This could be catching

My 'to knit' sidebar is shrinking nicely. I like that. It means I can start haunting yarn shops again with intent to buy yarn.

Twisted knitting is a fun thing. The book Two-End Knitting has many great ideas, and patterns ... except the patterns are not great. Consider a hat pattern which reads: "Yarn: 100 gms; Needles: 40 cms/16 inch circular and double pointed needles. This cap measured 21 inches when newly knitted and unwashed.... it now measures 23 inches. ... Cast on 192 stitches... work a pattern" and so forth. Gauge? Nope. Yarn weight? Nope. Needle size? Nope.

So, I started my hat from the top down. I ended up with 28 sts/4", using KnitPicks Telemark yarn. (Oh, and I used a size 3 US needle) Now, Telemark is supposed to be a sportweight, but in a solid color it makes NatureSpun sportweight look like laceweight. The heathered colors are more delicate and reminiscent of a sportweight. I knit until I could get a nice gauge, got one, calculated how many stitches I'd need for a nice head size, knit some more, and started patterning when I stopped increasing.

Twisted knitting has body. I could easily see making a felted bowl out of this. But, it was supposed to be a hat, so I kept on knitting. Every so often I'd knit half the stitches on to a 24" circular and call a child over to check out the length. Proper hats must be warm enough to keep the earsies warm in a nice Minnesota winter breeze.

One and a half rows from the end, I finished the charcoal skein. The hat uses one skein of each color, plus a few yards. My mom wants one... but first, I need to get going on her Fair Isle mittens.