Yarn Along #1

I figured it was high time I jump on the Yarn Along bandwagon.  I've actually done quite a lot knitting this winter (a lot, at least, given my current responsibilities), but I haven't documented most of it.  I'm hoping doing Yarn Alongs will motivate me to keep knitting into the summertime, when historically I tend to forget about warm, woolly projects.

Anyway, here's my latest project - I just finished it this past weekend.  Technically the second time I'd made it - I knit the whole hat over my Thanksgiving vacation (a couple of days), then tried it on and found it was a little bit too big.  I tried to rip it out from the bottom to take an inch off, but found that it's nearly impossible to rip cables out from the bottom up.  It was such a mess that I had to unravel the entire thing and start over... live and learn, I guess.  I did cast it back on (with smaller needles) and knit a couple of rows immediately, but I just didn't have the heart to go any further for awhile.  So I finished a hat and gloves for my cousin, hat and gloves for my husband, hat for my brother-in-law, and then finally picked this back up three weeks ago.

I used the "Tuppence's Aran Cloche" pattern by Danny Ouellette, found here on Ravelry.   The pattern directions were pretty easy to follow (I loved that there was both a cabling chart, and written instructions).  The yarn is Paton's Classic Merino in (I think - I can't find my yarn wrapper at the moment) Jade Heather.

Here's a closeup of the cabling pattern:

I'm such a sucker for cables.  I love all things Celtic, and Celtic knotwork is no exception.  When I was 16, I made a whole sweater out of these sorts of cables - it took me nearly a year - and like the hat, turned out just a bit too big for me.  I didn't have the heart to unravel that project, so my Mom got a nice new sweater.  You'd think I'd have learned my lesson about needing to do a gauge sample, but no... I still can't be bothered.

A gratuitous pic or two of my little hat model (it's sized for me, so definitely too big for her, but cute nonetheless)

As for what I'm currently reading: I've been switching around a lot, but A Gift From the Sea by Anne Morrow Lindbergh is what I'm primarily reaching for, with Five for Sorrow, Ten for Joy (by Rumer Godden) falling a close second. 

Find more Yarn Alongs over at Small Things.

Have a great day everyone!  May you be blessed with ample time to knit and read!