It's 1st November, which means just one thing in our house...
HATS!
I am signed up and in the process of casting on my Woolly Wormhead Mystery Hat KAL (KAL = knitalong) for the year. I've taken part in the KAL for the last 2 years - you can see my finished hats for 2011 and 2012 by clicking through on those links - and it is always a blast. The hats are always brilliant to knit, and at this time of year if they don't perfectly fit in my wardrobe, there is always a happy recipient at hand.
I have previously waxed lyrical about Woolly Wormhead's hat designs, but I'm happy to repeat it. She is accurately described as a hat architect, and her patterns are a joy to work from. I am super-fussy about patterns, and Woolly's are always amazing. They are clearly written and full of useful hints and tips. The hat KAL is a great way to learn a new technique or two as there are heaps of other knitters on hand to give advice and share ideas. I have also found that at this time of year, it's really helpful to have a pattern delivered in manageable bites. It never seems to be too overwhelming at a time of year when there is so much else going on!
I'm using the recommended Fyberspates Vivacious DK for my Mystery hat, as I helpfully had some wound in my stash already. Handy, that!
Not content with casting on the Mystery Hat, I have also pulled some Knit by Numbers DK out of my stash to cast on Freccia from Woolly Wormhead's Twisted Woolly Toppers. It's time to keep the little ones warm, and Woolly's patterns are generally sized to fit children through to adults. We sifted through my vast pattern collection, and about 10 of Woolly's patterns were shortlisted. After much uming and ahing, we finally narrowed it down and Freccia was the winner!
In non-hat related news, I'm on the foot of my second Willowherb sock, so I'm hoping to have a finished object to share quite soon.
