Candy Cane Hat

Remember how I thought DF's sweater was too tight across the chest and so I riiiiiipped back to the armpits? Well, I was so disgusted with the negative progress that I didn't pick up the sweater again until Sunday night. I wanted to watch some silly girly movies, so I rented Fever Pitch and Just Like Heaven* and sat down for some good mindless knitting time. Mindless is right. After a whole movie, I discovered that I had managed to put the raglan decreases right back in where I had previously ripped out. I didn't have the heart to rip out just yet, so instead...


Candy Cane Hat
Pattern: by Penny Kolb in Handknit Holidays
Materials: GGH Samoa (50% cotton/50% acrylic, 100 yds) in colors Barbie Pink and Espresso. half skein each. Size US8 16 inch Clover bamboo circular needles.
Gauge: 19 sts and 26 rounds = 4 inches
Finished size: 18.5 inches circumference, about 8" from cast on edge to crown.

Started: April 15, 2006
Finished: April 16, 2006

Notes:
Cast on 90 sts instead and began decreasing for crown when I was panicking that I'd run out of yarn. Really, though. How many mods can you make to a stockinette stitch roll brim hat?

Discussion:
I was looking through my stash of yarn leftovers and decided that I could do something with that yarn from DL's bones hat. I weighed it and figured that I had a little bit more than one ball left. I'd seen people make hats out of one ball of Silk Garden, so I should be able to do the same with Samoa, right?

I picked this hat because I thought that the color work would help stretch my yarn as far as I could. I probably could have striped it as well, but that would require more weaving in ends than I'd want. I discovered that with Fair Isle, my gauge is tighter than my gauge swatch (in plain one color stockinette, *slap hands*) would say. Thankfully, I just wanted to use up my leftovers, size be damned!

I think the hat came out cute, if a little girly. Since it's easily too small for me or any other normal sized adult, I decided that it's definitely bound to be a gift for a friend's 3 year old daughter. Hopefully, her head isn't the size of Sputnik.

This post isn't picture heavy enough, so I'm taking a deep breath and showing you my floats. It's a good thing that there weren't that many yarn ends to weave in because I couldn't see much with all of the floats in the way! Kind of looks like a hypnosis wheel. Now if only you could rotate your head that way to get it spinning...



*Edited to add: I meant to comment on the movies. They were both enjoyable in that sappy sort of chick flick way. BUT, the standout in Just Like Heaven was the movie's eponymous opening theme. The original is by far my favorite song made in the 80's and to say that I like any remake of it is utterly amazing. But I LOVE it. Go check out Katie Melua's website for samples of her music. I sure will.

I'm sort of motion sick from the Vertigo picture above too.