Here is a picture of the Coronet hat finished and blocking. It turned out pretty well and is going to my daughter-in-law Kim for Christmas. This hat was an easy and fun knit. The only problem I had is that the 9” length specified in the pattern for the 22” head circumference was too long, so I had to frog back and remove 4 rows; once I’d done that, it was just right. I have 1 3/4 skeins of the yarn left, so she will probably be getting a pair of matching mittens. It shouldn’t be too hard to make a pair of cuffs to match the cable band, then pick up and knit the hands using a generic mitten pattern.
I also started a pair of socks for my BFF Mel for Christmas using that luscious hand-dyed merino I blogged about a few weeks ago (scroll down to bottom of post for info). I LOVE THIS YARN! It is so soft and springy, knits up like a dream, and looks great in the Monkey pattern. This pattern is really making the blog rounds, and to be honest, after looking at the finished socks on some blogs, I didn’t find the pattern that interesting. I didn’t even remember it was published in Knitty, even though I read (yes, actually read) each issue. When I decided it was time to cast on for Mel’s socks, I immediately went to the Knitty archive and browsed the sock patterns. Low and behold, there’s the Monkey pattern that’s so popular. I took one look at the designer’s prototype sock and knew that it would look gorgeous in the variegated pink yarn, so I cast on and am already to the foot on the first Pink Monkey!
The stitch pattern looks complicated, but is really easy to memorize and interesting enough to keep my attention. And I was right about the yarn looking gorgeous in Cookie A’s pattern! I made one slight customization to the sock: I worked the heel in Eye of Partridge stitch instead of plain stockinette. I only did that because this yarn is 100% wool (no reinforcing nylon) and I wanted the added cushioning and strength that the slipped stitches would provide. I should be through with the first sock and started on the second by tomorrow. My goal is to have them finished before the new Six Sox Knitalong pattern comes out on Oct. 1st. I will be very proud to give these to Mel for Christmas because I know she’s going to love them!
