Making New Friends

I went to the S n B today and at least this time people were knitting. Marianne was working on some alpaca and wool socks from the yarn she spun herself. I met Heidi who was working on some crocheted cat toys and also a knit hat for her dad. I worked on a guage swatch for my next hat. And Laura worked on a wide scarf made from Homespun that looked to be about long enough to bind off. Which reminds me that my theme of the day was to make new friends, so at least I met my goal.

Tutorial Troubles and Sixteen Inch Needles

Because of the tutorial below I went out and bought the 16" circular needle and tried making a hat. Not that hat mind you but one I already started that I'm knitting from tip to brim. And the needle is working but it's really too darn short. So I checked with another hat knitter who uses a 29" needle and she said there is no way she'd use a 16...that would be too many stitches. And I believe her. I think my hat will turn out okay, but it's not comfortable working w/that many stitches on the needle. Granted that needle is an 8 but it's the smallest size Joanne's had in stock yesterday in a circular needle. I'm not saying the video won't work if you follow every detail. I'll have to try it and see.

Tutorial on Knitting Your First Hat

This is an excellent video for those wanting to knit their first hat or for those who need a review on circular knitting. It is a beanie (skully) style of hat made from one color of yarn.

Unisex Slouch Hat Spotting

Today at Starbuck's I spotted a young man wearing a cream colored slouch hat. It was knitted and the center was gathered. (Like when you knit a tube and then gather it all into a bunch with a drawstring). I'm glad to see a style that suits both men and women.

Pete Seeger Hat from the Inaguration

http://socklady.wordpress.com/2009/01/18/pete-seeger-in-a-socklady-hat/ I found this photo of the Pete Seeger Hat from the Obama inauguration. Unfortunately the youtube video has been blocked for copyright reasons. Maybe this land isn't your land Pete.

A bigger view on flickr http://www.flickr.com/photos/usatoday/3207831770/

Slouchy Hat Patterns

I've been wanting to make a slouch hat so I thought I'd share some free patterns I've come across.
http://jessicasuzanne.com/craftypants/2007/09/13/pretty-puffs-slouchy-hat-with-pattern/
http://www.knitandtonic.net/knitandtonic/2006/12/leslouch.html
http://slomoeknits.wordpress.com/2007/03/25/slouchy-copy-cat-hat/
http://parallaxknitting.com/2008/02/free-pattern-slouch/
Most of these weren't truly 'slouchy' but this next one is:
http://caffeinatedfrenzy.blogspot.com/2009/06/pattern-slouch.html

Here's a good one:
http://www.straw.com/cpy/patterns2/accessories/taos-slouchhat.html

Spats and Gauntlets

I wonder if I should try knitting some spats for a Steampunk outfit I'm working on. For once, the male costumes are just as cool as the female ones. If you don't know what Steampunk is, look it up on Youtube. A video is worth even more words than a photo.

Yesterday we visited with friends and I worked on my knitted mitts. I'm almost done with the first one. People still ask me what they are for. I guess the mainstream has never seen wrist gauntlets/cuffs/mitts. Funny how I got the same reaction from people in the 1970's. They've never been really mainstream. Though jugglers and belly dancers have worn them for as long as I can remember.

Wrist cuffs

I recently started knitting a long tailed hat, and I've barely started it but now I'd like to knit some tattered looking arm cuffs. (Gauntlets). I wish I had some funky hand spun yarn for that. I should work with my drop spindle more.

At the S&B I got to finish a knitted scarf made from trellis yarn. Everyone oohed and ahhed over it so I must have done something right.