I am obsessed with this hat

So, last night, my dear friend Richelle sent me a message stating that the hat that Mary J. Blige is wearing on the cover of her Reflections album is "FIRE"...and I do agree, it is off the chain. Take a peek.

So, I stayed up till about 2:00 AM scouring the internet for any information that I can find. Well, I found the hat at an online boutique, it is made out of Alpaca, and it costs $200. What???? Well, a skein of Misti Alpaca Chunky or Cascade Magnum is around $20 at my LYS.

Paying 10% of the cost of a super trendy, celebrity-inspired hat in a color that noone else in the world has is priceless. And since I have Cascade Magnum already in my stash....you already know what I am going to do.

Now, let's get back to Richelle. I have known her since I was twelve. She is a dear friend of mine that I care for very much. I consider her part of my family. But her exact words in her text message were "Girl, I don't think you can make that". My response "Are you trying to challenge me??? That sounds like a dare". Does she know who I am??? I can knit anything! I am a Certified Instructor... and I even knit half asleep. Of course, I can make that hat.

So, my lovely knitting peeps, I am going to put my design /deciphering skills to the test. I have already worked out the cable pattern into a chart, and I just have to figure out the decreases. I will keep you posted on the progress.

Now, I am not trying to infringe on the original designer's copyright. I will not sell the pattern to anyone. I am just using it as inspiration. If I happen to make it as an exact match, then I am a genius and a knitwear company should hire me ASAP, and pay me a great rate, with benefits and vacation. LOL!! But seriously, I am a person who is trying to stick to a budget and doesn't need a hat that costs more than her monthly car insurance payment.

Yes, I know that everyone has missed me. It seems like forever since my last post. I have been knitting though. I will post pics as soon as I can. Right now, I have some serious deadline knitting to do for a gift, and I haven't even completed 50% of it. Pictures before the week is up, I promise.

I made a cream and silver Sparkly Hat to replace one that I lost, but it is too big, and has to be frogged. So, no pictures just yet. Sorry. My problem was that I did it fron the top down, using a slightly thicker yarn than the original hat. I made one increase too many. I absolutely hate the way it looks on my head. This new yarn is Berocco Pure Merino, and the reason I got it was that it was Superwash.

But, I still have confidence that I am a fabulous hat maker. I completed my Beret. Here is a pic.

I am also making cat Bordhi's Mobius Cowl to go along with it. More updates on that later.

Oh, and those earrings in the picture. A Shameka original. Sterling Silver and glass beads.

Happy Knitting Everyone!!!

Sparkly Hat

So, yes I am still obsessed with hats. I made what I call the "Sparkly Hat" from Berroco Mirror FX and Debbie Bliss Cashmerino Aran. I bought both yarns at Knit New York. I must truly say that I love that knitting store. The staff is very friendly and helpful, and they have a wonderful selection to choose from. This is actually derived from a pattern I bought from them a few months ago, so I must give credit where credit is due. But, being totally unorganized with my knitting patterns (New Year's Resolution to change that is slowly going into effect) I lost it, and had to create my own.

I casted on 96 stitches to make a hat that is approximately 22 inches in circumference. I used a size 7 needle for the ribbing, just to make it snug (I hate when the wind blows into my ears). K2 P2 ribbed for approximately 1 inch, then continued in the stockinette stitch using size 8 needles. This is all done in the round on double pointed needles (just my preference... I hate seaming hats).

Now, here is the part that boggles everyone who comments on the hat. They actually think that I sewed each and every sequin..... Hello!!!! I live in New York. We are too fast paced to do things like that, even if we are the "Fashion Capital of the World". The sequins are strung along the Berroco Mirror FX yarn, and I hold both yarns together as I knit. How easy is that, huh? Glamour without pain and bags under the eyes. My own personal thing is not to overkill the garment with sparkles. You want it to look more like snowflakes, and less like the New Year's Eve ball. So, I only knit the two yarns together every other round.

During the shaping, my decrease rounds are knit in the Cashmerino yarn by itself, and the knit even rows have the Mirror FX yarn joined in.
I used a basic hat pattern, and started my decreasing with K10, K2tog after 6 inches. The next round is knit even, and the round after that is K9, K2tog. I keep following in that pattern until there are 8 stitches left on the needle. I thread the remaining yarn through the stitches twice, and weave in the ends.

Simple Glamour. Enjoy!!!