fall knitting – magnolia hat

I’ve been knitting away like crazy in the past few weeks, finishing a new cardigan (to be blogged soon) and a hat. When it comes to knitting I’m strictly a “1-project-at-a-time” maker. Having multiple knitting projects underway makes me nervous.

Except for socks. There will be socks in various finishing stages hanging around at any given time.

Anyway, while travelling in Scotland a few weeks ago I picked up a few skeins of Shilasdair yarn on Skye, among these a single skein of white Aran yarn. I knew right away this needed to be a hat. I don’t usually wear hats, having very fine hair that gets flattened by a hat so awfully that I’d rather brave the cold. However, since taking up hiking as a hobby I knew I would need one for winter. I settled on the Magnolia hat pattern which seemed both a nice challenge and exactly the look I was going for.

Notice my new favourite knitting accessory, a beautiful project bag by Windwardmade!

I used size 4 needles which is two sizes smaller than recommended in the pattern. I have a very small head though and knew I had to go smaller to get a good fit (true story: when my mom was in labour with me and you could see the head, the doctor says “oh, the head is really small, the child will likely be disabled”. After I graduated from university with top grades I always wished I could find that guy and shove my diploma in his face).

Surprisingly I found the pattern quite easy, despite it being my first time knitting off a chart. I did wonder if I should do an extra repeat of the pattern to counter the small needle size but in the end I just did the pattern exactly as it was written and the fit is great.

I wore it already on a hiking trip last weekend. Definitely a hit.

Now, what next? Do I finish one of the unfinished pairs of socks? A shawl? A sweater? Too many decisions!

 

 

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