  I read lots of suggestions about ripping out the bottom row(s) of stitches (like this), but I wasn't a big fan of this method.  First of all, it looked really tedious (and I'm lazy).  Also, Kat's hat was knit from the bottom up, with ribbing at the bottom, and most sites that I read cautioned that adding on to ribbing would result in a half-stitch jump between old and new stitches.   Finally, and probably most importantly, the thought of cutting into the work and having the whole thing unravel scares me!

Instead, I chose to use a contrasting color and basically sew a cast-on row to the bottom of the hat in the new color.  I threaded a yarn needle with the new color (gray).  I put the needle between the stitches on the original cast on row, looped around my knitting needle, and back through the hat in between the next stitch.  The biggest trick was just making sure to cast-on the same number of stitches that I had in the original cast-on row.  Once I had a new cast-on row, I continued the same rib pattern top-down.  And because I looped my new cast-on stitches between the old stitches, I didn't really notice any jumping, mostly just that the ribbing isn't exactly smooth (but I expected that).

So, what do you think?  I'm pretty happy with how it turned out, and I think Kat is too!  (What a ham, eh?!)

This project is listed on my Ravelry profile.

Knitting: Winter Hat for Kat, Part 2

I have been racing against falling temperatures, trying to finish a warm winter hat for Kat.  Kat's head measured a whopping 19", so originally, I thought I would need to follow instructions for the child sized hat.  However, when I first started the hat, I had a little bit of trouble matching gauge, mostly because I wanted to use a heavier yarn than the pattern recommended.   So after going back and making several gauge swatches, I decided that following the instructions for the 12 month to 2 year size would allow me to accommodate a worsted weight yarn. 

The pattern calls for the hat to be worked in the round until it measures 6" from the cast on edge, but the last hat that I made for Kat (just 1 month ago) only measured about 4.5" for the same part.  So I started the decreases for this hat at 4.5" too.  This turned out to be a bit of a problem...

As you can probably tell, the hat fit around, but just barely reached the tops of her ears!  Uh-oh! 

So now I'm working on how to make her hat longer.  Guess I should have followed the pattern.  (I'm really not good at following directions!)  Since this hat was knit bottom up, I could either (a) rip out all my decreases, add more rounds, and redo the decreases (giant UGH! to ripping out my working and then having to redo it) or (b) figure out a way to add length to the cast on edge.  I think I pick B.  Stay tuned!

Winter Hat for Kat, Part 1

Fall is definitely my favorite season.  It's the time of comfort foods - chili, stew, apple or pumpkin anything; and the weather is just cool enough to call for an extra layer, but not so cold as to rule out spending an afternoon outside.

This fall, Kat is in the Toddler room at daycare, which means that they spend part of most afternoons outside.  This also means that it's time to send all the fall and winter clothing supplies  that will live in her cubby - warm hat, jacket, back-up outfit with long pants and long-sleeved shirt.  When NerdDad asked if we had an extra hat to send, I promptly said that I would make one!  He laughed...

But my knitting and crochet skills are getting to be pretty good, and a hat is small enough that I can measure time to completion in hours, not days.   I'm not sure why he laughed; I have made three different hats for Kat, and another hat for Buddy.  So it's not like I'm a hat-newbie.

I quickly hopped on Ravelry (you can find me here) and began looking for a pattern.  Since I already have a crochet project in progress, I wanted something I could knit.  I also wanted something fairly simple that Kat could pull on herself (no ties or flaps).  I settled on this Swirl Hat.  The pattern is straightforward, but the swirl adds some fun.

I'm using a very dark pink that matches her coat - gotta keep things fashionable!  I am making pretty good progress, especially considering that I ripped out 6 rounds because I had an extra loop of yarn just hanging out (grr!).  I have finished the ribbed edge, and have (re)started on the swirl pattern.

Are you a knitter?  If so, what are you working on?