I have been very good for the most part about not ordering fabric or yarn this year … except fabric for quilt backings … but I’m falling off the wagon a bit. You saw that table with the hat yarn piled up that I just posted right? So why did I feel the need to buy more hat yarn? Yep … the sales sucked me in, again. I just can’t resist a bargain. I’ll definitely need to make Autumn my “annual hat knitting season”! I’ve still got through the end of November to add to my list of finishes but this is what my project page on Ravelry looks like right now with the first 20 done.

I know some of you are knitters out there – hopefully you’ve been finding some new patterns to try along with me.

Hat #20 is done. I like this yarn but the skeins are small – just 50gms and I had to make this one a little shorter than the pattern called for. I need to keep these skeins for kids hats so I don’t worry about running out of yarn. The hat will fit a child, teen, or even a small woman. It’s slightly shorter than I’d like for myself. It’s another hat that has great texture and I will definitely be knitting it again.

• Pattern – Undaunted Hat found free on Ravelry
• Needle size – 6 for the brim, 8 for the body of the hat
• Yarn – Knit Picks Swish Worsted

The “hat” table (usually the GO table) is a bit out of control as I dig through the “hat yarn” bins. I’ve got a bunch of partial skeins so I’m weighing them to decide if there’s enough yarn for another hat in them. I’m also finding some skeins I’d forgotten all about. I’m going to be disappointed when hat knitting season comes to an end but the bins with blanket yarn are calling my name too.

Hat #19 is finished. This guy hat has MILES of 2×2 ribbing which was great mindless knitting when I was watching the Lightning play on Tuesday night but kind of boring after that.

• Pattern – Icebreaker hat found free on Ravelry
• Needle – size 8
• Yarn – Paintbox Simply Aran
• Cast on 88, knit to 11 inches before starting decreases.

Hat #18 is finished. This one also has great texture although it would show up a little better in a lighter colored yarn … as would the texture from the previous hat.

I chose to knit the brim in a K1P1 rib rather than a broken rib. I also believe there is an error in the instructions for the crown decreases. I did follow the pattern but my count was off where the pattern jumps between K5, K2tog to K3, K2tog and I believe there should be a K4, K2tog in there. Reading some of the comments from others who knit this hat, they also questioned the same issue. Next time I will add in the “missing” line.

• Pattern – Mount Ambler Hat found free on Ravelry
• Needle size – 6 for the brim, 8 for the body
• Yarn – LionBrand Basic Stitch

Hat #17 is done. It’s the first time I’ve made this one and it has great texture. The crown decreases were different but not difficult.

• Pattern – Dude Hat found free on Ravelry
• Needle size 8
• Yarn – LionBrand Basic Stitch

I also sewed a couple leftover pieces of batting together and pieced a backing so I’m ready to load and quilt the next top tomorrow.

Hat #16 is done. In this yarn with 2 repeats of the pattern – it’s a small woman’s or a older child size. The pattern calls for 3-4 repeats but I was afraid it would be too large AND I was using a partial skein and was afraid there wasn’t enough yarn for another repeat. It’s a good size as knit.

I’ve linked to the actual hat pattern below but check out the main pattern page on the Knots of Love site for other free patterns.

• Free pattern found online at Knots of Love – Glinda’s Chemo Hat
• Needle size 8
• Yarn – Paintbox Simply Aran

Hat #15 is finished. I’m kind of into knitting girl hats right now but trying to sneak a guy one in now and then and this is one of my favorite guy hats to knit. You really do want to stop at 5.5 or 6 inches as the pattern calls for before starting the decreases … the hat gains more length than a lot of patterns in the decrease rounds. I went a little further this time but next time I’ll stop just under 6 inches before starting the decreases if using Aran weight yarn.

• Pattern – Ross found free on Ravelry
• Needle size 8
• Yarn – Paintbox Simply Aran
• Cast on 80

After Keith went to bed I came downstairs and got the binding done on the family exchange project so that one is done. I also picked up and finished the hat I’d started last night!

This is hat #14. It’s a new pattern I’m trying for the first time and while typically I wouldn’t want an open stitch pattern on a hat, this one is cute and I think that with the ribbing covering the ears and the stockinette stitch covering the head, the band with the open mesh will be fine. It’s not all that “open”. It’s also the first time I’ve used this yarn and I’d rate it OK … soft but not as much twist as I like in a yarn and I like working with the LionBrand Basic Stitch yarn better.

I’ve linked to the actual hat pattern below but check out the main pattern page on the Knots of Love site for other free patterns.

• Free pattern found online at Knots of Love – Brandye Beanie
• Needle size – 6
• Yarn – Knit Picks Mighty Stitch – worsted

The pattern swirls nicely to the top.

Hat #13 is done. This is the last of the pink/orange ombre skein and I didn’t like how the end of the skein worked up as much as I liked the other two from it. Maybe the color changes in this yarn are just too long for hats? But they are soft!

• Pattern – Classic Cuff Hat found free on Ravelry
• Needle sizes – 5 for the ribbed cuff, 7 for the rest of the hat
• Yarn – LionBrand Mandala Ombre
• Cast on 80, knit ribbing for 3.5 inches, started crown decreases when hat was 8 inches.

I finished two hats this weekend … knitting Friday and Saturday nights after everyone else went to bed.

First up was hat #11, another Snow Day – like I said with the previous one, the pattern calls for bulky weight yarn but I used aran weight. I also went down a needle size. This is a nice quick little beanie and I have more of this yarn here so I expect there will be a few more of these.

• Pattern – Snow Day found free on Ravelry
• Needle size – 9
• Yarn – Paintbox Simply Aran
• Cast on 72 stitches and knitted the large size from the pattern. Started decreases when hat measured about 6.25 inches and it’s a good size that fits me.

Next up hat #12 was another repeat …

• Pattern is Sweet Spring from the book Baby Beanies by Amanda Keeys
• Needle size – 7
• Yarn – LionBrand Mandala Ombre

I’ve already got the next hat in progress but I’m going to switch over to some binding tonight!