Tag: Matataki Design

A Hat Named Priska on a Man Named Josh!

Just in time for Christmas and the cold!

Priska is knit using US 6 and 9 needles (4.25 and 5.5 mm) and less than one skein each of Cascade 220 worsted in two colors.  The hat band is designed to fit snugly, yet stretch.  This is possible because it is all stockinette, with stranded colors.  The hem is long and doubled over, creating a very thick, warm ear covering, as well as one which is snug enough, in theory, to allow activities without losing it.

My husband, Josh, is modeling the hat; this one is the “medium” size.  This hat fits me quite well, so the medium made be made for most adults.  The small will probably fit an older child, and the large for anyone with a big head, or for anyone who does not want a tight-fitting head band.

This hat can be knit up quickly by an experienced knitter, so it would be perfect for a last-minute gift.  Even the fairly new knitter, familiar with stranded knitting techniques, should not be too challenged by this pattern.

I designed this hat for my husband’s grandmother, Priscilla, with her bright blue eyes in mind.  Merry Christmas to Priska, and to all of you as well!

Fly Away!

These are my second pair of toe-up socks, and I will say that I was very pleased with them. You can find the pattern on the Patterns page.

I’m not sure if I am a toe-up convert, but at least I don’t hate them (toe-ups) any more!

I got very frustrated with Publisher – if you delete pages, it sort of blurs 2 pages into one in a .png file, and when using Adobe to make the PDF, it was a mess. But, that got fixed . . . v 1.1 ten minutes after the upload! Sheesh!!

Toe Up Socks Redux

Even though I have been writing about scones and ink, as well as rambling, I have been knitting.  I finished a project that sort of took shape one day when I was putzing around.  Unbelievably, I did another pair of toe-up socks, and was very pleased with the results.  They were very easy to do, to design, and fairly quick knitting up, even though I was using US 1.5 needles (though you could use a US 1 or 2 – 2.25 to 2.75 mm) and knitting at 8 stitches per inch.

My very first pair of toe-up socks was a major headache, and I really hated them.  So, I called them Albatross Socks* – from The Rime of the Ancient Mariner.  Because these were such an astounding success, I named these new ones Fly Away! – and the pattern, and sock yarn, made me think of birds and a bright, blue sky.