It ain't just a river in Egypt

I've been rather addicted to a little shawlette/scarf pattern called Hitchhiker. I must be - I've knitted three of the things! It's a lovely pattern - all in garter stitch, with 42 "teeth" down one side as a nod to Douglas Adams' "Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy" where the answer to Life, the Universe and Everything is (you guessed it) 42.

I needed a change, so I hopped onto Ravelry to search out new patterns to try. Did you know there are variations on the Hitchhiker scarf out there?! There are Hitchhands (mittens), Hitchhat (speaks for itself), and a very cleverly named Mostly Warmness (cowl & fingerless mitts set). They all have the trademark Hitchhiker teeth. I decided to try a Hitchhat.

Four ply yarn, 3mm needles, knitted on the bias with beginning & end grafted together seamlessly. Pretty!

The more I knit this, the more I like it. BUT. The more I knit, the more I suspect my gauge is off. The more I knit, the smaller I think this hat is going to be. No, no (la la la la la!) it'll be fine ... knit knit knit. Gee it really is looking small ... knit knit knit. Maybe I should frog it & start again ... knit knit knit. I'm definitely going to frog it & start again ... knit knit knit.

Now I only have two "teeth" left until I'm up to grafting it together ... knit knit knit!

Maybe I can block it bigger. Blocking fixes everything. Right?

"Squishy" - My First Beret

A few weeks ago, I had a lovely visit from my beautiful daughter. (Always love it when she visits!) During one of our many visits to the shops, she tried on a knitted beret. After reminding her of what I did (I'm a KNITTER!!), I plunked her down in front of the computer on Ravelry & told her to choose something she liked. She chose this:

Etoile hat

Delighted that she had actually asked me to make her something, I dove into the stash & came out with a really yummy merino/silk blend in cream. This yarn is sooooo soft. (I will call him Squishy, and he will be my Squishy.) I was a little worried that it was knitting up too small, but when I gave it a little bath before blocking, it grew! It went from being bread & butter plate size, to draping over a dinner plate. I think it's gorgeous, and after a quick trip in the post, I hope my darling daughter does too.