I am incredibly happy with this project. I really enjoyed knitting it too. The yarn choice worked perfectly, substituting BabyLongLegs Semi-Precious with BabyLongLegs BooSock. The merino content in BooSock is 80%, whereas in Semi-Precious, it is only 50%, which makes it a bit warmer and the yarn more springy. The 20% bamboo content of this yarn gives it strength and lustre. I think this yarn will actually be tougher than the recommended yarn, as well as warmer.
I still love Semi-Precious, though, and have ordered a skein of the specially dyed "Go! Green for Refuge" colourway. This yarn has been dyed as part of a Veuf Tricot's money raising endeavours for Refuge, a UK charity that supports women and children who have been exposed to an abusive home life. Veuf Tricot has designed three accessories that reflect his training to run the marathon and were designed to use single skeins of yarn that were dyed especially for the project, by three different UK dyers. I wanted to do something to support this, frankly, crazy decision to run such a long way and decided at the outset I would be purchasing one of the skeins of yarn. A large portion of the purchase of the yarn is going to Refuge. I think I always knew it would be the BabyLongLegs yarn that I would be buying! If you want to show your support for Refuge and Jim's efforts, please consider making a donation on Jim's JustGiving page or buying one (or all) of the patterns, or maybe treat yourself to a special skein of yarn.
Going back to finished project, here is the finished item, in all it's glory.
The folded brim is fantastic at keeping the cold wind out of my ears. When I started this hat, I assumed it would be perfect for Spring. In reality this hat is incredibly warm. I was really surprised at how warm it was, considering it is knit in sock yarn. I think it is because of the density of the knitted fabric, plus it has the doubled fabric for the brim and the body and crown of the hat has ridges that increase the amount of air that is trapped around the head.
When I started this pattern I simply loved the way it looked, but it has turned out to be a really warm addition to my accessories collection. Woolly Wormhead is, once again, triumphant in her hat pattern creation. It can be a bit fiddly to make all those ridges, but they do pull you on as you knit. You think to yourself, "just one more ridge". This hat took a bit longer than the last couple I knit, but it was very satisfying to create and I love the finished article. I love it when you enjoy knitting the project and it results in something you love wearing. For me, that ticks all my boxes. I am a combination of a process and product knitter. I will slog through a project to get the resulting product, but I will also end up with something I don't particularly need because I really wanted to enjoy the process of creating it. So this hat makes me happy in all ways! Knit The Queue 2013 is turning into a very enjoyable endeavour. I need to decide which item to start on next, once I finish a super secret urgent project I will make my decision.
To see other people's lovely finished things, click on the box.
