Two Days Before Christmas

And I'm still knitting away.  I know I shouldn't be knitting, but it's only because of Christmas and because I wouldn't work myself beyond capacity unless it was important.  Christmas knitting is important - to me.  I don't have a lot of money to go around and a hat or sweater always saves my good standing among the family members who appreciate my knitted goods.  Especially since that's about the only time they get them.

Except for Mom, of course.

She's a whole other story.

Still, there's not a lot of time, but a lot of knitting that I want to get done.  To that end, I finished Nylah's hat and mitten set:

There was no pattern for the hat, at least not one that I found, so I just made it up to match the mittens.  I cast on 84 stitches and knit for 5 inches, then started the decreases.  Easy peasy.  The bonus part is that her mom can change the i-cord ties for ribbons to match whatever coat/snowsuit she's wearing and they will help keep the mittens on the baby.  Edited to add the decrease section of the hat.  Every row is decreased on my hat.  Row 1: K2 tog, k10, repeat to end.  Row 2: K2 tog, k9, repeat to end.  You decrease until you get to the end with an even number of stitches, cut the yarn, thread it through, et voila!  

Then I started a hat because hats are fast and easy and everyone who has ever experienced winter in New York needs one.  Of course, a chunky weight cabled hat would have been easier and faster, but I've never gone the easy route.  I found one skein each of Classic Elite Fresco, 60% wool, 30% alpaca and 10% angora in white and periwinkle:

And decided to make the Selbu Modern by Kate Gagnon Osborn.

It's coming out beautifully!  The yarn is so soft and beautiful and has a halo, and it is far to beautiful to use for anything other than a pretty, soft, warm hat.  The pattern calls for needles size US #0 and US #2.  I used US #1 and US #3 because I made a different hat pattern of hers in the past and the hat was small and tight.  This time I was hoping for a hat more useful than decorative.  Not too shabby, eh?  I just hope I don't run out of yarn!

I highly recommend that if you plan to make this hat that you use the German Twisted Cast On so that you don't have to worry about your cast on row being too rigid and tight.  It really does make a difference.

For my next act of 'tempting the fates' I plan to make a pair of plain vanilla socks, and that should put an end to my knitting for a while.  Ha!  If you know me, you know that's not true.  It will be the end of my deadline knitting, though.  No more rushing to finish projects is more likely.

Happy knitting!